African American Heritage Site

Folk Life Festival
at SNCA

October 17th from
10 am to 4 pm

FREE ADMISSION & FREE PARKING

To celebrate the completion of phase one work on the Nacoochee Valley slave cabin SNCA will host an open house and Folk Life Festivall on Saturday, October 17, 2009 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Visitors will tour the cabin and see first hand the work that the restoration craftsmen completed this summer. Folk crafts from the 19th century will be demonstrated, and a silent auction will allow visitors to bid on examples of fine traditional workmanship.

Here's what we have planned...
Living History demonstrations of traditional folk life skills: basket making, spinning, corn shelling, blacksmithing, woodworking, butter churning & much more; a raffle for craft items; traditional music with old time tunes; and for a nominal fee we will be serving traditional food cooked over an open fire from noon to 2:00 pm

Here's who will be demonstrating...

Join us and help us open the site with a festival that we plan to make an
Annual Valley Event!

ARC Visits SNCA

The executive management team from the Appalachian Regional Commission visited SNCA to see the restored antebellum slave cabin in July. An ARC grant of $50,000 helped cover the costs of this important restoration project.

SNCA Receives Grant for Interpretive Signs

The Heritage Team is pleased to announce that the Chattahoochee Oconee Forests Interpretive Committee at the North Georgia Community Foundation awarded SNCA $1,000 for interpretive signs at the Nacoochee Valley Nature Preserve. Rustic signage will be used along the trails to identify native species, including Red Mulberry and Sassafras that James Sullivan, a USFS contractor, said are among the largest he has seen in the region.

In 1989 Lillian Everhart deeded a three-acre tract of land to the Sautee Nacoochee Community Association. Situated on the rim of Nacoochee Valley, this site commands impressive views of Sal and Yonah Mountain to the South and a distant sweep of the Blue Ridge Mountain to the West.

Mrs. Everhart, who spent her long life actively engaged in historic preservation and civic service, envisioned a parking area, hiking trails, observation points, and other structures related to preservation, environmental education, and the enjoyment of the property’s tranquil setting. Many of these features are already in place.

The long, narrow preserve is crisscrossed by a network of animal trails and contains an amazing variety of flora and fauna. Evidence of animal tracks and signs are abundant. Coyotes congregate and call at night. Geese circle and settle on the Valley floor at dusk, and the shy wood thrush sings the “evening Vespers” (a flute-like song) in the shadows and shelter of the underbrush.

Soon, SNCA will be able to provide access for scouts and school children, birders and botanists, photographers and hikers, history buffs and environmental activists. Members, volunteers, and visitors will be able to enjoy Lillian’s legacy of a “pocket” preserve in Nacoochee Valley. While restoration of the cabin is underway, however, tours will be by appointment only to ensure visitor and volunteer safety.

African American Heritage Site Receives National Recognition

The National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) in Washington recognizes organizations that have demonstrated innovative approaches to regional economic and community development. Each year, award winners are highlighted in a special issue of the Regional Development Digest, which is distributed to NADO members, federal and state officials, the media, and members of Congress. The African American Heritage Site was nominated for the 2007 NADO Innovation Award by Heather Feldman of the Georgia Mountains Regional Development Center (GMRDC). Ms Feldman also made a Power Point presentation about the preservation project at a regional GMRDC Board meeting and at the national annual NADO conference, where 250-300 participants from across the nation learned about the Heritage Site.

With the slave cabin as a backdrop, the NADO Innovation Award was presented by GMRDC to representatives of White County and the SNCA Heritage Team. A light drizzle did not dampen the spirit of celebration for (left to right) Bean Creek resident Lester Richardson; Tom O’Bryant, Director of White County Community and Economic Development; SNCA Heritage Team Chairperson Andy Allen; Project Coordinator Caroline Crittenden; SNCA President John Erbele; White County Commission Chairman Chris Nonnemaker; Executive Director of GMRDC Danny Lewis; and GMRDC Economic Development Representative Heather Feldman.

(photograph courtesy of Denise Etheridge of White County News)

Heavy Equipment & Hand Tools at the Heritage Site

In 1989 Lillian Heptinstall Everhart donated 3-acres of land on the rim of Nacoochee Valley to SNCA for a nature preserve. In 2007 the White County Commission helped make the entrance to the Heritage Site and Nature Preserve safe for public access. Commending SNCA for highlighting the heritage of African Americans, they endorsed the cultural and educational benefits for White County public school children, residents, and visitors by making an in-kind contribution and commitment. SNCA was required by DOT to pave the entrance to the Heritage Site and Nature Preserve on Highway 17 before restoration on the slave cabin could begin. The road crew used boulders to landscape a natural rock barrier along the access driveway and meticulously prepared an entrance that was paved with concrete to DOT specifications.

