Perhaps due to to its lyrical name, the Ichawaynochaway is one of the best known waterways of Southwest Georgia. (Locals often shorten the name to Nochaway). But it’s also one of the longest “creeks” in the state, cutting its way through nearly 84 miles of red Georgia clay. It rises near Weston, in Webster County and flows through Stewart, Randolph, Terrell, and Calhoun counties before joining the Flint River in Baker County. Perhaps dry runs in the summer months are the reason it isn’t called a river, but when viewed at high water in wet seasons it’s as much a river as any other in the region.
There’s debate as to the origin of the name, but it’s a Muskogee word. Some suggest it refers to either beaver or deer but the more popular theory asserts that it means “the place where deer sleep”. The latter seems likely, considering it runs adjacent to some of the best hunting lands in Georgia.
This is the view at the Tivoli River Fishing Pier & Kayak Launch, on Belfast-Keller Road, and it’s the first public “kayak/canoe-only launch” in Coastal Georgia. The Tivoli is an 8.9 mile-long tidal river that flows into the Belfast River, just north of that river’s terminus at the Medway River. The fishing is generally good, too, with redfish, trout, and flounder being abundant much of the year.
Known locally as “The Rocks”, this site in the Salem community of northwestern Ben Hill County seems out of place in the Coastal Plain landscape surrounding it. It’s been an area landmark for at least a century but there is no general access. I’m unable to give directions to the site.
For years these geological features were informally identified as Ashburn formations (Wharton, The Natural Environments of Georgia, Atlanta, 1978, et al.) , after the first well-documented site of this type, located off Highway 41 north of Ashburn. Since I’m not a geologist, I don’t know if they’re related to the well-known Altamaha formations (or Altamaha grit). I suspect they may be grouped together at this point. Recent scholarship suggests they may be remnants of coral reefs near the ancient shoreline. Still others believe they’re meteoric in origin.
It’s looks quite small from some perspectives but the largest rock is actually nearly twenty feet high.
This is an important natural heritage site and I hope it remains in pristine condition for years to come.
The site of a historic ferry on the Ocmulgee, this landing now provides public access to the river. It’s truly one of the most appealing areas on the river, just upstream from the confluence with the Oconee and the beginning of the Altamaha River.
Rock outcrops common to the Altamaha Formation are found here as they are in other parts of the county.
Jesse M. Bookhardt recently shared this about Burkett’s Ferry: Burkett’s Ferry is a wonderful place and occupies a special place in my memory. Located in Jeff Davis County just off the old Pioneer Tallahassee Trail, it represents one of several ferries that provided river crossing services. Though not in operation during my time, I remember the site well. Folks from the neighboring communities such as Snipesville often went there fishing, boating, and picnicking. There existed a small spring of cool clear water that seeped from a bank just up stream from the landing. From this pool of fresh water, many fishermen and visitors to the river stopped to drink. It is unknown to me whether the spring still runs or has succumbed to the dynamic forces of nature. Burkett’s Ferry was one of two closely geographically connect fishing spots. Nearby is Pike Creek recorded as Pipe Creek in the original land survey of the area. Both places provided rich fishing waters. Perhaps the “Pipe” referred to a site for making Native American tobacco medicine pipes. Obviously Native Americans once occupied the Burkett’s Ferry site, for in the 1950s when I was a kid, I found pottery and stone artifacts. During the pioneer period, the ferry connected Telfair with Ocmulgeeville, and further to the east Holmesville, the county seat of Appling. When the original plan was made for the old Macon and Brunswick Railroad, it called for the route to cross the Ocmulgee near Burkett’s Ferry. Later the plan was changed and the railroad was scheduled to be built across the Ocmulgee at Lumber City further down stream. Burkett’s Ferry is historically significant to the Ocmulgee and Wiregrass region for it provided much needed access to the hinterland of South Georgia.
The crumbling ruins of the warehouse and company store are the most significant remains of the once-thriving mill town of Scull Shoals, on the Oconee River in Greene County.
Built in 1846, this structure survived floods and the nearby movement of Union troops in the Civil War only to fall into disrepair after the abandonment of the village and ensuing floods.
