Rusted Rail's Ramblings Thanks for stopping by my blog. I plan on using it share my images and also what is going on in my life. There will also be some pipe smoking content and tobacco reviews from time to time. BRP Tunnel 2019
The North Carolina section of the Blue Ridge Parkway features a number of tunnels between Cherokee and Asheville. As Spring arrives, I'm looking forward to exploring the BRP again as it is now closer than ever to reach from our home in Greer.
Draw your sword
Another monument at the Oconee Hill Cemetery in Athens I really liked was this one holding a sword. Whenever we visit a historic cemetery, I wonder how many of the monuments and other graves are still visited by family members. In some cemeteries, age has really taken a toll on the monuments aging them to the point where it is almost impossible to read the inscriptions beyond maybe the name, if even that. I hope that you have been enjoying the shots from the cemeteries which I've collected in a new collection on my webpage which you can visit here.
Norma Oconee Hill Cemetery
We visited the Oconee Hill Cemetery in Athens, Georgia this week which is located next to the UGA Campus for the first time in ten years on a beautiful March afternoon. She is located in the Jewish section of the cemetery. Athens has a lot of interesting history besides being the home of the University of Georgia.
Poinsett Bridge 1820
The Poinsett Bridge was built in 1820. It was then on the main road between Asheville, NC and Greenville, SC. According to the Greenville County Park's website: Constructed in 1820, it is believed to be the oldest surviving bridge in the state. Named after Joel Poinsett, a prominent early resident of Greenville and a U.S. ambassador to Mexico, the bridge was part of the State Road that connected Charleston and Columbia with the North Carolina mountain communities into Tennessee. It is a 14 foot Gothic arch stone structure and stretches 130 feet over Little Gap Creek. Historians believe that is was designed by Robert Mills, architect of the Washington Monument. On a quiet day, it is a nice place to visit and admire the construction over 200 years later. The bridge is supposed to be haunted but I've only visited during the daytime, so I can't say I've seen the ghost yet. The SCETV also has a piece about it on their "South of Spooky" series which you can find here.
Williamson Morning - 2012
The Norfolk Southern celebrated their 30th Anniversary in style during 2012 as they brought Nickel Plate 765 and the Southern 630 out onto the NS tracks as goodwill ambassadors. Early morning in Wiliamson, West Virginia and the 765 is bringing its consist to the depot where NS employees and their families will be treated to a ride over the Pocahontas Division. Learn more about this piece of living history.
Cornelia - the other big apple
Cornelia, Georgia located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Parkway, north of Atlanta was once the beginning of the Tallulah Falls Railway which ran North to Franklin, North Carolina. It is located on the Norfolk Southern Railroad still today and has a nicely restored depot (open limited hours) along with a couple of cabooses on display. There are plenty of seats to watch the passing trains. Amtrak passes through in the middle of the night both ways, but the trains don't stop here anymore. Cornelia is also famous for the "Big Red Apple" which is on display next to the depot which pays homage to the areas past as a large producer of apples. See Patrice's photo of the apple here.
Flowery Branch, Georgia
We had the occasion to stop in Flowery Branch, Georgia for some quick photos downtown and also in the nearby graveyard. Flowery Branch, which has transformed into a commuter community for Atlanta is in the middle of "modernizing" their downtown. Where once there were quaint old buildings (and a nice mural), now there are multi-use buildings and torn up streets. The new farmers market is quite nice by the depot and when the construction is over the residents and visitors will have a nice experience I'm sure. Down in the graveyard, not as much as changed over the years. There are still some interesting statues and also lots of historical graves. Many of the gravestones have faded with time to the point they are almost unreadable. My favorite from the graveyard was this angel and companion.
Angel
The last of the shots for now from the Duluth Cemetery in Georgia. I always find the statuary fascinating.
Reading Girl
We recently made a trip back down to Duluth, Georgia and while there visited the old cemetery downtown. This had been a favorite photo location for us over the years. This time, the amount of changes made to downtown Duluth was more evident, including the condos in the background of one of my favorite statues. Duluth really did change during the nine years that I lived there and isn't the "quaint" downtown that I remember so fondly from when I arrived in 2013.
The Saturday Afternoon Post - Traveler's Rest SHS
The Saturday Afternoon Post. Located on Lake Hartwell, just across the state line in Georgia, the Travelers Rest Historic Site is an interesting place to visit.
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© Rusted Rail Images by Gene Bowker 2023
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