Our headquarters is open Monday-Friday, 10:00-4:00. You may drop off rummage for our two annual sales during business hours. If you need other help, please email us at director@whitfieldmurray.org &/or call 706-278-0217.
Thomas the Tank Engine Day Comes to the Chatsworth Depot.
Depot & Wright Hotel Open
Both properties will be open for guided tours from 1:00pm until 4:00pm, Saturday, August 13.
The Chatsworth Depot and the Wright Hotel, properties of the Whitfield-Murray Historical Society, announce the final Second Saturday opening for 2022. Both properties will be open for guided tours from 1:00pm until 4:00pm, Saturday, August 13. This last summer opening will celebrate Thomas the Tank Engine at the Depot and feature several special displays at the Hotel. Admission to tours, trains, and displays is free, but donations are appreciated.
The Chatsworth Depot is the oldest building in town, built in 1905 by the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. The passenger waiting room contains a talc museum showcasing the talc industry in Murray County. The station agent’s office and the freight room contain historic railroad artifacts and exhibits related to the depot. The 1960 caboose, located behind the Depot, will be open for visitors to see. Historical society members will be present to give tours and answer questions.
Thomas and his friends, in both HO and the larger G Scale, will be special guests for August, running on model train tracks both indoors and outdoors at the Depot. The popular ‘Big Blue Train’ will make its second appearance this year giving train rides to those in attendance. There will be a special area inside the depot with wooden Brio Trains for the smallest train fans to get ‘hands on’ playtime with Thomas and friends. Youngsters from 1 to 100 love operating model trains, especially Thomas and his friends from the island of Sodor.
For the first time ever, there will be kid powered train rides at the Chatsworth Depot! Kids crank these cars with their hands (somewhat like riding a bicycle, but with your hands) to power themselves around the track. The train car runs on 7/8-gauge track and carries the youngsters at their own paces. Each person rides and powers his/her own car.
The Historic Wright Hotel (1909), a one-of-a-kind structure in north Georgia which is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places, will feature a new miniature lamp display. This collection of small kerosene lamps was donated to the Society by Kathryn Sellers of Dalton and is being shown for the first time. Also, visitors will have one more opportunity to see the Nannie Arthur painting collection as well as the Keith Store/Tennga exhibit which have been highlights this year. The revamped nurse’s station will again be open as well as the guest, museum, dining and living rooms, along with the office/gift shop which are part of every tour of this amazing building, located at the corner of Market Street and Second Avenue in downtown Chatsworth.
The Historical Society would like to thank the 2022 business partners that make the programs presented this year possible. Many have been supporting the Depot and its Second Saturday openings for several years. The 2022 partners are Peeples Funeral Home, Bradley Ace Hardware, Bojangles, Captain D’s & Krystal restaurants, Dr. John Robson, Chatsworth First Community Bank, and the Murray County Elected Officials. Be sure to tell them you appreciate their supporting the historic properties of Chatsworth anytime you visit or contact one of these.
Check out the Depot, Hotel, and Caboose on Facebook.
25th Annual
SPRING PLACE
COMMUNITY FESTIVAL
“On the Move”
SATURDAY, AUGUST 20th
8AM-2PM
Old Spring Place Methodist Church
237 ELM STREET
in Spring Place
FLEA MARKET, BAKE SALE, BOOK SALE,
AUCTION (10:00),
BREAKFAST BISCUITS, ANTIQUE AUTOMOBILES,
VENDORS, AND MORE!!!!
Celebrating Changes in Transportation!
Proceeds go to the Old Church Preservation Fund.
Sponsored by the Whitfield-Murray Historical Society and the
Spring Place Ruritan Club. Information:
706-264-3968/695-2740
GENEALOGY WORKSHOPS
How to Begin Your Family Research
Saturday, January 14, 2023
9:00 a.m.- 3 p.m.
Includes: Genealogy Basics Walking the paper trial
Searching for Women and why are they important How can land records, wills and census help you in your research
Brick Walls Workshop
Saturday, February 18, 2023
9:00 a.m.- 3 p.m.
For intermediate & advanced researchers who have hit a wall.
Instructor: Jennifer S. Harvey, NSDAR Genealogy Consultant Regent of the Chief John Ross Chapter, Member of the TN State Application Team, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution.
Location: Crown Gardens & Archives
715 Chattanooga Avenue, Dalton, GA
Mail checks to P. O. Box 6180 Dalton, GA 30722-6180
The Whitfield-Murray Historical Society recently received a $500 Keep Dalton/Whitfield Beautiful Grant for the 1840 Hamilton House. Our focus was to add fresh paint to the doors and windows. Along the way, we also painted porch furniture and added new plantings. Thanks,KD/WB, for encouraging us to spiff up!
