Euharlee (pronounced You-Harley) Creek Covered Bridge is so much more than just an old bridge. It…read moreis also a village of historic buildings and the ruins of a forgotten mill. It is the BLACK HISTORY of not only the bridge, but the surrounding area that drove me to revisit. [ THE BRIDGE ] Built in 1886 by Washington King, the son of Horace King, a slave who earned his freedom by building covered bridges throughout the south. Euharlee remains one of the oldest surviving wooden covered bridges in the state of Georgia and has a length of 138 feet. North of the bridge are the ruins of a Grist Mill built in 1835. [ THE MUSEUM ] Since my 2014 visit, they have acquired an old school building and expanded the bridge and other historic buildings to include a Museum. It was here I met the Curator and her assistant, whose veteran husband, David Ford, has direct family ties to the local history and is featured in the museums displays. I called prior to my arrival, so they were expecting me. I say this affectionately, but the ladies of the museum held me hostage! I had no idea the wealth of information they were ready to share and had not properly allotted time, especially since a good portion of my day was consumed at the Bartow County History Museum and the long drive to Bartow itself. We covered a lot of ground in a short time frame and often they would stop and ask me if it was too much information. They were fully aware that I might be getting overwhelmed, but sweetly and courteously asked for my pardon because COVID-19 had not brought them many visitors and they were beyond excited to have me. I simply can't tell you how amazing each of the sites I visited in the Cartersville-Bartow area made me feel. SPECIAL is a gross understatement. One new feature I was unaware of was the temporary path through the BLACK PIONEERS CEMETERY, which was used to bury slaves prior to the Civil War and local African-American residents after the Civil War. They are hoping to raise enough funds to properly construct with gravel, sitting benches, a re-creation of tombstones and more informational signs. This is a project I hope to volunteer to be a part of considering landscape design is a specific skill I possess. I would LOVE to contribute to preserving the history here, albeit quite a distance from my home. [ OTHER FEATURES ] * A Traveler's Well that was hand dug by settlers. * The 1800's Calaboose or mini-jail to house the occasional criminal. The building still has its original iron bars. * Militia Courthouse to keep law and order. * Masonic Hall that is still in use (construction date unknown) * Baptist Church originally designed with separate entrances for men and women. * 1853 Presbyterian Church * Blacksmith Shop (Late 1800's) * 1860's General Store & Mercantile (burned in 1887 and reconstructed). * 1860's Commissary now used as a Community Center. * 1860's Granary * 1850's Cow Shed * The house of the grist mill operators. * Milam Bridge is a camel-back steel truss bridge that was burned in 1864 during the Civil War. Rebuilt in 1912 and remained in service until the 1970's. [Source: City of Euharlee historic brochure] [ FINAL THOUGHTS ] Sadly, the black cemetery was almost forgotten by the 1990's, but an investigation discovered over 333 known burials. Of those only three individuals have been identified. Het Powell (a former slave), her daughter Ada and a man named Jim Scott. Records show Het was married when enslaved and had four children. Her son, Lee, was sold to a different slaveowner and Het never saw him again. The one acre plot dates back to 1830. Settled in the 1840's as Burge's Mill until being incorporated in 1852 as Euharleeville before its final name change in 1870 to Euharlee (which is Native American meaning she laughs as she runs). Excellent place to learn a little history and see relics dating before the Civil War. The bridge is open to foot traffic and is anchored by two parks: Osborne Park and Frankie Harris Park. 2021 / 32 #BlackHISTORYseries

Always treats their Customers with respect and kindness. Your very safe and the staff know exactly…read morehow to handle the situation

I live an hour from this library but every so often I work in the area. The staff is very polite…read morebut my goodness it is a library! Everyone is so loud. One staff was talking on the phone. The next visit they were putting up decorations and talking loudly amongst themselves, I couldn't even concentrate, I had to leave. Please take this into consideration when you have guest in the library to study.

This is in fact the Cartersville Public Library, a member of the Bartow County Library System…read more It's great! It's actually a surprisingly good library for being in a rural sort of town. The selection is spread out over three floors, they offer both open and private seating, the travel section is very robust, and there are plenty of computers to log onto. Many clubs and social groups to meet up with as well. Go check them out!

For someone who has spent her life in libraries, this is a gem. Not only for the diverse books…read moreavailable, but interesting lectures and special interest group gatherings, free computer classes etc. They do an excellent job in this community.

This is an interesting park that you can find at the foot of the Allatoona Lake damn on the Etowah…read moreriver. It's also the on the edge of the former town of Etowah and the home of Cooper's Furnace - a huge truncated-pyramid of stacked, mortared stone originally used to smelt iron ore. The furnace is still standing but now cordoned off - also, while it's apparent that visitors could at one time get closer to the Allatoona Damn, on this day the road and access to that part of the park was blocked-off with no trespassing signs (it's unclear if on other days the area is accessible or not, we visited on the day after Thanksgiving). The area is lush with vegetation and includes a pavilion, play-area with one of those crazy jungle gyms, bathrooms, fixed barbecue boxes and picnic tables. It's a surprisingly large park that's only open for day visits so no camping. It's also a bit weird to access - you get off of i85 South of the park then travel first West, then North to get under the highway. Next you travel a road alongside the Etowah river to get to the park itself with is East of i85. Once in the park make sure you checkout the trails and overlook - we were just scoping it out and plan a return to walk the trails - on this day we weren't in the right shoes or clothing. It's apparently a pretty good fishing spot too so make use you bring your pole.

