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Fort Valley, Georgia Built: 1936 Architectural Style: Colonial Revival With the creation of Peach County in November, 1924, the second floor of Slappey’s Opera House located on Main Street served as the county’s first courthouse. Later, it was moved around the corner to a former Star and Durant auto dealership. The current courthouse was built in 1936. After a fire in 1969, the courthouse was restored. Additions were constructed in the early 1970s and 1990s. County History: Peach County, named for the area’s most famous crop, was the last county formed in Georgia. On July 18, 1924, the General Assembly proposed a constitutional amendment to create Peach County from Houston and Macon counties. In that year’s general election, Georgia voters ratified the proposed amendment on November 4, 1924, the date that marks Peach County’s creation. County Seat: Fort Valley, the county seat, was incorporated March 3, 1856. Nicknamed “The Peach Center,” Fort Valley was settled by James Abingdon Everett who founded the city as an Indian trading post in 1820. There are conflicting stories on how the city received its name. One account is that the community is named for Arthur Fort, a Revolutionary War hero. The other cites that the city’s first name was “Fox Valley.” When the application was submitted to the postal authorities, the name was misread as “Fort Valley.” Photo courtesy of Keith Hair, Carl Vinson Institute of Georgia, University of Georgia. |
