Magnolia Springs State Park

After bidding farewell to our friends, we headed south.  We stopped for the night at the Magnolia Springs State Park, near Millen, GA.  It is known best for its clear springs that has been drawing people here for many years.  The spring has an estimated water flow of seven million gallons per day.  There is also an abandoned aquarium on the  grounds that reportedly attracted up to 40K visitors a year for the few years it was open. 

The campground is in an area near the lake with 26 sites for RVs and tents.  There are tall trees providing some shade.  A great place for rigs of all sizes. There are water craft available to cruise the lake and picnic areas to enjoy the scenery.

The park also has an important historical site on the grounds.   During the Civil War, a prisoner of war camp was located here, called Camp Lawson.  As the war dragged  on, there was a need for another camp to hold the growing number of Union prisoners.  This need became acute when the North ended the prisoner of war exchange program in the hopes that this would shorten the time it would take to defeat the South.  We saw firsthand how awful the conditions in these camps were when we visited the Andersonville POW site. The design of this camp was nearly identical to the one in Andersonville, which more or less guaranteed horrific conditions for the prisoners, many of whom were sent here from Andersonville due to overcrowding.  There were over ten thousand  prisoners at the camp when it was abandoned as  General Sherman made his march to the sea and Savannah.  A small interpretive center is located next to the park check-in office.  It is definitely worth the small fee to visit. Across the way you can walk thru some of the earthen works of this camp that are undergoing  archaeological study. 

Travelers Rest

The Travelers Inn is a designated National Historic site just outside of the city of Toccoa, GA.  We visited the site with our friends Tom and Sally while we were staying with them.  The land that the site sits on originally was Cherokee land that was granted to Major  Jesse Walton in 1785 for his service  in the  Revolutionary War. Three years later he was killed by Indians near there in 1789. The Walton family sold the land to James Rutherford Wyly. He built the house as a stopover for  travelers on the new turnpike going east and west through northern Georgia. 

Devereaux Jarrett bought the house in 1838 and it became the operating center of his 14,000-acre plantation. Jarrett added to the original structure. It had ten rooms available to travelers.  It became a center of information and commerce with growing population of the area .  The preserved structure is a fine example of construction and life style of the period.

This object was in one of the bedrooms with no identification.  We could not be sure what it was. I thought it could be anything from a hat box to port- a- potty. The only ranger on duty had no idea what it could be.

While we were in the area , there was a annual salute to the military in downtown Toccoa.  There were encampments , reenactments and a parade.  We arrived just in time for the parade, which focused mostly on the WWII period.  Some of the bystanders were dressed in period clothes .  There were a number of paratrooper groups in the parade.  Our friend , Tom, said that there was a large training compound just out of town used for paratrooper training.  Reportedly, there are efforts ongoing to create a museum on the grounds of the training area.

Trip interrupted

I have the time to post this blog since yesterday while visiting a coastal GA plantation, Anneke tripped on a hickory nut in the parking lot and fell.  She has a cut and some bruises that will need a few days to feel well enough to travel.

After being home for several months, it was time for another road trip.  First we visited family in Alabama and Georgia, then  we headed to the northeast edge of Georgia to visit friends who live along Lake Hartwell near the South Carolina border. 

On the way northeast in GA,  we camped at Doll Mountain ACOE park.  We have been there several times and the first loop of the park is fairly new with level paved sites with wooded surroundings and views of the lake.  The only drawback to the park is the approach roads and   park roads are very steep.  On this visit the loop was nearly empty and we had a quiet stay.

From there we headed northwest thru Blairsville to Hiawassee.  Here we found a very small campground just out of town, Mountain View RV park, which  recently had new owners take over.  The owner was very friendly, showing us the music hall where campers and others can enjoy concerts seasonally. He also took our picture for their wall of fame  They are still working on some sites and most are fairly short an unpaved. It is not for big rigs that need their space and amenities.  For others, it is a great place to stop. We enjoyed our stop. 

Our route also took us through the town of Helen, GA.  Some decades ago when the town was having funding problems, it made the decision to change the facade of the buildings to an alpine appearance and it was instantly a German style mountain tourist town.  Apparently it was a big success since they are still at it.  We had a good German meal last time through, so we repeated the experience  and enjoyed walking thru the tourists area.