Dahlonega, Georgia

In 1829, the first documented discovery of gold was made in Georgia. As news of the discovery spread, thousands of would be get rich quick men flooded into the mountains looking for the yellow metal in the creeks and rivers. At that time in history, the frontier of Georgia bordered the Cherokee Nation. During the winter of 1829-1830, white gold prospectors began illegally crossing the Chestatee River into the Cherokee Nation in search of gold. After objections were made to the Federal Indian Agent in the territory, United States troops were sent in to forcibly remove the gold miners from the nation.

By 1831, Governor Gilmer (and later Wilson Lumpkin) of Georgia realized that it was impossible to remove the thousands of miners who had intruded into the Cherokee Nation. Gilmer saw an opportunity to claim the remaining Cherokee lands as part of Georgia. In 1832, the Georgia legislature voted to create ten new counties out of the former Cherokee Nation without regard to their sovereignty. Lumpkin County named after Governor Wilson Lumpkin, was created in December 1832. A year later the town of Taloneka or Talonega was named as the new county seat on December 21st, 1833. The spelling was later changed to Dahlonega, derived from the Cherokee word meaning "yellow."

The spelling of the Cherokee word Da-lo-ni-ge-i was disputed by early correspondents; Featherstonhough, for example, wrote it as "Tahlonekay". The proper pronunciation of Dahlonega is (Dah-loe-nee-gee or Dah-lone-gay) in the Western Dialect of the Cherokee language. Da-lo-ni-ge'i does not mean gold but it simply means, Yellow.[10]

Cherokee for Da-lo-ni-ge English phonetics: dah low knee gay[11]

The city was named "Talonega" by the Georgia General Assembly on December 21, 1833.[12] The name was changed from Talonega by the Georgia General Assembly on December 25, 1837 to "Dahlonega",[12] from the Cherokee-language word Dalonige, meaning "yellow" or "gold".[11][13]

Historic specimen of high-grade gold ore from the Dahlonega mines

Due to the abundance of gold which was discovered in North Georgia, the United States Treasury Department decided to build a branch mint in Dahlonega. This allowed local miners a place to bring their gold deposits in exchange for hard currency. The Dahlonega branch mint was built in 1838 and operated from 1838 to 1861. The Dahlonega Mint, like the one also established in 1838 in Charlotte, North Carolina, minted only gold coins, in denominations of $1.00, $2.50 (quarter eagle), $3.00 (1854 only) and $5.00 (half eagle). It was cost-effective in consideration of the economics, time, and risk of shipping gold to the main mint in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Dahlonega Mint was a small operation, usually accounting for only a small fraction of the gold coinage minted annually in the US.

In 1861, when the Civil War began, the mint closed due to lack of materials and manpower. After the war the U.S. government decided against re-opening the facility. By then, the U.S. government had established a mint in San Francisco. Given the large amount of gold discovered in California from the late 1840s on, the San Francisco and Philadelphia mints handled the national needs of coin minting. As a result, surviving Dahlonega coinage is today highly prized in American numismatics.

The University of North Georgia

After the end of the Civil War in 1865, the Dahlonega Branch mint remained closed. The building served as a barracks for US troops garrisoned here, and as a school for freed black students. In 1871, Hon. William P. Price, who had been elected to Congress from Dahlonega, petitioned the government to re-purpose the vacant mint building into a college. In 1873, the newly founded North Georgia Agricultural College, opened its doors from the ashes of the original Dahlonega Branch Mint. Over the years as the college grew, the names have changed from the original North Georgia Agricultural College, North Georgia College, North Georgia College and State University and the current designation as the University of North Georgia.

A view of the Dahlonega Square as seen from the Dahlonega Gold Museum Historic Site

In recent years, Dahlonega and Lumpkin County have been recognized as "the heart of the North Georgia Wine Country". The county features multiple vineyards and five licensed wineries that attract many tourists.[14]

The historic Dahlonega Square is a popular destination, with gift shops, restaurants, art galleries and studios, and wine-tasting rooms. In 2015, Senator Steve Gooch introduced Georgia Senate Resolution 125 officially recognizing Lumpkin County as the Wine Tasting Room Capital of Georgia.

