Elizabeth and I arose and following our Internet duties, went downstairs and had the hotel's breakfast before going out to the bus. There was a new driver for today and once he arrived, we boarded and chose our now-usual seats. We departed Gainesville for Flowery Branch but missed the turn so our bus driver took another route to get us to the depot.
Amtrak's Crescent came through Flowery Branch.
Flowery Branch Southern yellow wooden combination gabled station is a rehabilitation of the original circa 1901 station. Flowery Branch was established in 1874 and the town was orginally named Anaguluskee, a Cherokee Indian word meaning "Flowers of the branch". Andrew Jackson passed through town on his way to the First Seminole War in 1818.
In 1873, tracks laid from Atlanta to Charlotte and the next year, the City of Flowery Branch was established. The last scheduled stop of a passenger train was in 1957 then from then until the late 1960's, the depot was a flag stop. It is located one tenth-of-a-mile south of the mile post marker 594, or 594 miles from Union Station in Washington D.C.
Now a Community Center and Museum in the heart of Flowery Branch, the Depot was transformed from an endangered building to a historic treasure. The Depot was moved in April 2000 from across the street next to the tracks to its present location. The pace-setting restoration was completed in 2001.
The railway system was originally conceived in 1858 by the Georgia Airline Railroad and was built in 1873 from Atlanta to Charlotte. The City of Flowery Branch was established in 1874 and the railroad was for many years, the primary transportation artery for people, mail, cotton and other goods.
Known as the town where "Cotton was King", Flowery Branch was the place where farmers in Northeast Georgia brought their crops to be ginned, sold and shipped by rail. Later businesses that depended on the railroad manufactured furniture, leather goods and buggies.
The Depot has twice marked periods of major growth for Flowery Branch. The original construction at the turn of the century marked the establishment of Flowery Branch as the transportation center of the surrounding region. The rehabilitation of the Depot gives focus to the rapid growth emanating from metropolitan Atlanta. The Depot, on the comer of Railroad Avenue and Main Street was meticulously researched, and great attention was given to maintaining the original integrity of design and detail. The exterior is typical of Craftsman Style with a low-pitched, gabled roof with deep, four-foot over hangs, copper downspouts, triangular knee braces and stick work with train symbol in the gables. The interior reflects the transition between the Victorian and the Craftsman Style. Beaded board in two different styles, applied in several different directions, covers both walls and ceilings. The Depot includes two passenger waiting rooms, Depot agents' office, freight room and the newly added lower level. The original waiting rooms each contained benches and a pot-bellied stove. The agents’ office has a bumpout desk area where the agent can look up and down the tracks.
The original Depot offered no indoor bathrooms and outhouses were used as noted in 1917 Southern Railway documents. During rehabilitation, bathrooms were located in the new basement and the agents storage space was used for an elevator. A creative addition to the Depot is the simulated railroad track walkway along the Railroad Avenue side of the building. A gravel bed underlies a sidewalk with an outline of the track and irregularly spaced crossties.
It was originally believed that the Depot was built in 1901; however, during rehabilitation, construction workers found Bills of Lading dated 1890 and 1891 written to the agent at Flowery Branch. The documents were found in the freight room wall. The wall was constructed of horizontal ten-inch rough cut wallboards extending from the floor to a height of only about five feet. The wall was used as a bumper for the huge bails of cotton being weighed and processed through the freight room before being pushed out to the ramp to be loaded on the train. The space above the boards was open, possibly with a shelf to hold paperwork. It is likely that the long hidden papers fell between the studs in the wall and down to the floor where they remained until their discovery. Experts speculate that the freight room could have been built in 1890 or before, and the passenger facilities added in 1901.
Most of the wall finishes in the waiting rooms and agents' office are original. Some had to be removed due to water damage and rot. Original can be distinguished from new because the original bead board has a fuzzy appearance where paint could not be removed in the cracks. New bead board detail is crisp and sharp. There are 2 styles of bead board which are run in 3 different directions. Original finish had a natural wood tone and was later painted. An example of this can be seen in the comer behind the door in the Museum room. The pine floors in the Depot are replicas. Doors and windows in the waiting rooms, are replicas of the originals, hardware is original. A single light in the ceiling of the waiting rooms and agents office was added when electricity became available. Ticket windows slid up and down for ticket sales. The 10 inch planks that originality ran up 5 feet in the Freight room were replaced with new all the way up to the ceiling. The ceiling is original, open beam. The large working doors in the Freight room are original. Hardware is all original on the natural finished door.
