Washington, GA is Not Atlanta…
…and yet here I am, writing about it instead of the ATL, on my return to the metroblog. (I can tell you missed me by the way you say, “Who are you again?”) Anyway, I’m happy to report that I’ve got a nice fat list of things to tackle for the site, here, now that I’m unemployed in Atlanta. (More on that, in a way that is of interest, I promise, a little later.)
The first subject, though, is about another town: Washington, GA.
Washington, Georgia, was the first town to be incorporated in the name of George Washington (1780), and it’s in local Wilkes County that Eli Whitney perfected the cotton gin, in 1795. Washington is also where the Confederacy was finally dissolved by Jefferson Davis. Somewhere nearby, the fabled Lost Confederate Gold is said to be buried. (So if you’ll be out looking for it next weekend, come by the Washington Market Days Street Festival and pick up one of my wife’s handmade journal so you can take notes, draw maps, and keep a record of your search. Plug, plug.)
Washington, GA is the first Southern town I hadn’t heard of before that I’ll be spending a day in, just exploring and taking notes. (I’d already heard of Savannah, Ashville, Birmingham, etc.) Do you know Washington? Then, please, recommend me a place to eat, a site to see, or what have you. I’ll do up a little carpetbagger’s take on the town for y’all when I get back.
If you’re not too busy to make the drive out to an historic Georgia town next weekend, though, it sounds like a lovely fall excursion. Here’s the details:
October 27: Washington Market Days Street Festival
10am – 7pm Saturday, with a Street Dance following 7-9pm
Celebrate fall in beautiful Washington, GA! Festivities include: 80+ vendors, live music, street dance, children’s activities, contests, autumn crafts and so much more! Get out of town and enjoy a drive through the fall country side, Washington is approx. 2 hours east of Atlanta.
Glad to hear you are coming to Washington. The city is the best-kept secret in Georgia, an antebellum and Victorian gem awash in important history. For a place to stay, check out the local B&B association’s web site: washingtonbanb.org or try washingtonplantation.com There a several very good restaurants to choose from, and on Market Day there will be food vendors all over the place. We’ve got three worthwhile museums, guided tours of private homes and historical sites, shopping and antiquing, everything you need for a great getaway from Atlanta. We’ve even got water, at least for now! See you in town next week!
I was always under the persuasion that Washington, NC was the first.
It predates Washington, GA by 4 years, the same year as the Declaration of Independence, but, on the same coin, that could also be a perceivably clever marketing ploy to lure curious tourists into town.
It is a pretty charming community, and I have seen a number of buildings built on the waterfront there in the Georgian architectural style dating back to the late 1700’s, so there may be some truth to the claim after all.