A cool spot owned by the US Army. There were people there back packing, camping, flying kites,…read morewalking with their pets, playing on the playground, and cooking out. It's something for everyone. Out kids enjoyed the park and wanted to play on the playground. We would have let them but there were tons of gnats in swarms everywhere. Also the playground equipment was super dirty. There is an old iron works as soon as you enter the park but it's fenced off to prevent people from going all the way over to it.

Nice city to visit with a southern charm, the downtown Main Street host beautiful buildings that…read moreare well over 100 years old that are still in use today. The sidewalks and businesses are hustling and bustling with people yet there doesn't seem to be a big parking problem with this much people traffic. People seem laid back and In a really friendly good mood. If you're ever near the area definitely stop by for great atmosphere, food, shops and friendly people

I recently visited the Town of Cartersville, GA and came across a number of important sites…read morehighlighting African-American History. I was pleased to discover my 2nd Bench By The Road after recently (and quite accidentally) finding my first one on Hilton Head Island inside Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park. SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS SITE To commemorate the role of African-Americans in building the historic W&A railroad and the Carterville Train Depot. Starting in the 1840's, enslaved men, women, and children toiled in the construction of the railroad and the depot. After the Civil War, African-American convict lease laborers repaired and expanded the tracks. During the GREAT MIGRATION, these same railroads provided the first steps to freedom for blacks in Cartersville who were seeking a better way of life in the north and the west. Throughout the South, rail lines and the train depots that facilitated their use are important sites of memory in African-American history, as they document the labor of those who were enslaved and the pathways of freedom & return for their descendants. [quoted from plaque below bench] *** The Bench by the Road Project is a memorial history and community outreach initiative of the Toni Morrison Society. The Project was launched on February 18, 2006, on the occasion of Toni Morrison's 75th Birthday. The name "Bench by the Road" is taken from Morrison's remarks in a 1989 interview with World Magazine where she spoke of the absences of historical markers that help remember the lives of Africans who were enslaved and of how her fifth novel, Beloved, served this symbolic role: "There is no place you or I can go, to think about or not think about, to summon the presences of, or recollect the absences of slaves . . . There is no suitable memorial, or plaque, or wreath, or wall, or park, or skyscraper lobby. There's no 300-foot tower, there's no small bench by the road. There is not even a tree scored, an initial that I can visit or you can visit in Charleston or Savannah or New York or Providence or better still on the banks of the Mississippi. And because such a place doesn't exist . . . the book had to". Because the Toni Morrison Society wanted to be a place where scholars and readers could, through their engagement with Morrison's novels, remember not only slavery but also many of the forgotten moments in African American history, the Society chose, when it was founded in 1993, "A Bench by the Road" as its motto. The Bench by the Road Project extends the Society's mission. While there have been several notable African American history and slavery museums built since 1989, as well as a number of outstanding state and federal initiatives honoring the stories of the African American past, the goal of the Bench by the Road Project is to address the lament that Toni Morrison expressed in her interview by placing Benches and plaques at sites commemorating significant moments, individuals, and locations within the history of the African Diaspora. [quoted from TMS website] *** OTHER BENCH SITES 1st - African Slave Trade Point of Entry Sullivan's Island, SC 2nd - Site on Underground Railroad Oberlin, OH 3rd - Mississippi Freedom School Hattiesburg, MS 4th - The 20th Arrondissement Paris, France 5th - In Memory of Caesar Robbins Concord, MA 6th - Lisner Theater, GW University Washington, D.C. 7th - First Congregational Church Atlanta, GA 8th - Freedom Park Mitchellville, SC 9th - Walden Woods Lincoln, MA 10th - In Honor of Aime Cesaire Fort-de-France, Martinique 11th - Eden Cemetery Collingdale, PA 12th - Margaret Walker Center, JS University Jackson, MS 13th & 14th Bench Placements Middletown, DE 15th - In honor of Cynthia Hesdra Nyack, NY 16th - Hosanna A.U.M.P. Church Lincoln University, PA 17th - Baton Rouge Bus Boycott Baton Rouge, LA 18th - Inquirers Book Club - Woodruff Library Atlanta, GA 19th - Cozad-Bates House Cleveland, OH 20th - Schomburg Center for Research on Black Culture Harlem, NYC 21st - Library of Congress Washington, DC 22nd - Site on Underground Railroad Adrian, MI 23rd - South View Cemetery Atlanta, GA 24th - Home of Frederick Douglass New Bedford, MA 25th - Howard University Washington, DC 26th - Lincoln University Pennsylvania 27th - Cartersville Train Depot Cartersville, GA *** Morrison passed away 8/5/19 at the age of 88. She was the first African-American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. The idea and thought behind the Bench by the Road Project touched my heart and I look forward to seeing where they will place future benches and subsequently learn of the story behind the placement. 2021 / 10 Black History Series

This is a lovely library. It's situated right on the Oostanaula River, in downtown Rome, Ga. We…read morewent here regularly when we lived in Silver Creek. The staff were friendly and they had a great selection of books. They had nice facilities for meetings as well. The grounds were nice as well. They had a quiet little garden out back and nice landscaping around the building and parking areas. (One negative I remember was that the lower parking lot did seem to flood a lot.)

Beautiful and informative. They even have a small gift shop. Make sure to watch the short movie…read moreabout the canyon.

One of the best visitor centers we have been too. The staff is so nice and informative. They told…read moreus the best trails for kids and the gift shop is really nice as well.