Fort Mountain State Park
Fort Mountain State Park is a 3,712 acre (15.02 km²) Georgia state park located between Chatsworth and Ellijay on Fort Mountain. The mountain is named for an ancient 885 foot (269.48 m) long rock wall located on the peak. The wall is thought to have been built by area Native Americans either for defense or for ancient ceremonies. The informational plaques located around the park also suggest the possibility that the rock wall was constructed by the legendary Welsh explorer, Prince Madoc sometime after his alleged arrival in North America in 1170. Situated in the Chattahoochee National Forest, the park offers many outdoor activities, such as hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding. The park is also known for its unique scenery, a mixture of both hardwood and pine forests and several blueberry thickets. In addition, the park contains a 17 acre (0.07 km²) mountain lake. Atop Fort Mountain itself is a tower constructed by members of the Civilian_Conservation_Corps. The picnic shelters in the park and the trails to the rock wall were also constructed by the CCC.
The summit of a different mountain in the south-southwest part of the park contains a radio tower for Georgia Public Broadcasting, transmitting TV station WCLP-TV (now WNGH-TV) since 1967, and radio station WNGH-FM since about May 2008.
The park is accessible via Woody Glenn Highway (Georgia 2 and Georgia 52).
[edit] Facilities
- 70 tent/trailer/RV campsites
- 15 cottages
- 7 picnic shelters
- 6 platform campsites
- 4 walk-in campsites
- Backcountry camping
- Pioneer camping
- Group shelter
something other
Currently, most scholars believe that the wall originated about 500A.D. and has a religious purpose. Many early cultures built structures related to astronomical events. In this case the wall runs east to west around a precipice. The effect is that the sun illuminates one side of the wall at sunrise and on the other side at sunset. Native American cultures worshiped the sun and all things in nature. The absence of religious artifacts supports this theory since it was common practice for Native Americans to take ceremonial objects with them when they moved.
[edit] External links
- Georgia State Parks
- Fort Mountain State Park, Georgia Trails
