Local Lore from the book BOTH SIDES OF THE SWAMP:
"The first residents of the village of Gifford were Mr W D Fitts and his wife Eliza Forester Fitts. They lived in the community preceeding and following the Civeil War. He owned a plantation and had his own cotton gin and grist mill.
The Gifford Family came into the community from the northern states around 1870. They were plantation owners and planted mostly cotton.
In 1890, Mr and Mrs J.H. Hanna moved to the community for the purpose of sawmilling and turpentine. They began clearing land to build houses for their workers and even had a commissary for them."
The house you stand before now was originally the property of the Hanna family. They donated it to the town of Gifford to be used as their town hall.