Experience Life in the Thomaston During WWII at our Newest Exhibition “Thomaston Goes to War … On the Homefront”
Upson Historical Society
Open Hours: Monday & Wednesday 10:00am to 4:00pm, Friday 10:00am to 2:00pm or by Appointment
Address: The Pettigrew, White, Stamps House, 800 South Church Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Contact Us: (706) 601-3610 or Email: upsonhistoricalsociety1968@gmail.com
To see a google map and visit all of the locations in Thomaston and Upson County please click on this: https://georgia-humanities.opentour.site/touring-thomaston-an-fascinating-place-to-visit/upson-historical-society
Thomaston-Upson Archives
Open Hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 5:00 pm.
Address: 301 S Center Street, Thomaston, GA 30286
Contact Us: 706-646-2437 or Email: jgramme@upsoncountyga.org
The Thomaston Upson Archives is hosting half of the “Thomaston Goes to War … On the Homefront” exhibition. The exhibition includes: War Production Industries: National reports stated that the mills in Thomaston produced more than 25% of our nation’s tire cord. They were the key producer of much needed wartime textile products. Given this pivotal role, we are proud to present an exhibition on our wartime textile industry. Our Soldiers: The exhibition highlights our veterans and soldiers and their stories. Thomaston’s War Industries: Martha Mills and Thomaston Mills produced tire cords to reinforce military tires and cotton duck for uniforms. Our mica mines provided material for airport asphalt landing strips, electronics, radio technology, and aircraft plugs.
Greatest Generation Memorial Park
Open Hours: Seven Days a Week from Dawn until Dusk
Address: 213 Park Drive, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Contact Us: 706-647-7144
Description: The park is currently open. The Greatest Generation Memorial Park added a new area dedicated to Thomaston’s contribution to WWII.
African-American Museum
Open by appointment only. For a tour appointment, contact Rev. Patrick Allen at 706-975-7619 or Barbara Worthy at 706-647-5786.
Address: 502 Joe White Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286.
This shotgun house was the home of Frances Walker for 70 years. The historic home was moved by the City of Thomaston from the African-American Bethel Street community to its present location. The museum features furniture and artifacts illustrating the lives of African-Americans in Thomaston.
Andrews Chapel One Room School House
Open by appointment only. Please call: Upson Historical Society to make a reservation.
Address: 1800 Andrews Chapel Road, Thomaston, GA 30286
Phone: (706) 601-3610
Andrews Chapel School was established in 1876 and remained open as a school until closing 1941. Of the 47 schoolhouses located in Upson County prior to 1941, Andrews Chapel is the only one room schoolhouse left standing, thanks to the dedication of members in the community.
Auchumpkee Creek Covered Bridge
Open Hours: Daylight hours
Address: Allen Rd, HWY 80, Thomaston GA 30286
Phone: (706) 647-9686
The 96 foot covered bridge was built by local bridge builder Dr. J. W. Herring and his company, Herring and Alford, for $1,199.. The bridge has been rebuilt/restored twice, the first time in 1985. In the summer of 1994, not long after its 100th birthday, the bridge was washed out by local flooding. In 1997, GDOT rebuilt the bridge from the ground up. The bridge is not open to traffic. Maps and brochures for the Auchumpkee Creek Covered Bridge are available at the Thomaston-Upson Chamber of Commerce Welcome Center.
Old First Methodist Church – Cathedral of St. Michael & All Angels Charismatic Episcopal Church
Open Hours: Sunday Service at 10:00am
Address: 220 East Lee Street, Thomaston GA 30286
Phone: 770-401-3202
The Methodists were the first religious denomination to establish themselves in Thomaston, constructing their fist building by 1828. This Gothic Revival building dates from 1888-89. The building is now the Cathedral of St. Michael & All Angels Charismatic Episcopal Church.
R.E. Lee Institute
Open Hours: 9:00 to 5:00 pm. Currently being used by the City of Thomaston and Upson County for Offices and Court.
Address: 106 East Lee Street, Thomaston GA 30286
Phone: 706-647-4242
Chartered in 1875 as the Thomaston High School, the name was changed in 1882. Particularly in its first 50 years, the school was both a focus of community pride for its high academic standards and the locus of community togetherness as its buildings provided the space for community activities of all types. This Neo-classical structure, dating back to 1910, was reconstructed in 1922 following a severe fire.
