Located on private property and inaccessible, Turnwold is among the most historic plantations in Georgia. Likely dating to the 1810s-1820s, the present house, known as the Alexander-Turner House, has undergone many modifications over the years. [There is some question as to the actual date of the house today]. In 1805, brothers William and Joseph Turner received property here in the 1805 land lottery and immediately began improving the property. William named the broader property, containing two houses, Turnwold (meaning Turner’s field), and Joseph was well-known for publishing The Countryman. It is thought to be the only such periodical published on a plantation during the course of the war. It was as a printer’s devil for Mr. Turner during the Civil War that Joel Chandler Harris heard stories in Turnwold’s slave quarters that would become the basis for his Uncle Remus stories.
Just to emphasize: this is private property and can only be viewed or photographed from the right of way.
This historic African-American congregation dates to the 1880s. The church is of a vernacular style typical of rural congregations from the late-19th through the mid-20th century.
2021
It was the childhood church home of one of Georgia’s most popular authors, Alice Walker.
2021
After years of disrepair, it has been restored.
The small cemetery across the road is where members of Ms. Walker’s family are buried.
Willie Lee Walker – 13 September 1909-26 January 1973Minnie Tallulah Grant Walker – 2 December 1912-10 September 1993
Built by Henry and Elizabeth Perry Tripp, Panola Hall is one of the most iconic houses in Eatonton and among Georgia’s most impressive Greek Revival landmarks. In 1891 the house was purchased by Dr. Benjamin Hunt. Dr. Hunt, a native New Yorker, moved to Putnam County after his marriage to Louisa Prudden of Eatonton. The Hunts made some Victorian changes in the structure as well as conducted general restoration of the house. In 1922 Mr. Hunt was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Georgia, Doctor of Science, for his experiments in dairy farming and botany. Many of his rare plants are still thriving on the grounds. In 1946 the house was owned by M.L. Liles. The house remained in the Liles family until 1981 when it was purchased by Dr. Robert Lott. Dr. Philip Hammond bought the house in 1996.
A local legend maintains the house hosts a ghost named Sylvia, who usually appears as a shy silent woman with dark hair and a white skirt. She’s been reported in the second floor hallway, a bedroom, and occasionally peering out the living room window.
Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Also referred to as the Gerdings-Young House, this iconic Greek Revival cottage and the adjacent Bledsoe-Greene House are good examples of residential structures built facing town squares.
Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Early photographs of this house show that myriad changes have been made to it over time, mostly cosmetic with the addition and subsequent removal of a Greek Revival portico. It’s among the oldest known houses in Eatonton and is presently home to the W. F. Jenkins Camp #690, Sons of Confederate Veterans.
Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
The birthplace of Joel Chandler Harris and Alice Walker, Eatonton is the perfect location for a state writers’ museum. The Georgia Writers Museum is presently open Friday-Sunday in a small storefront on Main Street, the museum plans to relocate to the historic Eatonton Hotel in the future.
Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
This statue of Brer Rabbit on the courthouse lawn is one of two in Eatonton, the other being located at the nearby Uncle Remus Museum. It’s one of the most colorful and unique monuments in Georgia. The community embraces Joel Chandler Harris but to its credit equally promotes Alice Walker. I think they’re just proud to claim two world famous authors, no matter how far apart they are on the spectrum.
The whimsical statue stands atop a granite pillar, with the epigram: Brer Rabbit – Born and Bred in the Briar Patch – He Survives Forever by His Wit, His Courage and His Cunning.
Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
From the historical marker: Andrew & Mary Ann Clopton Reid’s 1852 National Register Greek Revival Mansion’s origins reach back to the 1816 “Eagle Tavern Inn.” Rising Star Masonic Lodge F & AM Lodge #39 minutes record its first Feast of St. John the Evangelist Festival Day here on December 28, 1818. Thomas T. Napier owned and occupied it by 1820 & by 1822 its tax digest value was $3,500 ~ while most other buildings in town valued at $500 – $600. Eatonton’s famous tavern operator, William Wilkins, Sr., bought it in 1830 and lost it at sheriff’s sale November 3, 1835, to wealthy planter brothers Andrew & Alexander Sydney Reid, who operated it as Reid’s Hotel. By 1846 Andrew Reid (1806-1865) owned it alone and by 1848 began the conversion to his private residence. James M. Broadfield (1815-1899) was the carpenter-architect who turned the earlier Inn into the Greek house. Twelve massive wooden fluted Doric columns, the massive entrance, interior Egyptian-style door, window & mantel molding & the hallway floor’s marbleized squares added sophistication. In 1874, Reid’s administrators sold to Francis Asberry Leverette, CSA (1845-1895), appointed U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Georgia by President Cleveland. Leverette moved to Macon and died there after selling on February 5, 1894 to James M. Rainey, who began renting rooms for $2.00 a day and even housed by 1901 Dr. Hopkins’ dental office. Mr. & Mrs. Emerson Foote Bronson rented it from Rainey in 1911 and bought from him in 1914. Bronson relocated from Tennille, GA, in 1908 as the new Central of GA Railroad Depot Agent. In 1931, his widow Nena Norwood Bronson (1868-1961), converted to a boarding house and then into 7 apartments, including her own. She preserved the property, careful not to remove architectural features. Her daughter Eunice Bronson (Frank P.) Stubbs (1896-1985) inherited, moved in and continued the family preservation tradition. Her six children, in tribute to their grandmother, mother and their preservation interest, sold it on Oct. 10, 1985, to the Eatonton-Putnam County Historical Society, Inc. for its headquarters. The Society opened the house on Dec. 14, 1985, for a lavish donors’ reception.
It’s also believed that Joel Chandler Harris and his mother lived in a small cottage on the property for a time.
Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
