The Antebellum Trail

03/14/2022 – 03/20/22

Not quite sure how we discovered the Antebellum Trail. Bill was reading some literature somewhere and saw some information on this route through Georgia. I was leaning more towards spending the week in Savannah but this looked pretty interesting. This trail is made up seven communities that were spared during General Sherman’s March to the Sea at the close of the Civil War. This translates to many historical buildings and beautiful houses to see. We decided to spend the week here and explore the 100-mile trail that runs from Macon to Athens. The small town of Milledgeville would be our home base for the week.

As we started to plan our “Journey West” back to the Pacific NW, Bill and I talked about how we wanted to travel. Did we want to stick to interstates or explore more of the countryside and take US and State Highways when possible? The decision was made, quite easily and without much discussion, to travel the US and State Highways as much as possible. To help us navigate the highways, a Motor Carriers Road Atlas was purchased (no affiliations). What a fantastic tool this atlas is. Not only does it highlight the routes that are safe for tractor-trailers, but it also contains tables by state that list low clearance locations by highway.

With the help of the atlas, Google Maps and our Truckers GPS, we created our route from Oak Hill FL up to Milledgeville GA. Once we got through Jacksonville on I-95, we took US 23 to US 441 which took us right in to Milledgeville. I’ll just say, the ride was stress free. The traffic was minimal, the countryside was beautiful and time flew by. I didn’t play with my phone, read a book or break out my crochet project once. I think we might be on to something here.

Milledgeville

Like I said, we made Milledgeville our home for the week and the Scenic Mountain RV Park was our base. Time to go start exploring. Did you know Milledgeville was the second state capital of Georgia? I had no clue.  I thought Atlanta was always the capital city. Milledgeville served as capital from 1804 to 1868. We stopped at the Visitor Center and picked up a map for the Historical Walking Tour. The next 2 hours were spent strolling by many historic homes and churches. Many of the homes were built in the early to mid-1800s in Victorian or Greek Revival architecture. It is amazing to me how beautiful and grand the houses were for their time and how beautiful they still are, almost 200 years later.

While we were walking around town, Kona found one of the statues interesting. We were not paying any attention, but she stopped; her ears went up and her tail went down.

We walked around the grounds of the Governor’s Mansion and the State Capitol Building. The Governor’s Mansion was built in 1839 in Greek Revival architecture. It was home to Georgia’s governors from 1839 to 1868. General Sherman occupied the residence during his famous March to the Sea. The historic society offers tours of the mansion, but sadly they were closed the day we were there.

The State Capitol was built in 1807 in Gothic architecture. This building is where the legislators voted to secede in 1861. The building has been restored several times and has been home to the Georgia Military College since 1879.

A short drive from the historic district is Central State Hospital. These grounds are a little creepy. We parked in front of the main building that housed the administrative offices and the main hospital. It opened in 1842 and was the states largest facility for mental illness and development disabilities. Located around the pecan grove were several other buildings that housed the patients. All are abandoned now with broken windows and ivy growing on them. I’m sure there are some stories to be told about what happened here.

Eatonton

A short drive north on US 441 is the small town of Eatonton. Eatonton is home to Joel Chandler Harris and the Uncle Remus Museum. Do you know Brer Rabbit? Brer Fox? Brer Bear? Mr. Harris is the author and journalist responsible for preserving the African-American animal tales he heard in the slave quarters on Turnwold Plantation during his youth. We enjoyed a tour of the museum and hearing his story from our guide.

Joel went to live at Turnwold Plantation when he was about 14 years old after he answered an ad for newspaper work placed by Joseph Addison Turner, owner of The Countryman. Here he began his career in the newspaper business. Joel, being illegitimate and poor, felt more comfortable being in the slave quarters and would spend the majority of his time there when he was not working. He formed close relationships with several of the slaves. He absorbed their stories, language and inflections.

The stories were originally written as a continual series for the newspaper by Mr. Harris as a way to “preserve in permanent shape the curious mementos of a period that will no doubt be sadly misrepresented by historians of the future”. He was then approached to compile all the stories into a book. I am grateful Mr. Harris wrote these stories down and preserved them. Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox and Brer Bear’s stories bring back happy memories of my childhood. Bill and I purchased the book at the museum and have been enjoying reading these tales a few at a time.

On the way out of town, we rode thru the historic district and drove by several more beautiful houses. More examples of Greek Revival and Victorian architecture.

Madison – Watkinsville – Athens

We put aside one day to tour these three towns. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate as severe thunderstorms moved into the area. That was not going to deter us, though. We faced the wind, rain, thunder and lightening and did what we could.

Madison

Madison is the next town north on the trail and my favorite. It is the epitome of “small town charm”. Driving north into the town square we passed by several historic homes. Come to find out, Madison has the states largest collection of 19^th century architecture. Beautiful home after beautiful home. We stopped at the Visitor Center and picked up a map. We were unable to do the walking tour due to the rain, well…mostly the lightening. I’m not afraid of some rain drops, but lightening cracking around me is a different story. That being what it is, our walking tour became a driving tour and I had to snap pictures the best I could as we drove by.

I loved this little town and wish I had planned a little better. There were three houses here we could have toured as well as an African-American Museum. We still needed to get up to Athens and I was afraid we wouldn’t have time.

Watkinsville

On to Watkinsville. Watkinsville is a very small town and we decided to visit the Elder Mill Covered Bridge. I love the beauty and simplicity of a covered bridge. This bridge was built in 1897 and crosses Rose Creek. It was moved here in 1924 from its original location over Calls Creek. What is most impressive about this bridge is it still carries traffic and has no underlying steel beams for support. It is all wood.