Glenwood Cemetery
Open Hours: Seven Days a Week from Dawn until Dusk
Address: 320 South Bethel Street Thomaston, GA 30286
Glenwood Cemetery is the oldest cemetery in Thomaston, Georgia. Located on 8.25 acres in the heart of the city, it grew from land that surrounded the site of the first Methodist Church in our area. The property was acquired through conveyances in 1835 and 1860. In 1901, the Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church conveyed the then two-acre cemetery to the City of Thomaston which maintains it to the present.
St. Mary’s AME Church
Open Hours: Sunday Service at 10:00am
Address: 605 N. Hightower Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Phone: (706) 647-3826
According to Vanishing Georgia, freed men established this historic congregation in 1867. James McGill writes in his fascinating book, The First One Hundred Years of Upson County Negro History (2017): By the summer of 1870, Reverend William Harris was sent to St. Mary AME Church in Thomaston, Georgia. Rev. Harris, the third pastor in the history of St. Mary, was born free in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1845 but was kidnapped in 1858 and sold into slavery in Georgia. He escaped to the North two years later and eventually enlisted in the Union Army. St. Mary had a new church building completed that year [1870] which provided ample room for scholars. The school operated in St. Mary at least as late as 1876. Upson County did not open a public school in Thomaston for Negro students until August 1883; St. Mary can confidently claim credit for housing the first successful church school organized for the Negroes in Upson County.
The present building was constructed in 1905. Distinctive for its rounded corner steeple. The church retains its historic appearance, though stucco has been applied to the original brick.
Thomaston Mills and East Thomaston Mill Village
Open: The Mill and Mill Homes are not open to the public.
Address: 1149 Barnesville Street, Thomaston, GA. You can enter the mill village from Trice Road and Avenue N as well as various avenues along Barnesville Street.
In December of 1899 Thomaston Cotton Mills was granted a charter, and in 1900 Robert Edgar Hightower, Sr. became president and took over management at the shareholders’ unanimous request. In The Early History of Upson County (Nottigham and Hannah) it is stated, “The inspired leadership and foresightedness of Mr. Hightower has built from that humble beginning, a mammoth industrial enterprise.” His family continued to lead the company. The city of East Thomaston was incorporated as a separate municipality for Thomaston Cotton Mills and the surrounding residences of the employees of the mills. By the time of WWII Thomaston Mills was comprised of Thomaston Cotton Mills (1899), Peerless Mill (1919), Thomaston Bleachery (1924), and the Griffin Mill was purchased c. 1930. Early products included osnaburgs, sheeting, and tire cord. During WWII Certificates of Necessity were issued by the U.S. government for war materials, such as tire cord ( vast amounts were shipped to England and within the U.S.), industrial fabrics, and yarn and fabrics for uniforms, and these had to be fulfilled before other orders from customers. Throughout the years Thomaston Cotton Mills adapted to market changes as well as technological changes.
As the mills expanded with increasing number of employees, building houses to accommodate them was an ongoing activity of the company within the East Thomaston Mill Village. In 1919 with the building of Peerless Mill, the company hired Draper and Co. to layout the grounds of this mill village as well as West Point Iron Works to build new houses. Existing houses were renovated. In its earliest days, Thomaston Cotton Mills provisioned its employees, many commuting from rural farms by horse or on foot, with kerosene and coal and developed boarding houses, homes, a hotel, stable, and butchering facility. With East Thomaston Mill Village clustered around the 3 divisions of Thomaston Cotton Mills, it numbered approximately 624 houses with its own mayor and city council, police force, and mill operated school system employing teachers for grades 1-8. In 1926 Thomaston Cotton Mills built the Martha Mill and its southwest village with grounds laid out in a landscape plan by E. S. Draper, beginning the development of Silvertown. By 1929 the B.F. Goodrich Co. exercised its option to purchase and now owned and expanded Martha Mill and the Silvertown Mill Village.
In September, 1945 Thomaston Cotton Mills dropped the word cotton from its name, reflecting some synthetic yarns, as well as cotton, were being used, becoming Thomaston Mills, Inc. The company continued to diversify its product lines and adapt to ever changing technology, market, and business conditions for over 100 years. It finally succumbed to global pressures. By 2001 the company sold its name, Thomaston Mills, Inc., to ATD American along with a warehouse and automated sewing operation, which continues to operate.
