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FOUNDING
OF COLUMBUS
Founded in 1828, Columbus was the last planned city in Georgia. The town
was sited where the Chattahoochee River separates Georgia and Alabama and
represented the western limit of settlement in our state—an outpost
on the western frontier to protect against Indian raids.
INDIAN
REMOVAL
By 1830 the population of Georgia had increased six-fold. The western
push of settlers onto Native American lands led to increasingly frequent
armed conflict. When Columbus was founded in 1828, the Yuchi and other
tribes of the Creek Nation lived in the Chattahoochee Valley. In 1836,
all but a very few were forced to leave the area and re-settle in Oklahoma
and Texas.
INDUSTRY
AND COMMERCE
By the 1840s, the Chattahoochee River was lined with cotton mills, each
driven by the enormous waterpower of the Chattahoochee as it crossed the
fall line. By the Civil War, local mills were producing grey Confederate
uniform tweed, duck for tents, stripes for army shirts, jeans, osnaburgs,
sheetings, rope and India rubber cloth. By 1860, Columbus was ranked second
only to Richmond, Virginia, in textile production, and was dubbed “the
Lowell of the South.”
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| During a trip through the Lower Chattahoochee area
in 1825, the Marquis de Lafayette traveled through Fort Mitchell,
Cussetta Town, and other historic Indian towns along the Chattahoochee.
This letter from John Banks, his escort on the trip and aide-de camp
to Governor Troup of Georgia, describes the tour. |
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| Orders to Lieutenant General Winfield Scott, May 17,
1838. This document contains instructions for rounding up, disarming
and transporting the Native Americans to the West. |
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| The Yuchi, along with other tribes of the Creek Nation,
were forced by the United States government to travel westward on
the Trail of Tears to a new home in the west. They carried this eagle
tail feather fan on their journey from Georgia to Oklahoma. |
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| Timpoochee Barnard first achieved renown in January
1814, when he took part with the American government’s forces
against the Creeks, and commanded about one hundred Yuchi warriors. |
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| By issuing stock, a corporation enabled thousands of
individuals to pool financial resources and invest in a new venture
like a textile mill. |
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| In the 1830s, Horace King and his second owner, John
Godwin, built the first bridge across the Chattahoochee, connecting
Columbus with Phenix City (then known as Girard). The 560-foot-long
covered bridge was crucial to the development of the region. |
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| Horace King, a slave for half his
life, earned a place in history for building than 100 covered bridges
he built throughout Georgia and neighboring states. |
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Explorers made this map of Georgia during the 18th
century. How many Indian tribes can you find on the map? |
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| Treasures:
Celebrating 175 Years in the Chattahoochee Valley explores
the cultural and economic transformations that pushed Columbus from
a frontier settlement on the banks of the Chattahoochee River to a
thriving industrial and regional center. A fascinating assortment
of historic objects, artifacts and documents enables viewers to witness
ways in which those changes affected people's lives in the 19th and
20th centuries. The exhibition is on view from September 14, 2003
to January 18, 2004. The exhibition
is sponsored by MeadWestvaco. |
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