- Thomas County was created in 1825 from portions of
Decatur and Irwin counties. Georgia's 63rd county,
and its county seat, Thomasville, were named for a
hero of the War of 1812, General Jett Thomas. In
addition to his military career, General Thomas
built the first university building in Athens.
- The county has seven
municipalities, the largest is Thomasville. Others
include Barwick, Boston, Coolidge, Meigs,
Ochlocknee, and Pavo. Ochlocknee is named for the
river flowing through Thomas County. Meigs was named
for Josiah Meigs, the first president of the
University of Georgia at Athens. Pavo is Latin for
Peacock, which was the name of the first postmaster
in the area.
- Thomasville was a popular,
turn-of-the-century, winter resort for wealthy
northern families. Non-residents still maintain many
large estates and hunting preserves. Many of these
estates are listed on the National Register of
Historic Places including the Susina Plantation Inn
and the Lapham-Patterson House. The latter is a
large, Victorian house, that was built by a survivor
of the great fire of Chicago. He designed the house
with 45 doors, 26 of which were exterior. Every room
had its own fire extinguisher.
- Thomasville is known for its
annual Rose Festival; for the "Big Oak," which has a
limb spread of 175 feet; and for the McKinley
Memorial Tree planted in 1896 as a salute to
candidate William McKinley, who became the 25th
President of the United States.
- Bailey White, a National Public
Radio essayist and author of Mama Makes Up Her
Mind, is from Thomas County.
- Limestone sinks are common in
this section which was once part of the ocean floor.
A great limestone aquifer in subterranean south
Georgia offers a nearly limitless fresh water
supply.
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Circa 1889, this
photograph was taken of Broad Street from a
north facing tower of Piney Woods Hotel. The
building and tower in the distance (left
center of picture) is the Stewart Hotel that
was located on Madison Street.
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Photographs courtesy of
Thomas County Historical Society
www.rose.net/~history
This photo was
taken of Broad Street from Remington Avenue
toward Jackson Street. The first motion
picture theatre in town, The Dobbs, is
located on the left with the movie poster in
front (directly behind the first motorcar).
Circa unknown.
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