Georgia Natural Wonder #100 - Athens (Part 1) - Cedar Shoals – North Campus. 1,028

[Top Row Dawg]

Georgia Natural Wonder #100 - Cedar Shoals – North Campus – Athens / Clarke County (Part 1)

Georgia Natural Wonder #100 on the HOTD will be our beloved old campus and the Classic City of Athens. The natural wonders are plenty in Athens with Cedar Shoals Rapids - North Oconee River Greenway - North Campus Arboretum of Old Franklin College - Founders Memorial Garden - State Botanical Gardens – Oconee Hills Cemetery - Son of the tree that owns itself. I’m sure we will dig up many local future GNW’s Watkins Mill State Park – Shaking Rock Park – Tallassee Shoals – Scull Shoals – Barnett Shoals. But to give us an excuse to tangent large on UGA and Athens we start today on Cedar Shoals rapids and move up hill as the founders did to explore the beautiful trees and history of old campus.


Only Internet image I could find of Cedar Shoals.

I made a trip to Athens to photograph several Georgia Natural Wonder’s and I made sure to get better photo's of the main Natural Wonder in Athens, Cedar Shoals. The new Oconee River Parkway takes you right down to the Shoals.



Panoramic East Flow Cedar Shoals.



Panoramic West Flow Cedar Shoals.



It was no easy task scrambling down there to get those two panoramic photos.



Many a night was spent on the deck of O'Malley's drinking draft beer in the early 1980’s and shouting in conversation over the roar of the Cedar Shoals rapids on the North Oconee River.  In the late 1700's, a trading settlement on the banks of the Oconee River called Cedar Shoals stood where Athens is today.



The old mill building.



You sat there watching the river race by. At one end you could actually see where the water rushed to the turbines from the mill.



Spillway still diverting river.



Birds and trees.



Birds all along the Cedar Shoals but it smelled bad.



Pretty rough little run here.



West bank across from Omalley's, below actual Cedar Shoals.



Shoals all along Oconee River in here. Back to Internet images.



Students now know what used to be O'Malley's as the School of Social Work building. UGA bought the building in 2008 and housed a Medical College of Georgia satellite campus, before moving the School of Social work there.



Now there were a lot of Mill’s operating off the Oconee River North Middle and Main Forks. There was a large mill (Now lofts) at Barnett Shoals. Downstream was one of the largest pre Civil War factory’s in Georgia, Scull Shoals. This site I found talks about removing White Dam off Oconee River to restore water flow and wildlife restoration. Imagine the roar of Cedar Shoals in a free flowing river.

The North Oconee River Greenway is a 3.5-mile long, 10-foot wide, paved multi-use path open to all types of non-motorized uses. The trail runs from Sandy Creek Nature Center (connecting with Cook's Greenway Trail), following the North Oconee River south to Dudley Park.



Within the 1/2-mile section from Dudley Park to Wilkerson Street, you'll find a series of interpretive panels that illustrate Athens' rich history.



Learn about the North Oconee River, the former Cook and Brother Amory/Chicopee Mill.



COOK & BROTHER CONFEDERATE ARMORY



To this building in 1862 was brought the machinery of the armory established in New Orleans at the outbreak of the War by Ferdinand W.C. and Francis L. Cook, recent English immigrants, the former a skilled engineer for the manufacture of Enfield rifles, bayonets and cavalry horse shoes.



Said to be the largest and most efficient private armory in the Confederacy.



It produced a rifle declared by an ordnance officer to be “superior to any that I have seen of Southern manufacture.”



Under contract to supply 30,000 rifles to the Confederate Army the armory operated until its employees, organized as a reserve battalion under Major Ferdinand and Captain Francis Cook, were in 1864 called to active duty upon the approach of Sherman’s army. The battalion took part in the battles of Griswoldville, Grahamville, Honey Hill and Savannah where, then promoted,Major. Cook was killed. After Grisoldville Gen. P.J. Phillips reported that Maj. Cook and his men “participated fully in the action, deported themselves gallantly and … . suffered much from wounds and death.” Leased by the Confederacy in 1865 the armory was operated until the close of the War. The property was bought by the Athens Manufacturing Co. in 1870.



1862 Cook & Brother purchases property at the junction of Trail Creek and the North Oconee River, builds the Armory and produces Enfield-model rifles for the Confederate Army.

