Classic Georgian architecture is easily spotted on a drive down the tree-lined streets of Eatonton.
Homes including the Hubbard House (ca.1855) provide excellent examples of Greek Revival architecture.
Located in the center of town is the Court House, built for Eatonton, the county seat of Putnam County, in 1906. Each spring, residents and visitors enjoy the annual Tour of Homes and during the holidays, the Candlelight Tour of Homes also features intimate tours of many of the area's finest architecture treasures.
Eatonton is one of several featured stops along two of Georgia's most popular visitor's trails: The Antebellum Trail and Georgia's Antiques Trail. A perfect blend of southern history and hospitality, the Antebellum Trail is especially spectacular during the spring when the region is covered with fragrant peach blossoms, azaleas and dogwoods.
In 1946 the people at Disney released a movie to honor Uncle Remus' stories. The movie was released to celebrate the stories' fiftieth anniversary. They named the movie "Song of the South" and it includes animation and live action. The movie was released on November 2, 1946 and premiered in Atlanta, Georgia. Some film facts: An Academy Award was won for the song "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" in "Song of the South" and James Baskette received an Academy Award (Special Award) for his portrayal of Uncle Remus in the film.
His first collection of folk poems and proverbs was published in 1881 as Uncle Remus: His Songs and Sayings. Further collections included Nights with Uncle Remus (1883), Uncle Remus and His Friends (1892), and Uncle Remus and the Little Boy (1905). In these tales, animal characters such as Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox act like human beings. The resourceful and witty Brer Rabbit exemplified survival for slaves in the South. These stories were based on traditional African trickster tales and folklore that slaves told on the plantations. Harris worked on a plantation where he learned the language and listened to the stories of the slaves. Their stories became the basis for his successful tales.
Colorful scenes in each of the windows depict the countryside of a southern plantation during the antebellum days. Shadow boxes containing delicate wood carvings of "de Critters" capture the other world of Uncle Remus. The focal point of the cabin is a large portrait of Uncle Remus and the Little Boy, presented to the museum by Walt Disney.
Turner Park, site of the museum, is a part of the original homeplace of Joseph Sidney Turner, the "Little Boy" in the tales of Uncle Remus.
The museum is open daily from 10 - 12 and 1 - 5.
Sunday hours are from 2-5.
Admission: Adults $.50 and Students $.25.
Closed Tuesdays from September - May.
There is a companion effigy about twelve to fifteen miles away off Highway 16 East. It is located adjacent to Lawrence Shoals Recreation Park and is currently undergoing major restoration. The dimensions of both eagles are the same except for the wing spread. Both mounds face east, and if a straight line could be drawn between the beaks, it would point exactly east and west. The eagle effigies were first described by C. C. Jones, a Georgia historian, in 1877 for the Smithsonian Institute. At that time he made accurate measurements and drawings of both mounds, and they are today just as he saw them. There was no more work done until 1937 when Dr. A. R. Kelly ran several exploratory trenches on either side of the effigy but did not find anything at the time. Dr. Kelly, a noted archaeologist on the faculty of the University of Georgia, is of the opinion that these effigies are of great importance and played a significant part in the religious life of a very ancient people possibly more than five thousand years ago. The antiquity of the Rock Eagle effigy can well be realized when you think that it was probably built fifty centuries ago.
Rock Eagle Mound is a part of the 3-1/2 million dollar Youth 4H Center. The facilities include 54 cottages which will accommodate up to twenty persons each and eight additional buildings which provide space for a variety of meeting and display needs. There is a beautiful chapel of natural stone, a medical building, five open-air pavilions, 2 nice swimming pools, a dining hall capable of serving 1,200 people an hour, and an air conditioned auditorium with 1,232 seats. These, along with other attractions, are located on a beautiful 110-acre lake with public picnic areas, boats, and fishing facilities for the public.