The following history (in italics) comes from the Friends of Scull Shoals: Scull Shoals village began as a frontier settlement in 1782, and in 1793, after several Indian raids, residents erected Fort Clark. This was built by Michael Cupp, to the Governor’s specifications. It served to protect the settlers from raids across the river by the Creek Indians to the west. Fort Clark was manned by a local militia called “Phinizey’s Dragoons” until the Creeks were moved west towards the Ocmulgee River by the Treaties of 1802 and 1805. The settlers began to expand rapidly across the Oconee River after the treaty of 1802. White settlers and black slaves quickly opened up the land. Following Eli Whitney’s 1793 invention of the cotton gin, they began to raise cotton in huge quantities. The local villagers began with a gristmill and sawmill, and soon had a cotton gin.
With funds from the Georgia legislature, Zachariah Sims and George Paschal built Georgia’s first paper mill at Scull Shoals in 1811. Though details are scarce, it is probable that the original paper mill was an addition to the water-powered grist mill, already in place. The Sims and Paschal plans were to expand that mill dramatically with a $3,000 loan from the Georgia legislature. The paper mill lasted until about 1815. The operators went bankrupt shortly after the War of 1812. The property changed hands, but the village continued to expand.
Under its third owner, Dr. Thomas Poullain,there were flourishing mills, boarding houses, stores, a large warehouse and store combination, a distillery, a toll bridge, and other enterprises. During Poullain’s 41- year leadership (1827-1868), a devastating fire completely destroyed the wooden mill buildings in 1845, as attested in the Southern Banner. Poullain supported his people as they rebuilt the three- and four-story buildings of Fontenoy Mills in brick. They were back in operation by 1846. In 1854 Poullain had 2,000 spindles and looms, consuming 4,000 bales of cotton valued at $200,000. It was clearly an economically productive enterprise. As the enterprise expanded, more than 600 people were employed to make yarns and cloth. Always a company town, Scull Shoals suffered economic problems after the Civil War, and changed hands several times. For a short period (1877-78) it was home to Georgia’s infamous Penitentiary Company #3, which operated the cotton fields and mills with convict labor. It soon passed to other ownership.
Dr. Lindsey Durham lived across the river in what became first Clarke, then Oconee County. He was an early Scull Shoals community leader and medical specialist, trained in early life by the Indian curers. He attended medical School in Philadelphia, and then returned to Georgia to practice. Dr. Durham had a 13-acre herb garden and developed patent medicines that he and his medical family used to treat their patients. Durham’s 600-bed hospital was in cabins scattered around his home, near present GA Highway 15. It was a major facility for the time. His family became a dominant medical dynasty extending to the present.
Scull Shoals village was home to Georgia Governor Peter Early, who served in office from 1813 to 1815. Early was born nearby, and was buried there for a while. He died 1817 at the age of 45.
From mid-century on, there were droughts and devastating floods. These resulted in work stoppages, caused by either the lack of water for power, or too much water. The 1887 major flood left water standing for four days in the buildings. The covered toll bridge floated downstream. Several hundred bales of cotton were in the mill, and 600 bushels of wheat in the warehouse. They were all were ruined, bringing economic chaos to Scull Shoals Mills, from which it never recovered. A hundred years of open-field cotton farming caused erosion that removed 8-9 inches of topsoil from the fields. It was deposited in the rivers and covered the shoals. This in turn caused more frequent flooding, which continues to the present. Heavy siltation cut the “head” of water needed to power the mills, often stopping mill work. By 1900, most people had left for regular work elsewhere, and the mills closed for good. During the World Wars, machinery was scrapped for the war efforts, and most of the brick buildings were dismantled and salvaged.
Today, only three walls of the brick warehouse and store remain, along with the arched brick bridge that took workers across the raceway into the mills. Stone foundations of the old mill’s power plant and scattered stone and brick chimney bases can be found in the downtown village and out in the surrounding woods. Remains of the wooden covered toll bridge stand in the Oconee River.
