It was the belief of the late Col. John P. Fort that much of
southwest Georgia, including all the western part of Dougherty
County, would one day blossom into a veritable garden spot as the
result of a peculiar natural condition.
Colonel Fort bored the first artesian well in this section, and had
made a lifelong study of the geology of the southern part of the
State. He contended that a flowing artesian well might be secured
almost anywhere in this region, but it was his belief that in the
territory where he had made especially careful investigations,
including West Dougherty, a vast water-bearing stratum, or perhaps
several such strata, lay below the surface and that the supply of
water held there could never be exhausted. Many springs in south
Georgia and Florida, including the great Wakulla spring and a number
that boil up from the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, were fed from
this stratum, according to Colonel Fort's idea.
The picture in the mind of Colonel Fort, as he often spoke of this
rich blessing enjoyed by our section, was of a region to the surface
of which a part of this water supply had been brought for use in
irrigation plants. He himself built such a plant on one of his
Dougherty County plantations, and gave practical demonstrations of
what it was possible to accomplish. The United States Government
became interested in the experiment, and sent experts to make
observations and lend assistance.
Colonel Fort did not expect to live to see his dreams come true, but
he believed they would materialize for other generations. He knew
that in the rich soil of this section wonderful crops could be made
under irrigation, and that with an inexhaustible water supply a few
hundred feet below the surface, the development he foresaw would in
time come to pass.
Colonel Fort was no dreamer, though some persons thought he was when
he began boring the first artesian well in Georgia. He lived to see
hundreds of flowing wells and thousands from which pure water is
pumped, and another generation will no doubt see his vision of a
section made fabulously rich by irrigation likewise realized.
_Macon "Telegraph," Feb., 1917_