Left Switzerland with six other families on 23 April 1735, and counting all wives and children, the party consisted of 42 people. They arrived in Carolina in July 1735 with 250 other Swiss settlers, and two weeks later made their way to Orangeburg Township (NOTICE) NOT SURE IF THIS IS CORRECT THIS IS AN ASSUMPTION MADE FROM OTHER INFORMATION CONCERNING HIS SON-IN-LAW MARTIN'S FATHER, THE DATES MATCH SOMEWHAT

THIS INFO FOLLOWING IS CORRECT This information is from: CEN-SILVER CELEBRATION

• The 125th Anniversary of the founding of Hazlehurst, Georgia
• A Town at the Crossroads
• Compiled and Presented by the Hazlehurst-Jeff Davis County
• Chamber of Commerce

The immigrant of the Telfair County Yawn family was Nicholas Yawn who was granted a Memorial Grant of 200 acres in Orangeburgh County, South Carolina by his Majesty King George II on December 14, 1738. Many of the early county clerks could not read or write very well and trying to spell name from Neuchatel a country near German, names proved very difficult for many of them. The name in Neuchatel was spell "I'on" sounded (Yonn). The name I'on has been traced back in to the 1400 in the country of Neuchatel.  Neuchatel is no longer a country.  All were easied into country around them. All the records of Neuchatel are in History Center in Purysbury in Europe. The Yawn name has been found here in the U.S.A. spelled Yon, Yonn, Yohn, Youn, and Yawn. Most descendants of the name in the south Georgia spelled their last name Yawn.

A diary of the Rev. Giessendanner is very important in studying the activities (birth, baptism, death, marriage, etc.) of this early Yawn family in Orangeburgh County family. It is known that Nicholas and his wife, Christiana, had children named: Susannah, Anna, Simon Nicholas. Each descendent of Nicholas and Christiana Yawn owned large plantations of their own in Orangeburgh County, S.C. About 1820 many of these descendents moved to Georgia, probably to find enough land for large plantations of their own. Even though they could have all been brothers, some Yawn families lived in Pulaske, Crawford, Houston and Dooly Counties for years. Another group which also could have been closely related settled in the counties of Laurens, Montgomery, Telfair, and Appling.