A variety of shops make the town square an interesting place to spend an afternoon.
Dahlonega has been named as Georgia's best small town for 2023, according to an article in Southern Living magazine.
In many ways, Dahlonega is the gateway to the north Georgia mountains, located as it is at the northern terminus of Georgia Highway 400. a direct, four-lane, 65-mile pipeline to Atlanta. Close enough that there actually some people who live in Dahlonega and commute.
Whether you enjoy rummaging through the many shops that surround the town square, hiking, biking, or driving the nearby mountains, or sampling the wares at the many vineyards that surround the town, Dahlonega is a great place to visit. It has some excellent restaurants, too. I can especially recommend the Smith House on South Chestatee Street, which features home cooking, served family style.
Pryce Memorial Hall on the University of North Georgia campus.
Dahlonega is also home to the University of North Georgia and Georgia Military College. The school was founded in 1873, and the military college is one of only six senior military colleges in the United States. The university offers over a hundred courses of study. Pryce Memorial Hall, the administration building, was built in 1879 on the foundation
of the 1838 U.S. Mint. Its steeple is covered in gold leaf.
In 2000, after 30 years as a registered nurse, Louise enrolled in the Master of Science nursing program at the university to become a Nurse Practitioner. For two years, she and another nurse from Summerville made the 112-mile trip to Dahlonega several days a week, leaving about 5:30 a.m. to arrive in time for 8 a.m. classes. Through all of this, she also worked full or part-time nursing jobs. I don't know how she did it, but she is determined. And tough. She only looks delicate and fragile.
Piggin' out at Dahlonega's Gold Rush Days Festival.
The Gold Rush Days Festival, held the third weekend in October, draws as many as 200,000 people to Dahlonega to enjoy the fall colors at their peak, learn about the history of the gold rush, and check out the more than three hundred arts and crafts and food vendors that line the Public Square and Historic District. Especially, for some, the food vendors.
The photos: The shops on the square were photographed with an Olympus E-M5 digital camera fitted with the Panasonic 14-140mm lens.Pryce Hall was photographed with a Canon EOS A2 and Fujichrome 100 film, and the corn-on-the-cob connoisseur with a Leica M3 and 50mm Leitz Summicron lens, also loaded with Fujichrome 100.
Visit my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/
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 a check to 8943
Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how
you would like your book inscribed.
Photography and text copyright 2011-2025 David B.Jenkins.
I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.
Dahlonega looks entirely charming, and it reminds me of Oxford, Mississippi, the home city of The University of Mississippi. I hope to have a good excuse to visit Dahlonega someday.
ReplyDeleteIt's very touristy, but I've always loved the place and wouldn't mind living there. Unfortunately, I don't think Louise and I have another move in us.
ReplyDeleteReally appreciate the history and photos.
ReplyDelete