Towns County GA

The Track Rock Terrace Complex

In mid-July, a member of the Unicoi Turnpike Preservation Association,  telephoned me after reading an article that I had written in the Examiner. That particular column was about archaeological sites in western North Carolina.  He was also a member of the Towns County, GA Historical Society.  The Union County-Towns County line runs across the peak of Brasstown Bald Mountain, which contains Georgia’s highest elevation.  Brasstown Bald is immediately to the east of Track Rock Gap. The outdoor enthusiast was primarily interested in what I knew about the use of the Unicoi Turnpike during the Trail of Tears Period (1836-1838.)  The … Read more

Native American History of Towns County, Georgia

The Hiwassee River Valley of Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee played very important roles in both Native American history and the Early Colonial Era. In 1562, Captain René Goulaine de Laudonnière led a party of French Huguenots up the Savannah River and then westward on the Unicoi Trail to the Nacoochee Valley and what is now, Towns County. The Frenchmen developed friendly relations with the Apalachee and Itsati Natives, who then occupied the region. He named the Appalachian Mountains after them. For the next 200 years, the majestic scene of the Nantahala Mountains overlooking the Hiwassee River graced French maps, … Read more