Between 1875 and 1930, the town’s land was divided and sold several times. In the 1930’s tracts were re-assembled by R. P. Brightwell of Maxey’s, and sold to the government for an experimental forest. It became a teaching laboratory for the University of Georgia’s School of Forestry. The Soil Conservation Service and Civilian Conservation Corps also did massive reclamations, by terracing eroded hillsides and replanting the forests. Scull Shoals became part of the newly-created Oconee National Forest in 1959. The old mill town has laid quietly waiting, marked only by the ruins in the woods. During the 1960’s funds became available for landscaping the area to make it more park-like. It was a small picnic area popular for fishing and hunting, and generally forgotten by most everyone. In the early 1970’s, portions of the old roadways into the site were closed. The old roads had become eight-foot deep gullies in places. New roads were built in new locations, and crossing Sandy Creek with a new bridge. Old roadways can still be found approaching the Scull Shoals Historic Recreation Area. They are easily seen along Forest road 1234, as one enters the forest from Macedonia Church Road.
As is often the case in rainy periods, the shoals area was flooded when I was here. It had been raining in the area for well over a week at this time.
I was unable to see the old arched bridge or the stone pilings of the toll bridge. I did encounter a couple of men using metal detectors around the foundation ruins. I don’t think they were authorized to be here, but I don’t know the regulations on the property. Unfortunately, this sort of activity threatens the historical integrity of the site, which is among the most significant in the state as an early industrial endeavor.
Surprisingly, the access road was easily passable, and with a few leaves still clinging to the trees, the colors of fall were still evident.
Due to the weather, however, a small pine had fallen into the roadway, a sign to be careful in the area.
Sandy Creek, which is crossed by the road in to the historic site, was well over its banks, as well.
Originating in Berrien and Cook counties, the Withlacoochee River flows south through Brooks and Lowndes counties then crosses into Madison and Hamilton counties in Florida. It merges with the Suwanee River near Live Oak and eventually empties into the Gulf of Mexico.
There’s another Withlacoochee River, originating in the Green Swamp near Polk City, Florida, and emptying directly into the Gulf of Mexico. Kayakers sometimes refer to Georgia’s river as Withlacoochee North. It’s believed the Florida river is named for the Georgia river. The origin of the name is thought to be Muskogean/Creek, loosely translated as little big water or river of lakes.
The Withlacoochee is a relatively low river in general, but was particularly so when I made these photographs in the winter of 2012. The river was suffering the effects of a drought at the time. It’s best known by kayakers and a few intrepid anglers. Bowfin (Amia calva) a cousin of gar, is common in most runs of the Withlacoochee and though not generally taken for food, is a popular, if exotic, sport variety.
There’s little literature or historical writing to be found on the Withlacoochee. It’s well-known to locals, but beyond its moss-draped banks, very few people are even aware of it. Most published lore on the Withlacoochee can be credited to the paddle sport community.
There are a few private campsites along the river but access is quite limited.
The growth of Valdosta and pollution from industrial agriculture near the river are putting a strain on this fragile environment, but ultimately, the river makes its presence known.
A neighborhood near the spot these photographs were made has been known to flood on several occasions when the river receives heavy winter and spring rains. Interstate 75 passes within a half-mile of this area, as well.
There’s a timeless feel to this wilderness, even in its most urban setting. At low water, one could theoretically “walk” the river for as far as he wished.
Today, the Withlacoochee-Willacoochee-Alapaha-Little-Upper Suwannee Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is working to make the public more aware of the smaller and lesser known rivers of this section of South Georgia. Through education and pollution monitoring, they’re beginning to make a real impact.
Thomas Spalding picked one of the most beautiful spots on the coast when he located his mainland home, Ashantilly, on the banks of Black Island Creek. I visit friends here and photograph it often and it’s always a favorite.
Fancy Bluff is a large network of tidal creeks and tributaries in southern Glynn County. Though it’s a bit inland, it gives the appearance of being right on the coast.
This private fishing camp is one of a few that still remain on the Ogeechee River.
I hope these sorts of places survive well into the future, but with increasing pollution on our rivers, it seems a challenge.
Just downstream from this camp, illegal chemical discharges at King America Finishing led to the largest fish kill in Georgia history in May 2011, essentially sanctioned by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division.
Near the ghost town of Ogeechee on the Ogeechee River this wooden bridge still stands alongside a newer bridge, built in 1970. I imagine it was a scary trip on the Old Ogeechee Road back in the day, especially during flood stage.
