William Gilliland, Sr.
One Land Warrant & Three Certificates 
Washington County, Georgia
1784

Source: Georgia Headright and Bounty Land Records, 1783-1909
Images of the original documents may be viewed at https://familysearch.org

Kate’s notes: More information on William’s Revolutionary War service may be found at the Gilliland Trails forum and in his pension application, which provides more detail of his service as well as genealogical information (pdf ): http://revwarapps.org/w7533.pdf
    This file contains the records of one land warrant and three certificates issued to William for land in Washington County. I’m not sure how to reconcile the varying amounts of acreage recorded in these documents.
    All of these records were handwritten. Interpreting any handwritten document can be tricky so any portions in doubt have been indicated by brackets. I have not made any corrections for capitalization, punctuation or spelling.

Land warrant dated May 1784, for 575 acres:

To Joseph Pannill Surveyor for the County of Washington

You are hereby authorized and required to admeasure  and lay out, or cause to be admeasured and laid out, unto William Gilliland a Tract of Land, which shall contain Five Hundred and Seventy five Acres, in the said County of Washington

Taking especial Care that the same has not heretofore been laid out to any other Person or Persons: And you are hereby also directed and required to record the Plat of the same in your Office, and transmit a Copy thereof, together with this Warrant, to the Surveyor general, within the Term of three Months from this Date.

Given under my Hand, this fourteenth day of May 1784
Secretarys Office      }
Certified by                }                          John Habersham.
D Rees  Depy Secy    }                              [illegible]

On the front fold:

[word illegible; ink smeared]
William Gilliland
575 Acres
Bounty
Washington County
1911

Nineteen Hundred
& eleven ---
Executed by
Benj. [illegible] D.S.

On the reverse:

To the Honble the President & members of the Land Court at Augusta. Wm. Gilleland* prays your Honble Bord[sic] to grant him a Warrant for 575* Acres of Land on the within Certificate in the county of Washington  & your petitioner will Pray
                                                                         Wm Gilliland

Petn [abbreviated]
Wm Gilliland
Granted
16th Apl. 1784
Entered.

Originally *287 ½ acres had been written and scratched out, replaced by 575 acres. William’s name had also been spelled Gilleland rather than Gilliland. This was a handwritten document.

First certificate, dated February 1784, for 250 acres

STATE OF GEORGIA.

This is to certify, That William Gilliland hath stedfastly done his duty, from the time of passing an Act at Augusta, to wit, on the 20th of August, 1781, until the total expulsion of the British from this state; and the said Wm. Gilliland cannot, to my knowledge or belief, be convicted of plundering or distressing the country; and is therefore, under the said Act, entitled to a bounty of Two Hundred and Fifty Acres of good Land, free from taxes for ten years.

    Given under my hand, at Savannah the
    2nd day of Feby 1784.

By his order.
H. Freeman                                Elijah Clarke, Col.

Second certificate, dated April 1784:

State of Georgia
    This is to Certify that Wm. Gilliland was an Inhabitant of this State prior to the reduction thereof & took refuge in the other States -- & during his refugeeship behaved himself as a Good Soldier, whenever called on –
    Given under my hand at Augusta the 8th April 1784 –
By his order                                                        Elijah Clarke Col.
Wm. Freeman

Third certificate, dated March 1784, for 250 acres:

GEORGIA.                                                                                                              [No. 1086]
           THESE are to certify, That William Gilliland a Citizen is entitled to Two Hundred & fifty Acres of Land, as a Bounty, agreeable to an Act and Resolve of the General Assembly, passed at Augusta the 20 August 1781.
                                                   As per Certificate   E. Clarke Col.
 Attest                                       GIVEN under my Hand, at Savannah, the
D Rees Secy                              25th Day of March
                                                   In the Year of our Lord One thousand Seven
                                                   Hundred and Eighty-four.
                                                                          [J Houstown]

**************

-transcription by Kate Maynard, 2013