Award Winners
2008 GCSU Flagg Social Justice Legacy Award Recipients and Nominees
2009 GCSU Flagg Social Justice Legacy Award Recipients and Nominees
The GCSU Flagg Social Justice Legacy Award is named for the Rev. Wilkes B. Flagg, an affluent legend in Baldwin County, in honor of and in recognition of his lifelong contributions to educational advancement and social justice.
Born in Virginia in 1802, Wilkes Flagg was the slave of Dr. Tomlinson Fort, who was purchased, along with his mother Sabina, from the Lamar plantation on Little River. A very active leader during reconstruction, Rev. Flagg helped the destitute blacks in the community. Rev. Flagg established a school for the blacks at Flagg Baptist Church. According to Reflections, a newsletter of the Historic Preservation Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, "the educational accomplishments at Flagg Chapel soon came to the attention of Reverend Hiram Eddy of the American Missionary Society AMA." This philanthropic society provided teachers and equipment for schools built by the Freedman's Bureau. In 1869, students moved from classes previously held at Flagg Chapel Baptist Church to the Eddy School, the only educational institution for African Americans in Milledgeville.
