Captain Cone
William Cone Sr. was born October 27, 1749 in Martin County, North Carolina, and died December 1816 in Bulloch County, Georgia." At another time, the Tories fell on an unsuspecting settlement and stealing the horses of the settlers there, carried away everything possible. Headed by Captain Cone, the settlers pursued them down into what is now Tattnall County, Georgia. Close on their heels, they found them after a shower of rain. The Tories sent one of their number forward to reconnoiter. The approach of this man became known to the Tories through one of the stolen horses, and one of their number, starting out to learn the cause of their confusion, was shot dead by the scout who was concealed behind a long. This was the signal for the attack, and the patriots rushed forward, driving the Tories into the Ohoopee river, and recovered their stolen goods. It is said that this raid broke the power of the Tories in that community.
Upon the return of Captain Cone to his plantation after the war to his home near Riceboro, he found that the "Tranquil Plantation" had been occupied by the British General Prevost, commander of the British troops in the South and his officers. On the wall of the sitting room, he found branded on the boards: "This house was the home of a nest of rebels," which brand remained on the wall until a few years after the Confederate war, when, Dr.Samuel Way, who then owned the property, destroyed it while making repairs. The British had heard that a pot of gold was buried on the plantation,and spent much time digging in the yard without any luck."