List of Projects:

PUTNAM COUNTY IS IN PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE AREA AROUND THE ROCK HAWK EFFIGY NEAR WALLACE DAM

This is a representation of the trails being developed around an early Indian Effigy known as Rock Hawk.

The Rock Hawk Effigy is similar to the well established Rock Eagle mound at the 4H Center on Route 441 between I-20 and Eatonton Georgia.
 
Rock Hawk is still under development as a tourist site. The project is being carried out as a Route 16 Scenic Byway project and involves a number of organizations, among which are UGA and Georgia Power. By late 2006 the area will become a 700 acre outdoor museum with the 5000 year old Effigy (date speculative), 18th century remains, plus 15 miles of trails, an interpretive center and a viewing platform for the Hawk.

In order to see Rock Hawk and the surrounding area, take Georgia State Highway 16 East from Eatonton towards Sparta. Take a left at the Wallace Dam Road, where you will take another left turn at the sign for the Lawrence Shoals Recreation area. .Part way along this road you will see signs for the Rock Hawk trails, and off to your left (past the old cemetery) you will see the beginnings of the parking area for Rock Hawk. Turn into this parking area and continue along the gravel road to see the Hawk effigy, surrounded by a chain link fence.

What does the Hawk look like? Well right now it looks like a pile of rocks!  When the viewing platform is built, it will transform into the shape of a Hawk, 120 ft long by 130 ft wide  Both the Hawk and the Eagle mounds are believed to be have been used in some kind of ceremonial manner by the Indian tribes who inhabited the Oconee river area many thousands of years ago.

Artifacts from these early tribes have been traced back as far as 10,000 years ago! It is speculated that at least 250 archeological sites are now under water since the Wallace Dam was built and the area flooded in 1979.

Also in this area are some later historic sites. There is the remains of an old homestead and a wonderful 19th century walled cemetery that contains the family gravestones of Kinchen Little.  Mr. Little was an early owner of most of the land where the Wallace Dam is now. He was one of the original families involved with the building of Rockville School, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

BETTER HOMETOWN EATONTON (BHTE, INC.) TO RESTORE OLD JAIL

With proposed grant funding and matching funds from Putnam County, Better Hometown Eatonton has undertaken a project to restore a dilapidated old County Jail and turn it into a Law Enforcement Museum. Along with the restoration of the building is a plan to restore at least part of the surrounding original garden. This garden was the much admired handiwork of the wife of the local Sheriff Walton (in office from 1953 – 1969). Now a blacktop eyesore, it is hoped the garden will be restored back to some of its former glory.

The Old County Jail is a white brick building on Marion Street in Eatonton, Putnam County. The original building was constructed in 1939, and minor additions made around 1954.

The longest tenant of the jail was Sheriff Walton and his family. His three daughters are still alive today and supplied much of the background and photographs for the restoration. It was common at that time for the Sheriff to live on the ground floor with the upper floor reserved for prisoners.

The Jail was little used from 1976 on and fell into complete disuse in the mid 1980’s. It has been in danger of demolition as a hazard or simply from neglect on several occasions. In 2001, the Eatonton Putnam Historical Society obtained a number of grants and repaired the leaking roof and rescued the old county records that were slowly deteriorating from water damage. The plans to make it into a county records storage facility did not materialize as other options were pursued.

In 2005, Better Hometown Eatonton persuaded the county to lease the building to them so it could be restored back to it’s 1950’s  state. BHTE plans to make the building into a tourist attraction as a Law enforcement museum. The original jail cells are mostly intact, although somewhat rusty, and will be a feature of the museum.

CITY OF FORSYTH, GEORGIA - OLD CITY HALL

The restoration of Forsyth’s original City Hall is in its infancy stage. Built in 1897, this two-story brick bell tower building with high Victorian Eclectic elements is a community landmark that is the most recognizable and oldest public building associated with the City of Forsyth.

Two additions have been added to the original structure. A rear, one story annex was added in 1910, and an equipment bay to the northern wall in the mid 1950s. The building was in continuous use through June of 2005. When City Hall moved to a new location in 1967, the building was converted for use as a full-time fire station and police department.

When the building became empty in 2005, the City of Forsyth Historic Preservation Commission decided to use the rehabilitation project as the focal point in implementing a citywide historic preservation and cultural heritage presentation plan. The building will be used to house a region-wide, heritage resource tourism center for Middle Georgia, Better Hometown offices, and community meeting rooms.

The City of Forsyth has received grant assistance to prepare a master plan for the rehabilitation of the building. This predevelopment project is underway and should be completed by June 2006. The rehabilitation plan will be put into action as grant monies and other public monies are awarded and/or appropriated. We anticipate that the total rehabilitation process will take 3-5 years.