Wednesday, September 4, 2024

Georgia Small Towns: Cuthbert

 Old Main: The administration building of Andrew College.

Cuthbert, a small city in southwest Georgia, has, to me, a cosmopolitan atmosphere that belies its population of only about 3,500. Perhaps it's because Cuthbert has been a college town since 1852. In any case, the only Georgia small town where I felt a similar atmosphere was Milledgeville, which boasts two colleges and was once a state capital.

Founded in 1854, Andrew Female College was the second college in the US to grant degrees, rather than certificates, to women. In 1956, Andrew became a co-ed institution granting Associate degrees. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church.

The classic 1885 Dutch Romanesque Randolph County Courthouse.

 

 The town water tower. In the middle of a highway.

The water tower, erected in 1895, stands in the center of U.S. Highways 82 and 27. It has the distinction of being the only water tower in the entire United States in the middle of a U.S. highway.

Cuthbert also has a number of really fine old mansions.

The John McKenzie Gunn House.

Gunn, the eighth son of Scottish immigrants of the Clan Gunn, came to Cuthbert as a young man and established a successful general merchandise business. He built the house for his bride in 1853 and their descendants lived in it until 1940. 

The handsome, six-columned Greek Revival mansion named "Boxwood" was built in 1846 by Judge William Taylor, first judge of the Southwestern Circuit of Georgia. 

The Greek Revival-style Dormitory of the (defunct)Baptist Female College.

The Baptist Female College of Southwest Georgia was founded in 1852. The school eventually died in the 1870s, but left as evidence of its existence the Greek Revival college dormitory, with six square columns across the front, built the same year the school was founded. Since the college's demise, the building, known locally as the Muse-Dews-Gay-Martin-Blaskow House, has been a private residence. It is currently unoccupied and, while still beautiful, could use some maintenance. 

Janes Hall is a Greek Revival mansion built in 1840 by plantation owner William Janes, who was one of the original trustees of the Baptist Female College. The windows, moldings, heart pine floors, and hand-planed doors are all original.

Cuthbert is a fascinating old town with many more points of interest than I can cover here . If you should happen to come this way, stop by the Chamber of Commerce at 51 Court Street and pick up a driving tour brochure. 

About the pictures: Old Main, the courthouse, the Gunn House, and Janes Hall were photographed with a Canon EOS 6D digital camera with the EF 28-105mm lens. For the water tower and the Baptist Female College dorm I used a Fuji X-H1 digital camera and a Fujicron XC 16-50mm lens.

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $3.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail me a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

If you would like to have a print of one of my photographs, check out my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  If you don't find what you want there, let me know and I'll arrange to include it in the gallery.

Photography and text copyright 2024 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   Dave Jenkins     photography     digital photography      Canon EOS 6D digital camera     Canon EF 28-105mm lens   Georgia     Fuji X-H1 digital camera    travel photography     Cuthbert, Georgia      Fujicron XC 16-50mm lens    Andrew College     Randolph County, Georgia

1 comment:

  1. Hey Dave.... Fleta Williams Mathews here....you always have such fascinating and informative information and as always beautiful photography. Thanks! Keep me in your prayers...68 years in all built around being a helpmate to Glenn and his calling leaves me with a gigantic void in my life now. Hope all is good with you and yours.

    ReplyDelete