The city's local festivals draw many visitors. "Bear on the Square", an annual three-day festival held the third weekend in April, marks the day that a black bear wandered onto the square. It features bluegrass and old-time music. "Gold Rush Days", an annual two-day event the third weekend in October, attracts over 200,000 people.[15]

Dahlonega is home to the Holly Theatre.

Located at 384 Mountain Drive, WPA Historical Marker 19 B-7 explains:

This court house, built in 1836, replaced the small structure used since the establishment of Lumpkin County in 1832. The town was named Dahlonega in October, 1833, for the Cherokee word Talonega meaning "golden."

From its steps in 1849, Dr. M.F. Stephenson, assayer at the Mint, attempted to dissuade Georgia miners from leaving to join the California Gold Rush. His oration gave rise to the sayings: "There's millions in it," and "Thar's gold in them thar hills."[16]

Dahlonega is located in central Lumpkin County at 34°31′57″N 83°59′06″W (34.5325, −83.9850).[17] U.S. Route 19 passes through the east side of the city, leading north 34 mi (55 km) to Blairsville and south 65 mi (105 km) to Atlanta. Georgia State Route 400, a freeway which runs concurrently with US-19 to Atlanta, has its northern terminus 5 mi (8 km) south of the center of Dahlonega. State Routes 9 and 52 run concurrently around the south side of Dahlonega, joining US 19 on the southeast side. State Route 9 leads southwest 14 mi (23 km) to Dawsonville, while State Route 52 leads west 18 mi (29 km) to Amicalola Falls State Park. To the east State Route 52 leads 16 mi (26 km) to Clermont.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 8.8 sq mi (22.9 km²), of which 0.05 sq mi (0.14 km²), or 0.60%, are water.[18] The city is centered on a low ridge, with the west side draining to Cane Creek and the east side to Yahoola Creek. Both creeks flow south to the Chestatee River, part of the Chattahoochee River watershed. 1,720 ft (520 m) Crown Mountain is in the southern part of the city.

• Sara Christian, NASCAR's first female driver[25]
• Steve Gooch, Georgia state senator and majority whip
• Dallas Kinney, Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer
• Guy A. J. LaBoa, lieutenant general in the United States Army who commanded the 4th Infantry Division and First United States Army[26][27]

There is a Dahlonega Mine Train roller coaster at Six Flags over Georgia.[28]

Corey Smith has a song titled "Dahlonega", in reference to the town and its landmarks, on his album While the Gettin' Is Good, released on June 23, 2015.

Country music recording artist Ashley McBryde directly references the town in her debut single "A Little Dive Bar in Dahlonega", which was released in October 2017.

• "Gold-Mining in Georgia." Harper's New Monthly Magazine 59, Issue 352 (September 1879): 517–519. Available here
• I Remember Dahlonega: Memories of Growing Up in Lumpkin County, by Anne Dismukes Amerson (Chestatee Publishing: 1993)
• Williams, David (1993). The Georgia Gold Rush: Twenty-Niners, Cherokees, and Gold Fever. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 978-1-57003-052-9.
• Williams, David, "'Such Excitement You Never Saw': Gold Mining in Nineteenth-Century Georgia", The Georgia Historical Quarterly, Vol. 76, No. 3 (Fall 1992), pp. 695–707, Georgia Historical Society. Article Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40582597

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Dahlonega.

• City of Dahlonega official website Archived 2013-09-08 at the Wayback Machine
• Dahlonega Georgia Merchants Association
• The Dahlonega Nugget newspaper
• "Thar's Gold in Them Thar Hills": Gold and Gold Mining in Georgia, 1830s–1940s
• Bear on the Square Mountain Festival
• Dahlonega Wineries Archived 2009-05-02 at the Wayback Machine