Athens

We finally make it to the north end of the trail, Athens. Home of the GA Bulldogs. It is still raining with the occasional crack of lightening. The storm system is slowly moving out. First stop was to the Visitor Center, which was closed. No walking tour here either. We drove around the University of Georgia campus and I learned this school was America’s first state-chartered college, founded in 1785. We drove by the T.R.R. Cobb House, which was closed as well. Not sure how we missed all these closures.

Anyway, we had two “big ball of yarn” locations to check out; The Double-Barreled Cannon and The Tree That Owns Itself. If you like odd, silly stuff, go to this website. It will provide pin drops and info on roadside attractions.

The Double-Barreled Cannon is the only one in the world. The idea was good, I think. The concept was to load the cannon with two balls connected by a chain several feet long. When fired, the chain would mow down anything caught in its path. However, both cannons could not be fired simultaneously to create the desired effect. Sometimes you succeed, sometimes you don’t.

Over to The Tree That Owns Itself. Professor William H. Jackson had a great love for a great oak tree on his property. When he died, he willed the tree and the land with 8 feet on all sides to the tree itself. The tree blew down during a windstorm in 1942 so the local Ladies Garden Club took an acorn from that tree and planted it. Jackson Oak Jr, stands strong and tall today. It should be covered with leaves in a few more weeks.

Clinton/Old Gray and Macon

Jarrell Plantation

Bill’s cousin and her husband, who live outside of Macon, joined us on our last day of the trail. We met at Jarrell Plantation State Historic Site just outside of Clinton/Old Gray. This park was a gem! We spent well over 3 hours here and took a step back in time. The Jarrell family farmed this 900 acre cotton plantation from 1847 to 1965. The farm was then donated to the state of Georgia in 1974 to establish this historic site. The family still owns the 1920 house and use it as a Bed and Breakfast.

We arrived early and were fortunate to have the ranger to ourselves. He opened up the 1847 and 1895 homes and allowed us to walk around while he shared stories of the family with us. The original furniture decorates the homes. The beds they slept in, the rocking chairs by the fireplace, the cradles where the babies slept, the sewing machine used to make their clothes, the spinning wheels and looms used to make the material for their clothes. It is all just amazing.

Not only did the Jarrell’s farm, but they also offered many services to their neighbors. They had a grist mill, a cotton gin, sawmill, a fanning mill and a cane mill. All were powered by two steam engines. They had a blacksmith shop and wood workshop as well. They did it all, I guess.

The 1847 house was built by John Fitz Jarrell after he wed and his father gifted him 100 acres. He acquired another 500 acres by 1863 and owned 900 acres at the time of his death. His son, Benjamin “Dick” Jarrell, built the 1895 for his wife and family and industrialized the whole farm operation. Dick later built the 1920 house with the help of his sons and nephews. The simplicity of these houses and furnishings show the Jarrell’s spent their extra money on the farm rather than their houses and furniture. This is a MUST DO!

Hay House

The final city on the trail, Macon. There was only time to do one activity in Macon and I chose to tour Hay House. During this whole week, we had not toured one antebellum mansion. That is about to change. We leave the simple houses of the Jarrell Plantation and enter the opulence of Hay House. The house was completed in 1859 in Italian Renaissance Revival and was called the “Palace of the South”. It was built by William Butler Johnston who made his wealth through investments in banking, railroads and public utilities. Once his daughter was married in 1888, she and her husband became the primary owners. Upon their deaths in 1926, the heirs sold the house to Parks Lee Hay and is now called “The Hay House”.

To say the house is beautiful would be an understatement. The tour started in the basement with the story of the people that once occupied this grand space. We then went upstairs and toured the main sitting room, the gentlemen’s sitting room, the ball room, the music room and the dining room. All were gorgeous. Each of the rooms were connected with pocket doors. A special wall had to be built to enclose the huge pocket door that led from the ball room to the music room, and it was built so that you would never notice it. The dining room contained a floor to ceiling stained glass window which was absolutely stunning.

The tour continued upstairs to the 2^nd floor where the residents’ bedrooms were. Each bedroom had its own bathroom. Yes, indoor plumbing, which was rare for this time period. Also rare was the elevator in the house. It was the size of a very small closet. One “lucky” person got to ride in it. Not me, nope, too claustrophobic for that.

What a great day, walking thru two very different ways of life in the same time period. Which would I prefer? I would honestly have to say, if the Jarrell Plantation had indoor plumbing, I would probably choose that lifestyle. Maybe… 😉 Which would you prefer?

Another Cousin Visit

Cousins are ready-made friends. Bill has a lot of cousins and they are all truly great friends. We had the pleasure of visiting another cousin in Macon. After hanging out with us all day, we finally ended up at their new house for an evening of visiting, reminiscing, catching up and good eating. We had fajitas on the Blackstone (I see one of these in my future) and were treated to some of Aunt Sudie’s Oatmeal Cookies. I love these cookies and have very fond memories of Aunt Sudie. Thanks, Dianne and Tommy for a great evening!

Oh, and we had another “cousin” encounter in GA. I almost forgot about “My Cousin Vinny”. LOL! While Bill was taking a conference call, I was reading in the Putnam County magazine about movies filmed in the area. Lo and behold, many of the location shots in “My Cousin Vinny” were filmed around the area. Off we go to find some of them. We located the courthouse, the Sac o’ Suds and two of the motels. Pretty funny. Then… we came back and watched the movie. What I thought was hilarious is the movie “takes place” in Alabama (even though it was filmed in GA) and in one of the last court room scenes, the sheriff announces they apprehended the real murderer in Jasper County, GA. Jasper County is the location of the real courthouse used in the movie. Anyway, I got a chuckle out of that.

Well, that wraps another adventure. The Antebellum Trail is worth the trip. If I were to do it again, I would plan to come a little later in the spring or early summer and check the tour hours at the places I wanted to see and not just assume everything would be open.