George Henbree Winston was born on March 5, 1815, in Georgia. He married Ann Hall Whitaker on July 4, 1839, and they had at least three children: Oroon, born on July 16, 1840; Ann, born on July 3, 1843; and Mary, born on February 2, 1854. They lived in West Point, Georgia, and he worked as a farmer. By 1850, he owned $1,000 of real estate. A decade later, he owned $7,000 of real estate and $45,000 of personal property.

 

He later claimed that he was “opposed to the separation of Georgia from the Federal Union and had no agency…in bringing about the war between the North and South. He took no active part in the war.” He did, however, serve as a district tax assessor in 1864. He applied for a federal pension in August 1865, insisting that he was “anxious to become a good and loyal citizen of the United States and intends so to be in the future.” President Andrew Johnson granted his pardon later that month.

 

He remained in West Point, and by 1870, he owned $10,000 of real estate and $3,000 of personal property. He died in Georgia on December 4, 1887.

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