A Hauntingly Good Road Trip – Cool Things In & (Kind Of) Near Athens, Ga

Stepping outside of just cemetery-centric topics* for a moment so I can share some of my favorite places to visit during the spookiest time of year. Heck, anytime of year really!

Let’s start with putting the car in gear and the pedal to the metal. I’m going to list a few that are less than or right at 1.5 hours from Athens and then several others that are around 30 minutes or less. Skip to the very end for a listing of even more things Athens as well as a link to a Google Map that I’ve bookmarked for you.

*I did include a few cemeteries in here as a side quest. How could I not?

Here we go!

School Bus Graveyard

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Near the small town of Alto you’ll find this outside art installation that is free to visit although it’s a bit of a scramble to get up to it. Old buses and a few cars are painted yearly by a variety of artists from all over the world so there’s something new to see on the regular. And if you drive a bit further down the road you’ll find a massive and weirdly creative junkyard where you can take photos for a small fee.

These photos are from one of my earlier visits many moons ago so things look much different now but these were some of my all-time favorites…

Sadly, the school bus graveyard was recently vandalized and the owners believe it was a targeted attack by folks who do not like the existence of this oddity. What the…? Read more here.

The (Haunted?) Eagle Tavern Museum

Opened in 1801 as a stage coach stop and tavern, this building has quite the history! And maybe a ghost or two?

I attended a table talk at a local event a few years back where I was introduced to the notion that the building might just be haunted. The even had ghost hunters film an episode there and GPB put together the whole thing. Watch video free here.

They’re hosting a special ghost hunt this month on 10/24 that’s touted as a blend of history, education and spooky stories. Plus local tour guide Jeff Clarke has a number of walks geared toward the ghostly.

But even if you don’t want spooky, the building is open to tours during the week with limited hours or by appointment. With historic furniture and art, you can see how things might have looked a few hundred years ago.

The Angry Mob & The Iron Horse (Side Quest: Scull Shoals)

The ‘Iron Horse’ is a 12-foot-high, two-ton abstract sculpture of a horse. It is the work of Abbott Pattison, a visiting artist-in-residence from Chicago who was working on a Rockefeller grant to introduce modern art in the South. He constructed the horse by welding together pieces of boilerplate steel in 1954.

It was determined that the campus setting to display the work would be the front of Reed Hall dormitory. However, students immediately reacted negatively to the abstract sculpture. Twice during the night of May 27, 1954, straw was placed around it and set on fire, manure was brought from the Ag Hill stables and place under the rear, and the word ‘Front’ was painted on the horse’s neck and ‘Rear’ under the tail.

Newspaper accounts from the time describe the scene, with many observers saying the problem was with timing and location. Placing the sculpture in front of the athletes’ dorm was not a good idea, and students had gotten stir crazy while preparing for exams. One student commented, ‘We needed something exciting.’ Eventually, the crowd became a frantic mob and firemen were called in to disperse the students with fire hoses. University officials quickly moved the controversial sculpture to a secret hiding place. It was kept in hiding for five years.

Newspaper accounts from the time describe the scene, with many observers saying the problem was with timing and location. Placing the sculpture in front of the athletes’ dorm was not a good idea, and students had gotten stir crazy while preparing for exams. One student commented, ‘We needed something exciting.’ Eventually, the crowd became a frantic mob and firemen were called in to disperse the students with fire hoses. University officials quickly moved the controversial sculpture to a secret hiding place. It was kept in hiding for five years.

Some years later, L.C. Curtis of the University of Georgia’s Horticulture Department asked for the statue to be placed on his farm off of Highway 15 in Greene County, about 25 miles south of Athens and just north of the Oconee River.

It may seem like there is a significant message to the direction the horse is facing. Its rear end is pointed towards Athens. However, the family has said that during moving to its current home, the truck that was towing it got stuck and they had no choice but to leave it where it stands. Source

Also, not the first time the community of Athens lost their mind over art. The ‘blue squiggle controversy’ was just a mere 2 years ago…

Parking is free at the Iron Horse and depending on the season it can be quite a beautiful view. At one point it stood in a field of sunflowers and that was beautiful!

Side Quest: Ghost town Scull (Skull) Shoals is in the forest down the way. Set right on the river banks, this area has been used for thousands of years by both the Native Americans and colonizers. It’s tucked way way back but worth a drive. Read more about the history here.

The VERY Old & Historic Rock House (Side Quest: Ansley Cemetery)

If you’re near Wrightsboro, Georgia then you will find yourself in the center of some veryyyyy old history of the state. One of my favorites spot is this old rock house. Although now you have to view it from a perimeter fence instead of strolling right up to it…*sigh* People were vandalizing it. Meh.

Constructed by Thomas Ansley, the Rock House in McDuffie County is one of the few remaining structures linked to Georgia’s small 18th-century Quaker community of Wrightsboro. Recent dendrochronology testing has revealed a c. 1795 construction date. Considered to be the oldest stone house in the state, it was also home to ancestors of former President Jimmy Carter. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places since 1970, the Rock House is recognized as a unique historic resource, deserving of careful preservation. – Source

Side Quest: Ansley Cemetery and memorial which is just down the road. While there are no individual markers there is a large stone commemorative plaque listing the occupants. There’s also a brief description of the homesite as well as information about the tornados of 1875. In march of that year there were two F-4 tornadoes that tore through the state, including this area, and they killed quite a few people and caused a huge amount of damage.

And an extra Side Quest: Wrightsboro Methodist Church

Camp Daniel Morgan aka Camp Crystal Lake

The historic Camp Daniel Morgan, comprised of a sprawling number of tiny bunkhouses and some larger stonework buildings nestled against the shores of Lake Rutledge, was used in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives. And you can visit it and explore on your own! Just stop by the Hard Labor Creek State Park office or call ahead and they’ll usually hand you the key.

It’s still an active camp that you can rent out by the day or weekend. And while it’s showing its age, it’s still on my bucket list to get a group of folks together and hang out for a spell…

Oh, and they do have haunted hayrides at the park this time of year!

Abandoned Central State Mental Hospital (Side Quest: Cedar Lane Cemetery)

I’m saving this for last because it hits different than the other trips I’ve listed due to the complexity and sadness involved, and it’s the longest drive at an hour and half.

I’ve covered both the cemetery and the hospital stories before, and while I encourage everyone to visit and take a tour either on your own or with the designated company. While there have been many claims that this place is haunted, and understandably so, the real horror lies within the true nature of the history of the place. So many people were neglected and abused.

And please be respectful and stay out of the buildings!

Side Quest: Cedar Lane Cemetery is connected to the history of the hospitals and that section is marked with cast iron grave markers with simple numbers. The actual number of patients from the hospital that are buried here, or even on the grounds of the hospital itself, is unknown. But considering how lost and loose the records are, it’s a lot of souls. This cemetery is also discussed in the blog post.

To read more and to find linked resources including videos then go here.

And more…

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You don’t even have to leave Athens-Clarke County to see the famous stone monument!
Visit the google map

Ok, these are lot less in the spirit of Halloween per se but no less fun for a road trip. In addition to what I listed above, if you use the map you can find:

Safe travels!