1865 Cook & Brother Armory closes at the end of the Civil War.

1870 Athens Manufacturing company purchases the Armory and moves its weaving operation called Check Factory to this location. R.L. Bloomfield is president until his death in 1916. The Check Factory prospers during World War I and survives the Great Depression. A.G. Dudley becomes president of Athens Manufacturing during this time.

1947 After A.G. Dudley's death in 1947, the factory is sold to Chicopee Mills, a division of Johnson and Johnson.

1980 The Chicopee Factory is acquired by the University of Georgia. The building is restored for adaptive use for the UGA Physical Plant Division and the Small Business Development Center. TRD enrolls his first class at UGA.

2005 The UGA Physical Plant Division and the UGA Small Business Development Center continue to operate in the Chicopee Complex.



Dudley Park is a 24- acre park nestled in the confluence of Trail Creek and the North Oconee River, just a short walk from downtown Athens and the University of Georgia.



The park features majestic hardwoods, open areas, several picnic tables, and a grill. Parking is available on Poplar Street at Oak Street, and on MLK at First Street, directly across the street from the Chicopee Complex.



Dudley Park was dedicated in 1953 to Alonzo Gordon Dudley, who governed Athens from 1926-1935 and 1938-1939, in recognition of the importance he saw in enriching the lives of citizens through civic improvement.



The Greenway is expanding along the old Athens' railroad and more. The trail would be built along the abandoned railways in Athens, specifically the Athens Branch of the Georgia Railroad and would pass through the towns of Woodville, Maxeys, Stephens, Crawford, Arnoldsville and Winterville. With thousands of rail trails across the country, the popularity of these greenways is largely due to that fact that they are level, making them perfect for biking, walking, running, strollers and wheelchairs. It ends up being a huge tourist driver for these little towns that used to be on rail lines,



I have never been on the Greenway, just garnering images from the net today.



Parking, picnicking and recreational areas are located along the Greenway.



It's open daily from sunrise to sunset. During heavy rains the trail is prone to flooding where it nears the river.



Three connector trails link to the greenway:

Pulaski Heights Trail (0.25 miles) - Pulaski St. & Pulaski Heights St. to Hull St. & Hoyt St.
Millege Extension Trail (0.25 miles) - Milledge Avenue Extension to S. Milledge Ave & Macon Highway
Trail Creek Trail (0.5 miles ) - Vine St. & Oakridge Ave. to Trail Creek St.

Parking and Trail Access

The Greenway is located in Athens, GA. Parking is available in Dudley Park at the southern terminus of the trail (S. Poplar and Oak streets), in Riverside Park (Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Parkway and Ruth Street) and at the Sandy Creek Nature Center, at the northern terminus of the trail (Old Commerce Road).


Sandy Creek Park.

Below the Greenway and Cedar Shoals the Oconee River flows through Oconee Hills cemetery.


Looking across Oconee Cemetery Bridge

We could be satisfied with the river adventure for today’s wonder, but to cement it as a top 100, let’s go up the hill. The University of Georgia campus is one of the most beautiful in the United States. Stately, noble trees provide human scale, a sense of place, cooling shade, and tranquility to students, faculty, staff and visitors. To walk this hallowed campus is to sense the pride in its heritage. UGA's North  Campus has been designated an arboretum by the State of Georgia.  This “Tree Walk” is the first project of the University of Georgia Campus Arboretum initiative.



From a teaching standpoint, the tremendous woody plant diversity serves classes in Botany, Forestry, Ecology, Horticulture and Landscape Architecture. Art and Photography utilize campus as a natural extension of the classroom.



Tree planting and tree diversity will be sustained over time. When older trees perish, young trees will take their place. To provide biologically diverse and aesthetic collections of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants in designed settings for the enjoyment and education of students, staff, faculty and visitors.



To map, label and otherwise promote the extant and future tree and shrub collections. These are the trees found on the Tree Walk, roughly starting at the Arch.



Red Bay - Aromatic leaves used as bay substitute in cooking.
Tulip Poplar - Tallest native tree in the forest.
Red Maple - Early spring red flowers often followed by red drooping samara fruit.
American Holly - Native holly wavy, spiny leaves and red fruit.
Winged Elm - Wonderful wispy, weeping gothic specimen.
Cryptomeria -  Major timber tree in Japan.
American Elm - Planted for its dignified, vase-shaped habit and arching branches.



