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Roads passing through Clayton—Highways 441/23 and 76 and Warwoman Road—are daily reminders of a distant past when the Appalachians in northeastern Georgia were known as the Cherokee Mountains. And in the land that became Rabun County, the major Cherokee trails, which are now our highways and byways, converged at The Dividings in present-day Clayton. Early explorers and settlers classified the Cherokee into three groupings, depending on their location and dialect: Lower, Midd

Many longtime residents of Ellijay have walked to the abandoned railroad trestle of the old Marietta and North Georgia Railroad/Later known as the Louisville and Nashville Road. The metal bridge spans the Cartecay River between River and Industrial Boulevard. Even though the bridge was built in 1902, it is in remarkable shape. Although much of the bridge is covered in kudzu, the only part that seems to have failed to erosion are the creosote timbers that are beneath the iron

The Perseverance Quarry can still be seen on the north side of Cove Road. In the 1850s Summey and Hurlick operated a marble operation there for a few years. Prior to them, the discoverer of Georgia marble, Henry Fitzsimmons had owned the site before being murdered by an unknown assailant. The Cove Mine, a.k.a. The Perseverence Quarry About three decades later, James Harrison of Atlanta, the owner of the Atlanta Printing Company, leased the land near the Perseverance Quarry

During the last two decades of the 19th Century, the Marietta and North Georgia Railroad (MNGR) finally reached Jasper, eventually making its way to Knoxville, Tennessee. Just east of Talking Rock a double reverse curve was built. The purpose was to allow the train to descend the steep terrain coming from Jasper to Talking Rock. This section became known as the “Hook” of the railroad. The ”Hook” as seen on the 1914 Talking Rock Topographic map While this section worked a

In searching through the archives of deeds at the county, I came across this map of the town of Jasper dated March 5th, 1883. The chief engineer of the Marietta and North Georgia Railroad Company, F.S. Wallace, drew this map up to demonstrate the lands that were conveyed to help facilitate the passage of the railroad through the town of Jasper. The map is below along with what I could make of the penmanship of the document. {Georgia, {Pickens County: For the purpose of e