Taking advantage of an opportunity to wait for weather after Hurricane Florence, we travelled to Georgia to attend the Marble Festival.

Dating back millions of years ago large deposits of Marble, made of Calcium Carbonate, settled in the mountains of N. Georgia. At nearly 1000 feet above today’s sea level these deposits were discovered by an Irish Immigrant in the early 1800’s.

In the 1880’s, Colonial Samual Tate bought nearly 7000 acres of land which held the marble rich mineral vein. What he lacked in mining knowledge was more than made up for by his business sense, as his company The Tate Marble Works grew.

He and his family built homes, many standing today, and a free clinic for workers and their families. He also built churches, of varied denominations, schools, libraries, and the fabulous Tate Mansion.

Today, if you visit Arlington or any of the other 136 National Cemeteries across the country and you will see marble headstones mined and cut here, in Pickens County, Georgia. It’s also the same marble that is used in the Lincoln Memorial, US Capital Building as well as the pillars of the White House.

Check out our YouTube from our two & a half hour tour during the Marble Festival,

Fair Winds & Quiet Anchorages,
Jeff and Wendy