Flowery Branch Depot history plaque.
Norfolk Southern (original) center cupola caboose 306, builder and year unknown.
The bus took us all to Conyers.
Western Railway of Alabama 0-6-0 104, nee Western Railway of Alabama 4 built by Rogers Locomotive Works in 1905. The WRA dates back to 1832 with a charter granted to the Montgomery Railroad to build a rail line from Columbus to West Point but financial troubles led to foreclosure in 1842 and reorganisation as the Montgomery & West Point Railroad. The line finally reached West Point in 1851.
In 1860, the M&WP's owners established the Western Rail Road Company of Alabama and consolidated the M&WP into the new company. In 1875, the Georgia Railroad and Central of Georgia jointly purchased the WRA. In 1881, the lease for the WRA was assigned jointly to the Central of Georgia and the Louisville & Nashville. In the 1980s, the WRA became part of the Family Lines System, later the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad and then the Seaboard System which, in 1986, merged with the Chessie System to become CSX Transportation.
In 1974, 104 was sold to the Birmingham Rail & Locomotive Co., who sold it to the Georgia Agrirama Development Authority in Tifton. Ten years later, it was sold to the Rockdale County Historical Society and is now on display on Green Street Southwest.
The Dinky display board.
Conyers Georgia Railroad wooden gabled combination station built circa 1891 or 1898 and was in operation until 1972, the final year of passenger service between Augusta and Atlanta. The railroad played an integral part in the City's history, attracting the attention of Union Troops who used Conyers as their headquarters in 1864 and supporting a farmimg and mill industy in the late 19th century.
Between 1816 and 1821 the area was known as Rockdale. What is now Conyers began as a watering post along the railroad line and was named after Doctor W.D. Conyers, a banker from Covington.
Conyers station display board.
Our next stop was Jackson.
Southern Railway Jackson large gray combination station. During the Civil War, much of Jackson was razed by Sherman's Army during his March and after the war, little remained until the arrival of the railroad in the latter half of the ninetenth century, with the first train arriving on May 5, 1890. Jackson, seat of Butts County, was incorporated in 1926 and named in honour of James Jackson, Governor of Georgia from 1798 to 1801.
The Southern Railway station sign.
Our adventure continued with a visit to Juliette.
Southern Railway Juliette wooden combination depot built in 1882 which has been relocated. It was used in the film "Fried Green Tomatoes" and the station board reads Whistle Stop. The town is named for Juliette McCracken, daughter of a railroad engineer, and was formed with the merger of Brownsville and Iceberg.
We then were taken to Forsyth for three stations.
Forysth Central of Georgia freight station built in 1899.
Forsyth Central of Georgia combination station built in 1899 is a red brick building with three chimneys and houses the Monroe County Museum of Genealogy.
Nickel Plate Road bay window caboose 496, nee Norfolk and Western 557596 built by International Car in 1962, is painted as Central of Georgia 557596.
Macon and Western combination Forsyth depot built in 1845 serves as a community center. Chartered in 1833, the Monroe Railroad connected Forsyth and Macon and was among the first railroads in Georgia. Forsyth is named for John Forsyth, Governor of Georgia from 1827 to 1829 and Secretary of State under Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren.
The Monroe County Historical Society, established in 1975, maintains three railroad-related buildings located along the track of the Norfolk-Southern Railway. A brick passenger depot built in 1899 houses the museum and the Society's archives. A small brick baggage room built in 1917 is used for small exhibits and meetings. The stone depot, constructed in the 1840' by the Macon and Western Railroad Company, houses the Society's military display and provides space for large meetings. All three buildings are on the National Register of Historic Places.
The bus then conveyed us to Barnesville.
