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    The Land of Ridge and Valley: A Photographic History of the Northwest Georgia Mountains
    The Land of Ridge and Valley: A Photographic History of the Northwest Georgia Mountains
    The Land of Ridge and Valley: A Photographic History of the Northwest Georgia Mountains
    Ebook175 pages1 hour

    The Land of Ridge and Valley: A Photographic History of the Northwest Georgia Mountains

    By Donald S. Davis

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    The mountains of Northwest Georgia encapsulate a lifetime of rich and varied stories, both of the land and its own natural bounty and the countless people who have drawn sustenance from its resources. The historic photographs within these pages depict all facets of life in the region, and recall the tumultuous changes that came along with the advent of mining, the demise of the Native American community, and the appearance of new industries. Today, as technology paves the way for a bright future, the signs of life in an earlier era are scattered throughout this mountainous region--abandoned homesteads and forlorn mining sites evoke memories of a past when the first mine prospectors dug deep into the mountains, uncovering thousands of tons of precious ores for the insatiable engines of commerce and industry. The discovery of valuable minerals such as talc, bauxite, and shale put the region at the forefront of domestic mining, and shaped the overall character of the growing community. Captured in this volume are the enterprising settlers who first worked the land; the homes, farms, and industries they built; and the major environmental, social, and cultural transformations that occurred in Northwest Georgia throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Coupled with an informative text, these snapshots of days gone by shed new light upon two centuries of progress, marked by triumphs and setbacks, and the collective spirit of an unyielding and determined people.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateNov 8, 2000
    ISBN9781439610763
    The Land of Ridge and Valley: A Photographic History of the Northwest Georgia Mountains
    Author

    Donald S. Davis

    A native of North Georgia, Donald Edward Davis, Ph.D., holds master's degrees in both Social Ecology and Psychology. He serves as Assistant Professor of Sociology at Dalton State College, and is the author of numerous articles in the field of environmental history. In The Land of Ridge and Valley, Davis combines a keen interest in the history of the region with photographs culled from the Georgia Department of Archives and History and a wide variety of public and private collections. The result is an innovative study of the land and its people, and the changes they have endured together.

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      The Land of Ridge and Valley - Donald S. Davis

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      INTRODUCTION

      Unique to the South are the northwest Georgia mountains. Known by geographers as the Armuchee Ridges, these picturesque mountains are part of the Ridge and Valley physiographic province of the southern Appalachians. Taylors Ridge, Johns Mountain, and Rocky Face comprise a significant portion of the mountain region, although numerous smaller ridges are considered part of the geographic area as well. Popular recreation areas such as Lake Marvin, The Pocket, and Redwine Cove are found within the boundaries of the northwest Georgia mountains, sites frequented by weekend visitors and local residents alike. The Armuchee Ranger District of the Chattahoochee National Forest comprises no fewer than 66,000 acres of public land in the area, incorporating portions of six northwest Georgia counties.

      From an ecological perspective, the Armuchee Ridges are truly distinctive. The mountains are at a biological crossroads, containing numerous plant species from the northern and southern end of their range. Because of its diverse ecology and natural beauty, the area received attention from the U.S. Congress, who, in 1992, temporarily stopped all logging activities in many portions of the Armuchee Ranger District of the Chattahoochee National Forest.

      Not only do the northwest Georgia mountain region display a unique geology and natural history, it is also rich in human history. This corner of Georgia was also the heart of the former Cherokee Nation, which had its capital at New Echota near Calhoun. Pioneer settlers also worked the land, leaving their own cultural imprint on the landscape. Later in the century, mine prospectors and their employees dug deep into the mountains, uncovering thousands of tons of precious ores for the insatiable engines of commerce and industry. In the area’s wide and rich river valleys, cotton truly became king, promoting the development of the selling and manufacturing of a whole array of cotton products in the area, including tufted linens and bedspreads. While there are few signs of these previously vital industries, abandoned homesteads and mining sites can still be seen throughout the mountain region, marking a way of life almost forgotten.

      Among the first inhabitants of the northwest Georgia mountains were the Mississippians, mound builders who built permanent settlements along the area’s largest river valleys. During the 17th century, after the collapse of Mississippian culture due to disease and famine, the Cherokees began calling northwest Georgia home. Soon, they too would see their demise as white settlers forced their removal in an exodus now known as the Trail of Tears.

      As a result of settlement during the early 19th century, all of northwest Georgia was divided into rectangular 160-acre land lots and distributed by lottery to prospective settlers. These lots were originally mapped by district surveyors who used standing trees as boundary markers. By examining these original survey land plats, it is now possible to reconstruct the original composition of the mountain forests. Oaks, hickories, and chestnuts dominated much of the northwest Georgia landscape, with pines occurring only on drier slopes or near abandoned Cherokee homesites.

      Within decades, a growing white population brought the need for improved commercial transport, which made the region’s largest rivers important arteries for commerce and trade. During the antebellum period, both slaves and cotton were transported down the Conasauga and Ooostanauala to Rome, then a major river-port town. Steamboats were not entirely uncommon sights on these rivers, particularly during spring freshets when water levels were at their peak.

      Mineral Springs were another important resource of the northwest Georgia mountain region, as the taking of healthful waters had developed into a popular ritual for most Southerners prior to the Civil War. During the warm summer months, people would visit as many mineral springs as possible, taking advantage of their tonic and soothing effects. By 1850, Catoosa Springs near Ringgold had become renown for its many unique and varied waters. At that time, there were more than 52 visible springs on the site. Names were given for the various waters, and a large hotel and guest cottages were soon built to accommodate more than 500 guests. In 1861, Catoosa Springs was proclaimed the Saratoga of the South, and by the turn of the century, waters from the springs were being bottled and shipped to all parts of the United States.

      Underneath the northwest Georgia mountains lay an abundance of valuable minerals: talc, bauxite, shale, and the numerous ores for making iron. Geologists and mine prospectors scouting the mountains soon discovered these seams, and commercial mining activities prospered across the region. In fact, the first discovery of bauxite in North America was made at Hermitage in Floyd County in 1887, and this mine supplied much of the domestic supply for more than a decade. Iron ore was mined extensively along Taylor’s Ridge in Walker, Catoosa, and Whitfield Counties, as well as in Sugar Valley in Gordon County. Talc, a powdery mineral with a number of industrial and commercial uses, was heavily mined in Murray County, near the foot of Fort Mountain, becoming no small industry there by the turn of the 20th century.

      The clearing of mountain forests for mines and agriculture attracted the attention of the National Forest Service, which began purchasing private lands in the region in 1937. A decade earlier, the state geologist had declared the region mineral as poor, thereby making it a prime candidate for the emerging National Forest system. The 250,000-acre Armuchee Ranger District was created at that time, a purchase unit that was added to the already formed Chattahoochee National Forest. After World War II, the budget for land acquisitions was slashed, leaving only 65,000 acres of the original 250,000-acre purchase unit under federal ownership. The Civilian Conservation Corps had several encampments within the boundaries of the Armuchee Ranger District; their handiwork is still visible today.

      Both corn and cotton grew well in the fertile valleys of the mountain region, but cotton had become the major cash crop by the late 19th century. Cotton was grown on almost every farm, and schoolchildren were released from school each fall to help harvest the annual crop. Cotton production also helped to stimulate the textile industry, a chief employer

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