SWEETWATER CREEK STATE PARK-NEW MANCHESTER MFG CO

NAME: Sweetwater Creek State Park-New Manchester Mfg Co COUNTY: Douglas ROADS: 2WD GRID: 3 CLIMATE: Atlanta weather (warm & humid in the summer; mild winter) BEST TIME TO VISIT: Anytime

COMMENTS: A trail in Sweetwater Creek State Park leads out to the ruins of the New Manchester Manufacturing Company's textile mill on Sweetwater Creek. For directions, go to the park visitor's center. The trail runs along Sweetwater Creek to the ruins, which consist of the three-story walls of the mill building (which was destroyed during the Civil War) and the mill run. There was also a mill town at this site, but today only the mill ruins are left. To get to Sweetwater Creek State Park, take I-20 west from Atlanta, exit #44 at Thornton Road, turn left and go 1/4 mile. Turn right on Blairs Bridge Road, turn left on Mount Vernon Road and proceed to park. For more info, go to http://www.ganet.org/dnr/parks REMAINS: Ruins of nineteenth century textile mill (can only be viewed from outside protective fence surrounding ruins)

The New Manchester Manufacturing Company textile mill was built on the banks of Sweetwater Creek before the Civil War. Mill employees lived in a company town near the mill. In addition to homes, the town had a company store. During the Civil War, Sherman's troops destroyed the mill and the town. (As I recall, the reason for destruction was that the mill had been making supplies for the Confederate Army.) The mill employees were taken prisoner and shipped north. Today, the ruins consist of the mill run and the three-story walls of the mill building. Nothing remains of the town, but markers indicate where buildings once stood. Submitted by: J.L. Groch

Sweetwater Creek State Park Courtesy J.L. Groch

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