Page 11 - Athens Chamber Guide 2015

Athens’Past
built a solid foundation for the present
Winnie Davis Hall houses the Georgia Regents University/
University of Georgia Medical Partnership administrative offices.
Cradled in the ancient Blue Ridge
Mountains near the North and Middle
Oconee Rivers lies Athens, Georgia, a
flourishing city of unparalleled beauty
and culture. Habitation of the site dates
back to an ancient Cherokee settlement
at Cedar Shoals on the Oconee River.
Athens is in Clarke County, which
was founded on December 5, 1801 and
named for heroic Elijah Clarke. Clarke
County originally included parts of both
Madison and Greene counties in addition
to present-day Oconee County.
Elijah Clarke is most known for his
influence and efforts to form treaties
between settlers and the Cherokee and
Creek Indian tribes. Clarke first traveled
to Georgia from North Carolina in 1774
to act as a mediator between the new
settlers and the native tribes in the area,
eventually suspending hostilities with
treaties with the Creek in 1782 and the
Cherokee in 1792.
The City of Athens was incorporated
on December 8, 1806. The University of
such men as Benjamin Harvey Hill, Howell HISTORY
Cobb, and Joseph Henry Lumpkin, Athens
maintained its strong persona, its guiding
vision for the future, and its extraordinary
forward-moving impetus. Textile factories
and related businesses expanded at
an unprecedented rate, resulting in a
Georgia had commenced classes in 1801, phenomenal level of growth in the
and the city was respectfully named New South.
in honor of the center of intellectual The burgeoning economic prosperity
wealth that had been the heart of was echoed by the community. The Lucy
classical Greece. Elegant homes quickly Cobb Institute (with a reputation as one of
sprang up around the new campus and the preeminent girls’schools in the nation)
the cultural and social life surrounding and mansions of stunning opulence
the college began to attract families of marked the Victorian period. The Athens
prosperity and national stature. At that Street Railway Company was founded
time, industry rapidly grew, primarily in 1870. The year 1871 marked the time
that of cotton, brick works, textile mills, in which the seat of Clarke County was
and railroad transportation. moved from Watkinsville to Athens.
In the midst of this cultural renaissance The final quarter of the 20th
came the devastation of the Civil War. century brought about an emphasis
Mercantile production suffered greatly, on historical preservation. The citizens
while more than 300 brave men and boys of Athens dedicated themselves to
perished in battle. Fortunately, Athens the safeguarding of the city’s rich
escaped physical destruction because architectural heritage. Additionally,
Sherman did not include the area in his saving taxpayer money by eliminating
legendary march to the sea. duplication of services sparked the
When the war concluded, the movement to consolidate city and
Reconstruction Period wrought even county government services. The
more havoc on the South. Athens was school systems of the city and county
again spared much of the confusion, consolidated in 1955, and the municipal
economic despair, and chaos that beset and county governments followed suit
portions of the South during this time. on August 7, 1990 after several attempts
Under the steady leadership of UGA and over a 20-year span.
The protection of a revered history,
the commitment to maintaining the
highest standards of living, and a clear and
dynamic vision of a shared future are the
guiding forces behind the ongoing success
story of our city – Athens, Georgia.
Double-barreled cannon at City Hall
Athens Area Chamber of Commerce • www.athensga.com • 706.549.6800 9