Chestnut Oak - Typically grows on mountain ridges in north Georgia.
Ginkgo - Prehistoric tree with brilliant yellow fall color.
Willow Oak - Most common landscape oak in the southeast because of its tolerance of difficult sites.
Scarlet Oak - Lustrous dark green leaves turn scarlet in fall.
Japanese Maple - Remarkable for its foliage, fall color, and silhouette, this smaller tree performs better in Georgia than most expect.
White Oak - Brilliant red fall color.
Laurel Oak - Valuable street tree confused with live and willow oak.
American Beech - Noblest denizen of our native forests. Spectacular elephant-gray and often elephant-size trunk.



Legacy Sugar Maple - Kaleidoscopic orange-red-yellow fall color.
Pecan - Vase-shaped tree with nutritious but "messy in the landscape" nuts. Georgia is the leading pecan producing state.
Water Oak - Large tree common throughout campus prone to topple in high winds.
Southern Red Oak - Large Georgia native.
Flowering Dogwood - Always voted the best small flowering tree for the landscape because of outstanding flowers, bark, fall color, and fruit.
Black Oak - Largest oak leaf on campus
Kwanzan Cherry - Pompon flowers and orange-red fall color provide seasonal interest.
Deodar Cedar - This Himalayan native has clusters of 1- to 2-inch long needles and large barrel-shaped cones.
Shumard Oak - Drought tolerant, easily transplanted native tree.



Flowering Crabapple - Celebrates UGA's Honor's Day in the spring with a fanfare of white flowers.
Cherry Laurel - Native evergreen tree. Cherry-scented twigs with red leaf petioles.
Canadian Hemlock - Prefers the cool, moist mountains in Georgia.
White Oak - One of the noblest trees found throughout Georgia.
Pin Oak - Common in Midwestern and Northern landscapes.
Chinese Elm - Drought tolerant tree with small leaves and showy exfoliating orange-brown bark.
Crape Myrtle - Major summer-flowering tree with bark as smooth as alabaster with mottled colors.
Stellar Pink Kousa Dogwood - Disease resistant hybrid between our native flowering dogwood and kousa dogwood.
Chinese Elm - A selection with vase-shaped growth and spectacular fluted, "jigsaw puzzle" bark.
River Birch - Wet soil and drought tolerant picturesque tree with cinnamon-colored papery bark.
Nellie R. Stevens Holly - "Cadillac" of the tree-type hollies with dark green leaves.



The university’s historic North Campus is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places and features some of the oldest buildings on campus and in the city of Athens. Today, centuries-old buildings like the Chapel, Old College and the Main Library are used for classrooms, offices, event spaces and more, all nestled among the imposing oaks of the original campus quadrangle.



The University of Georgia was incorporated by Act of the General Assembly on January 27, 1785, making it America's first chartered state college. The charter was authored by Abraham Baldwin, who was dedicated to the belief that the state is obligated to educate her citizens. Baldwin, a Yale graduate and one of Georgia's two signers of the U.S. Constitution, was named president of the new institution.


Statue of Baldwin dedicated in front of Old College in 2011.

Several years elapsed before the new University began educational instruction. The campus was established in 1801, when John Milledge, Governor of Georgia, purchased a tract of 633 acres on the banks of the Oconee River and donated the property to the university. Originally called Franklin College, and named in honor of Benjamin Franklin, the University began classes in September 1801. This first class graduated on May 31, 1804; the graduates numbered ten students, and the ceremony took place under a brush arbor in front of the rising walls of the first permanent brick structure on campus and of the city of Athens, which was completed in 1806 and still stands today.



The first buildings on the University of Georgia campus were made from logs. The town grew as lots adjacent to the college were sold to raise money for the additional construction of the school. By the time the first class graduated from the university in 1804, Athens consisted of three homes, three stores, and a few other buildings facing Front Street, now known as Broad Street.



Wow this lady has a long history of the fence and North campus. In 1833, a post-and-rail wood fence was erected around the campus, partly for aesthetic reasons, partly to keep out wandering livestock. The fence kept out the cattle and pigs well enough, but it required constant repair; mischievous students and locals delighted in knocking down the rails.


Engraving of the UGA campus from a Boston periodical, 1854.

So, in 1857, a new fence of durable cast iron, forged in an Athens foundry, was erected in its place. The iron fence resisted the best efforts of the mischief-makers to tear it down.


