Georgia Magazine - September 2011 - (Page 42)

Rambling through Dahlonega Fun with Georgia history BY JANE F GARVEY . Dahlonega ★ • • JACK ANTHONY Dahlonega is famous for being the site of the second, but perhaps larger, of the ﬁrst two U.S. gold discoveries. Not much gold has been mined around Dahlonega for a long time. The nearby ghost town of Auraria attests to the demise of the gold rush. Here, Lumpkin County’s ﬁrst courthouse was established. At top: Dahlonega’s North Georgia College and State University campus enjoys a splendid view of the mountains. Above: Visitors to historic Dahlonega frequent the many shops and restaurants that make its historic commercial center singularly attractive. Friday gold Activities on Oct. 7 will focus on Dahlonega’s historic town square, whose courthouse, built in 1836, is More online at www.georgiamagazine.org the site today of the Dahlonega Gold Museum. Gold was so important to Dahlonega that in 1838, President Andrew Jackson opened one of three branches of the U.S. Mint in the town. The Dahlonega Mint coined $6 million in gold before it closed in 1861, the year the U.S. Civil War broke out. (Continued on page 44) GEORGIA MAGAZINE 42 DAHLONEGA DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY W hat’s the best way for a wine-loving history buff to spend a weekend? The ideal getaway would have to be the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation’s 2011 Fall Ramble, slated for Oct. 7-9 in Dahlonega. How does this work? Each Ramble—there’s also one in the spring—is organized around a speciﬁc area of Georgia. At their leisure, participants visit historic sites, some of which may be private homes not otherwise open to public view. The 2011 Spring Ramble visited historic sites in Macon, and recent past Rambles have explored Washington, Augusta, Rome and Atlanta. The Fall 2011 Ramble in Dahlonega will showcase the historic richness surrounding the town. The name means “yellow” in the Cherokee language, hinting at the likelihood that North Georgia’s early people knew about the presence of gold before European Americans ever stuck a pick into the ground. Dahlonega is famous for being the site of the second, but perhaps larger, of the ﬁrst two U.S. gold dis- coveries. (The ﬁrst was in Cabarrus County, N.C., just north of Charlotte in 1799.) Gold was discovered in Dahlonega in 1828, ahead of California’s Sutter’s Mill by 20 years. Some historians cite the Georgia discovery as the ﬁrst gold rush, which brought substantial resettlement into the area. http://www.georgiamagazine.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - September 2011

Georgia Magazine - September 2011
Contents
Viewpoint
Mailbox
Picture This?
Georgia News
Calendar of Events
Currents
Georgia’s Energy Outlook
A Bountiful Harvest
The Coupon Mom
A Spirit of Cooperation
The 2011 Washington Youth Tour
Georgia’s Higher Learning
Higher education listings
Around Georgia
Ramble around Dahlonega continues
My Georgia
Georgia Gardens
Vince Dooley’s tips on growing hydrangeas, more on artist Steve Penley
Georgia Cooks
Second helping: More apple recipes and fall apple festivals
Snapshot
More Snapshot submissions
Money-saving websites
Gardens plant of the month; Liberty notes
Energy-efficiency tips

Georgia Magazine - September 2011