The window paint was chipping, and we needed a facelift! In addition to the fresh paint, we decided to change the paint color from brick red to black for the doors and porch.
The new paint pops, and the side porch bench and floor are more welcoming.
Notice:
All Whitfield-Murray Historical Society properties are owned by the historical society, so are therefore private property.
If you would like to use the grounds for photographs, etc., please obtain permission by calling 706-278-0217, Monday through Friday.
Please note that if an event is occurring on the property, no one else is allowed to be on the property.
Professional photographers must schedule events for all outside & inside areas at all WMHS properties. The fee for the rental is $100 per session per property.
Rent a Whitfield Murray Historical Society Property for your next event.
As you plan upcoming family or organization events, consider using WMHS property. Contacts for information &/or reservations are:
Old Spring Place Methodist Church
Call Tim at 706-695-2740
Crown Garden and Archives
Call Tina at 706-278-0217
Hamilton House
Call Tina at 706-278-0217
Blunt House
Call Joanne at 706-271-8702
Huff House
Call Virgelia at 706-226-6774
Chatsworth Depot
Call Ted at 706-581-5482
Wright Hotel
Call Ralph at 706-695-9808 or 706-260-1320
Historical Dalton City Directories are online
Researchers may now access Dalton city directories from 1940-1963 online, thanks to Georgia Public Library Service. They joined previously digitized Georgia city directories from Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Columbus, Gainsville, and Macon. To locate a city directory, go to the following link.
All Murray County deeds--back to 1833--are now accessible online. This includes the earliest deeds for Whitfield County, too, since we were one county through 1851. Use this link to access the deeds:
Whitfield-Murray Historical Society Benefits from Grants
During the COVID-19 virus pandemic, the Whitfield-Murray Historical Society has benefited from both member donations & government grants. The US government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), created to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on the payroll, enabled the organization to cover employee payroll, payroll taxes, & utilities. The Society also received funds from the Georgia Humanities Council through the CARES Act Emergency Operating grant. WMHS is grateful for this state humanities support.
Organized in 1952 to preserve the Vann House, the Whitfield-Murray Historical Society is the pivot point for all things historical in Whitfield & Murray counties. The Society preserves area history by maintaining structures, archiving objects & materials, & serving as the go-to entity for historical questions. WMHS also conducts historic house tours, bi-annual rummage sales, and Holiday House tours. Among the many activities conducted by the WMHS are Social Distancing Concerts at the Chatsworth Depot. Upcoming date is August 8.
The Society has placed 11 sites on the National Register of Historic Places. In addition, the group has preserved the 1864 Dug Gap Battle Park, the 1909 Wright Hotel, old Spring Place Methodist Church (1875), & the 1905 Chatsworth Depot. The 1840 Hamilton House which is the oldest home in Dalton, and the 1848 Blunt House, home of Dalton’s first mayor, and second oldest house are also part of the preservation done by WMHS. The 1855 Huff House was General Joseph E. Johnston’s headquarters during the winter of 1863-64 preparing for the Atlanta Campaign is another WMHS property.
WMHS headquarters, Crown Gardens and Archives--the 1890 Crown Cotton Mill office building--is a resource for local historical & genealogical research. The Society sells books on local history & publishes a bi-monthly newsletter as well as a historical review. Annual scholarships are awarded to young researchers, & historic preservation awards recognize area preservationists. Meetings feature topics of local historical interest in Whitfield & Murray counties.
Individuals interested in local history are encouraged to join the Society. Donations to aid in the very important work of protecting our local history may be mailed to: WMHS, P.O. Box 6180, Dalton, GA 30722. For more information, call 706-278-0217, or visit http://www.whitfield-murrayhistoricalsociety.org.
Bylines: Sherrian Hall, Jean Manly, and Joanne Lewis scraping old wall paper at the Blunt House, one of the WMHS historic properties.
Children at one of the history camps rubbing tombstones.
Sherrian Hall, Jean Manly, and Joanne Lewis scraping old wall paper at the Blunt House
Children at one of the history camps rubbing tombstones
Copies of Dorothy "Dot" McCrory's poetry book,
"Too Much Cider in the Applesauce,"
are available at the Crown Gardens & Archives,
715 Chattanooga Ave. Dalton GA
Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Copies are $25.
A copy can be mailed for $35.
Book sales benefit the Lesche Club scholarship fund.
Hours at Crown Garden and Archives
To better serve our community
we are open M-F 10am - 4pm.
Please call to schedule an appointment on weekends and evenings for research and events!
For research, please call to verify that we have the family files.
To make an appointment, please call during our business hours!