Central of Georgia Barnesville combination station constructed in 1912 and located at the junction of the Central's former Madison-Atlanta mainline with the branch to Thomaston. Barnesville was founded in 1826 and named for Gideon Barnes, propertior of a local tavern. In 1920, Barnesville was designated the seat of the newly formed Lamar County and served as a major hospital site for wounded Southern troops during the Civil War. Local families took wounded soliders and treated them with highly sucessful recovery rates.
National Register plaque.
Southern bay window caboose X471 built by Gantt Manufacturing in 1970.
From the bus window, a small mural of Streamliner Nancy Hank II. It was now lunch time and we all ate at Pam's Garden Buffet, which was excellent.
Our first stop of the afternoon was Yatesville.
Yatesville Altanta and Florida combination station with a mansard-like roof, a unique roofing style that first gained popularity in 17th-century France. It has a double slope on all four sides, creating a signature and easily recognizable style. Yatesville was founded in 1888 when the railroad was extended to that point. It was named after A.J. Yates, a first settler. The Georgia General Assembly incorporated it as a town in 1896.
In July 1886, the Atlanta and Florida Railway was chartered as the Altanta and Hawkinsville Railroad to connect Altanta and Hawkinsville. The Atlanta and Florida name was instituted in 1887 and in November 1888, the railroad reached Fort Valley, 195 miles from Atlanta; it never reached Hawkinsville. The company was reorganized as the Atlanta and Florida Railway in 1893 and the property was sold to the Southern Railway in 1895.
The next stop on today's journey was Thomaston.
Central of Georgia Thomaston station, a brick combination building which has been a restaurant and is now a liquor store. Thomaston was incorporated on January 1, 1825 and designated as the seat of Upson County, being named for General Jett Thomas, an Indian fighter in the War of 1812.
We then proceeded to Meansville.
Atanta and Florida (Southern) Meansville station built in 1888 and serves as city hall. Meansville was incorporated as a town in 1913 and according to tradition, it was named after homesteader John Means.
It was a short drive to the tenth destination of the day, Zebulon.
Atlanta and Florida (Southern) Zebulon wooden combination station built in 1888 for the Atlanta and Hawkinsville Railroad. It is the club house for the Lions' Club of Pike County. Zebulon, county seat of Pike County, was named after the explorer Zebulon Montgomery Pike.
The penultimate station of the day was Porterdale.
Central of Georgia Porterdale wooden combination station built circa 1899 when tracks were extended beyond Covington to handle the business generated by the mills in Porterdale. The town was incorporated on March 10, 1917 and was named for Oliver S. Porter, a local mill owner.
A boxcar of unknown origin beside the station.
This was our motor coach for today.
The final station of the day was Covington.
Atlantic Coast Line offset cupola caboose 0670 built by the railroad in 1966.
Three boxcars of unknown origin, which belong to the Depot Sports Bar and Grill.
Georgia Railroad Covington stucco comnination station built circa 1885, which most recently housed the Depot Sport Bar and Grill. The railroad corridor that Newton Trails in developing into the Cricket Frog Trail was built by the middle Georgia and Atlantic Railway Company. The orginal Newton County station had flag stops which included Covington, Covington Junction, Starrsville, Hampton, Carmel Junction and Newborne. Stations in Porterdale and Mansfield were added in later years.
Covingtom was founded by European immigrants and incorporated in 1821 as the seat of the newly-organized Newton County. The town is named for United States Congressman Leonard Covington, a hero of the War of 1812.
The bus developed a problem throughout the day, which resulted in a bus swap late in the afternoon. We therefore returned to Gainesville at 7:20 PM and a presentation was scheduled for 8:00 PM. Jim Dent, Business Manager of the Society, organized the purchase of pizza for everyone which was delivered to the hotel just after 8:00 PM. Once we were back, we both returned to our room for a few minutes before going to the meeting room and watching half of the presentation of Georgia stations shown by Gary Miller. Since I cannot eat pizza and was not very hungry, I just had a couple of chocolate bars which was sufficient. Elizabeth enjoyed two pieces of pizza then returned to the room as she had e-mail and other Internet items on which to catch up.
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