New iron fence 1858.

Tradition maintains that UGA's oldest permanent building, Old College, is modeled on Yale University's Connecticut Hall.



Old College is the seventh-oldest college building in the U.S. The oldest college building is the Sir Christopher Wren Building, still in use at the College of William & Mary in Virginia, which was built three centuries ago. Other colleges featured on the list include Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. For most of its first century and a half, the building served as a dormitory for students. Famous residents included Georgia politician and Vice President of the Confederate States Alexander Stephens and Dr. Crawford W. Long, who discovered anesthesia. These are our two representatives in Statuary Hall in the Nation's capital.

UGA's North Campus contains the picturesque historic buildings such as the Chapel.



The Chapel on North Campus was built in 1832 to replace a temporary wooden structure. The Chapel is used as a venue for lectures, campus meetings, and wedding ceremonies. One unique feature of the Chapel is that it houses one of the world's largest framed oil paintings, Interior of St. Peter's Rome, painted by George Cooke.



TRD got three C's and a D at New College. Spanish kicked my ass. I took that D in 104 and ran with it. I missed 22 classes and have no idea how I passed. I know Cerveza, Tequila, Margarita, and Pore Four More.



Demosthenian Hall

The Demosthenian Literary Society is a literary society primarily involved in debating at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia. It is one of the oldest literary societies in the English-Speaking world, and was founded in February 1803 by the first graduating class of the University's Franklin College. It is named after the Greek orator Demosthenes. It is the fourth oldest building at the University of Georgia and was placed on the National Register for Historic Places in 1971. It has become the physical expression of a living tradition which binds generations of students.



The Phi Kappa Hall.

The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, and is one of the few active literary societies left in America.  It is the seventh-oldest building on the University of Georgia's campus, and the Phi Kappa Literary Society currently shares use of the building with the Georgia Debate Union.



Park Hall

Named for Robert Emory Park, head of the Department of English from 1900 until his death in 1942, Park Hall houses the Departments of English, Classics, and Comparative Literature.



Meigs Hall

From 1905 to 1999, three departments have occupied Meigs Hall—Biology, Psychology, and Germanic and Slavic Languages. As each developed and matured as departments, they outgrew the three-story brick structure. Having played a significant part in the evolution and progress of these disciplines at the university, Meigs Hall now houses the Institute of Higher Education as it continues its instruction, research, and service missions.



LeConte Hall

We did a deep dive on the LeConte family with our Liberty County GNW post. Here is a link on Joseph LeConte.



Peabody Hall

UGA has had two benefactors named George Peabody—George Foster Peabody, after whom the Peabody Awards are named, and an earlier George Peabody, a New England merchant who made a fortune in trans-Atlantic trade. He died in 1869, directing in his will that his estate be distributed over a period of time to promote public education in the South. UGA received $40,000 from that estate and constructed a home for the School of Education in 1913, naming it Peabody Hall. Peabody Hall now houses the Departments of Philosophy and Religion.



Baldwin Hall

During building renovation in November 2015, construction crews unearthed more than 100 remains in an area that was known to be a former slave burial site in Jackson Street Cemetery.



Baldwin Hall and the Jackson Street Cemetery adds to the mystic of Old campus.



There are also modern additions on North Campus such as the Law School and the Main Library. The dominant architectural themes are Federal  on the older buildings along with Greco-Roman Classical/Antebellum style.



My favorite North campus Building is now called Holmes/Hunter Academic Building. I would hang out on that third floor balcony looking down on folks coming through Arch to campus. Historical marker now reads…

On Jan. 6, 1961, Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter became the first two African American students to enroll at the University of Georgia when they walked past the historic Arch and into this building to register for classes. On this day, January 9, 2001, as part of the 40th Anniversary celebration of the desegregation of the University, we salute the courage and fortitude displayed by these students and their families in paving the way for others to follow. You know something both these folks accomplished a lot in life and are damn good dawgs!



Head down the sidewalk find Historical marker for Robert Toombs Oak. A majestic oak tree once stood on this spot and one of the University’s most endearing legends also flourished here.

Robert Toombs (1810-1885) was young, and boisterous when he was dismissed from Franklin College in 1828. Five decades later it was said that Toombs returned on the next commencement day after he was expelled and spoke so eloquently under the tree that the entire audience left the chapel to hear him. Later, it was said, that the tree was struck by lightning on the day Toombs died and never recovered. The tree finally collapsed in 1908 and the remains were cut into mementos that have since been handed down by alumni.