Martha Mill and Silvertown
Open Hours: Seven Days a Week from Dawn until Dusk
Address: Goodrich Avenue, location of Greatest Generation Memorial Park. and 213 Park Drive, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
In 1926, R.E. Hightower, Sr., of Thomaston Cotton Mills, helped secure a new mill to manufacture cotton tire cord for B.F. Goodrich Company (BFG). Named after Hightower’s wife, Martha Mills solidified Thomaston’s role in West Georgia’s thriving textile industry. In 1929, BFG purchased Martha Mills and engaged renowned landscape architect and city planner Earle Sumner Draper and architectural and engineering firm Robert and Company to design a community for Martha Mills’ employees. Named Silvertown after a line of BFG tires, Draper’s design protected natural resources, created abundant open space, and incorporated plans for houses, schools, a community center, and churches. During World War II, Martha Mills produced much-needed materials for the war effort. In 1958 Silvertown was annexed into Thomaston. The Silvertown Historic District is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Upson County Courthouse
Open: Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 5:00
Address: Courthouse Square, North Center St, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Built in 1908 for $60,000.00. Designed in the Neo-classical style by the Washington, D.C. architectural firm of Frank P. Milburn & Co. Houses the courts and county offices. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Ritz Theatre
Open: Friday from 6:00 pm – to 9:00 pm, Saturday from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm and Sunday from 2:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Address: 112-114 S. Church Street, Thomaston, Georgia Phone: (706) 647-7022
Phone: (706) 647-7022 Email: info@ritzthomaston.com
Erected in 1927 in the Mission style, the façade was altered in the 1930’s to its present Art Deco Design. Building housed a café, two stores, and offices on the second floor. Interior had been refurbished for moviegoers’ comfort. Today it is a working movie theater.
First Baptist Church
Open: Sunday from 8:30 am to 10:55 am and Wednesday 6:30 pm
Address: 208 S. Church Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Phone: (706) 647-7889 Email: faith@fbcthomaston.org
Built in 1920-21 in the Georgian Revival Style, next door to its Victorian predecessor. The Baptist Church in Thomaston was established at Bethesda in 1825, but a chapel was not constructed in town until about 1839.
Fincher Building/Thomaston-Upson Arts Council
Open: Saturday, Sunday & Monday- Closed, Tuesday: 10am-5pm, Wednesday: 10am-12pm, Thursday: 10am-5pm , Friday: 10am-5pm
Address: 201-203 S. Center Street, Thomaston
Phone: 706-647-1605 Email: tuarts@windstream.net
Home of the Thomaston-Upson Arts Council which features an art gallery, music programs and theater for both adults and children. Dating from 1873, this is the oldest existing building in downtown Thomaston. Always containing two store spaces on the first floor, the second floor was originally hotel rooms before being converted to offices in the early 20th century.
TUAC Mission: To enrich the lives of all citizens by providing the highest quality arts programming possible.
U.S. Post Office
Open: Monday to Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm and Saturdays 8:30 to 12:00 pm
Address: 103 East Thompson Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Phone: (800) 275-8777
Built in 1933 and designed by James A. Wetmore in the Georgian Revival Style. Previously post offices in Thomaston were located in stores and leased commercial buildings at various downtown locations.
Central Georgia Railroad Depot
Open: Monday through Thursday 9:00 am to 10:00 pm, Friday and Saturday from 9:00 am to 10:30 pm
218 N. Center Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Phone: (706) 938-0934
Built in the 1920s by the Central of Georgia Railroad, replacing an earlier frame structure. The Depot was built to provide freight service and some passenger service. The building has been refurbished and is now the Train Depot Bottle Shop.
Grand Oak
Open: Tuesday to Friday 9:00 am to 6:00 pm and Saturday 9:00 am to 12:00 pm
Address: 327 W. Main Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Phone: (706) 646-4650
Originally built in 1883 by John Gibson, a rural mail carrier, but greatly expanded in 1913 by Frank Garner of the Garner-Nelson Lumber Company. Today the home has been refurbished as the Grand Oak Salon.
Queen Anne House
Open: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Open Wednesday from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.
403 West Gordon Street, Thomaston, Georgia 30286
Phone: (706) 647-1680
Dating from around the turn of the 20th century, this house is a good, though modest example of Queen Anne design typical of the late Victorian period. Now used as Thomaston Pediatrics.
“Thomaston Goes to War on the Homefront” 