Robert Toombs was a lawyer, planter and statesman. He served in the Georgia House 1837-1840, 1842-1845, in the U.S. Congress 1845-1853, the U.S. Senate from 1853 until he resigned in 1861. Toombs was Secretary of State of the Confederacy then a brigadier general in the C.S.A. He also played a major role in Georgia’s Constitutional Convention of 1877. Marker erected at direction of General Assembly resolution approved March, 1985.



At nearly 160 years old, the cast iron Arch bordering North Campus and Downtown Athens, represents both the past and the future of the University of Georgia. The Arch is modeled after the Georgia state seal featuring the three pillars of wisdom, justice and moderation. To that end, the Arch is a reminder of the university’s ties to Georgia as the birthplace of public higher education in America and its commitment as a land-grant and sea-grant university to serve the people of Georgia.



For such an iconic symbol, the Arch’s origins are remarkably unassuming. Ironworkers at the Athens Foundry, which produced ironworks across the city and the campus, probably forged the Arch in 1857 when an iron gate was erected to separate Broad Street and the north end of the university. At the time, cattle roaming the dirt road that is now Broad Street were grazing on the North Campus lawn. Functionally speaking, this 16-foot, roughly 5,700-pound monument first acted as a gateway for the fence, with two doors connecting the columns. In fact, it was referred to as “the gate” rather than “the Arch” until the early 20th century.


Our GNW gals for the day.

The pillars at the Arch’s base were apparently made from the iron light poles erected elsewhere in the city, and the arch over them was made from boiler retention rings. The wreath detailing that adorns the Arch has a striking resemblance to embellishments on the Lucy Cobb House porch in Athens. In short, the Arch was fashioned from existing pieces, rather than being made from scratch.



Over time, the Arch has become synonymous with the university itself. Though it is nearly 70 years younger than the university’s charter, the Arch’s endurance through time mirrors the university’s enduring motto “to teach, to serve and to inquire into the nature of things.”



Two more little addendum on North campus, first is old Herty Field. It was the original on-campus playing venue for football and baseball at the University of Georgia. It opened in the Fall of 1891 and hosting the first UGA home football game against Mercer University on January 30, 1892.


Baseball at old Herty Field.


Herty Field today. We use to tailgate in this former parking lot.

Ringing the Chapel Bell right by Herty Field.



Lastly on the North campus we find Founders Memorial Garden. A living memorial to America's first Garden Club, founded in Athens in 1891. A trickling fountain, rare flora, winding walkways, and ornamental shrubbery are a grand memorial to the founders of America's first garden club.



The layout of the two and one-half acre series of gardens, the grounds of our former Headquarters House, consists of a formal boxwood garden, two courtyards, a retrace, a perennial garden, and an arboretum.



After the establishment of the Founders Garden it was only a matter of time before the garden club acquired the old smokehouse for a living museum to the twelve original garden club ladies. It was restored and furnished in keeping with the period of the house. Historical mementos, pictures, and a painting depicting the historical first meeting of a garden club are among the most treasured items in the museum.



The Garden Club of Georgia has been privileged to be a part of the fascinating historical tapestry of our former Headquarters House. This charming old rose-brick, Greek Revival house was built in 1857 and was restored by the Garden Club to pristine splendor. Prior to our taking possession in 1961, the house had served as a residence for University of Georgia professors, a dining hall, quarters for the biological sciences department, a residence for the first Dean of Women, Mary Lyndon, a chapter house for the Phi Mu Sorority, and headquarters for the Landscape Architecture Program beginning in 1938.



The stone pavers in the front courtyard (facing Lumpkin Street) were rescued by the late Hubert Bond Owens, Dean of the University of Georgia School of Landscape Architecture. The irrepressible Dean Owens brought the cobblestones to the Headquarters House as they were removed from an Athens street resurfacing project.



OK that was exhausting, but we got a start on GNW #100. This may take a few more post this week as my mind is racing with things to talk about along Milledge Avenue, Dearing Street, Cobbham, Lucy Cobb Institute, Oconee Hills Cemetery. All the Civil War – University - and Music History of Athens. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and go do that people. Glory Glory to the 100th Georgia Natural Wonder.


Reprise for our GNW gals for the day.