The Preservation Planner for the Georgia Mountain Regional Development Center recommended a support beam beneath the cabin’s floor joist to strengthen the floor for future visitors. Stone mason David Vandiver, who has been grading the site and tweaking the elevations, found several old beams for the sub-sill. With a foot adz, David skillfully crafted a half-lap joint for a 28 foot hand-hewn beam in a day and a half! Construction of a stone “knee wall” to hold and enhance a bank behind the cabin is the next project.

Meanwhile, Mike Crittenden and Bob Slack sawed white oak logs into lumber one warm Saturday morning. Planning to join the Wood Mizer crew in November, Jim Johnston will help mill another batch of logs. Now that the cool weather of autumn is in the air, the Trail team will call on Jim Turner’s expertise and begin laying out Lillian’s Loop, the second walking trail. This group is an example of the diversity of volunteers in all SNCA program areas. The Nature and Trail teams include world travelers, retired educators and master gardeners, an entomologist, a botanist, a missionary, an historian, as well as many worker bees and social butterflies.

While construction and restoration are underway, tours of the site are by appointment. Workdays for volunteers and visitors at the Heritage Site and Nature Preserve are planned in the weeks and months ahead, so look for announcements and watch for activity as you pass by.

Preserving African American History in Nacoochee Valley

Andy L. Allen, Lester Richardson, Leona Dorsey, and other Bean Creek and Valley residents are working with SNCA representatives to establish the Nacoochee Valley Heritage Preserve with its two distinct and complementary components — the African American Heritage Site and the Nature Preserve. Dedicated volunteers are working closely with professional consultants, and significant donors, some of whom wish to remain anonymous, are providing the “where-with-all.”

Roberta Crittenden grasped the unique potential of the African American Heritage Site from its inception and provided seed money for the project and funds for moving the cabin. Roberta’s commitment to crossing the racial divide dates to 1967, when she broke social norms and color barriers in Milledgeville, volunteering to teach at Carver, a black-segregated elementary school. Her investment in preserving the history and heritage of the Bean Creek Community is clearly consistent with the mission of the Sautee Nacoochee Community Association, which was founded by her husband Bill Crittenden and other visionaries more than twenty five years ago.

Gregory New supports the promise of preserving and sharing this important aspect of Valley history which was inspired by the Johnston’s gift of the slave cabin. His mother Teresa “Kel” New was a driving force and founding member of the SNCA History Museum. Gregory appreciates the emphasis placed on paying scrupulous attention to authenticity, and he applauds the involvement of professional consultants in the project. In addition to promoting an understanding of the legacy of slavery in the Sautee and Nacoochee valleys, Gregory envisions opportunities to illustrate the skills and technologies used by all Valley residents in this 19th Century frontier community.

Although the central theme at the African American Heritage Site is the untold story of slavery in Nacoochee Valley, common bonds and threads run through the lives of black and white Valley families. Similar tools and utensils, crafts and skills, agricultural and industrial technology, and animal husbandry techniques were common to all, regardless of class or race, during the mid-1800s. Elizabeth Etheridge recalls the rhythmic tap and ping of metal hammers heard at many blacksmith shops in the area. The tools and bellows from the blacksmith shop on her family’s farm were donated to the SNCA History Museum.

Butter churning was one of Gregory’s chores as a kid, “and remained so until I figured out that shaking the cream-enriched clabber in a two quart Mason jar was vastly more efficient than churning.” According to Gregory, “The slave owners (and whites generally) had much the best of it, but we cannot assume the touring student will know that they did not have the remotest access to the cornucopia of goods that have evolved to replace the primitive technology characteristic of the period when slavery prevailed.”

Andy Allen, whose great-grandmother Mary Ann was a slave, is deeply committed and involved in all aspects of this ambitious project. She chairs the SNCA Heritage Team and is determined to see the African American Heritage Site successfully established and sustained for subsequent generations of visitors and school children. Inspired by Gregory’s endowment of the SNCA History Museum and encouraged by Roberta’s generosity, Andy and other members of the Bean Creek Alliance decided to establish an endowment for the Heritage Preserve at the North Georgia Community Foundation. Gregory heartily endorsed the fledgling organization’s move and matched the gift. This investment is significant for the African American Heritage Site and a substantial and symbolic commitment by the Bean Creek participants. Legacy gifts will help the endowment grow and support the Nacoochee Valley Heritage Preserve.

Who Gives a HOOT about the Heritage Site?

The Nacoochee Valley Heritage Preserve provides a safe haven and habitat for a variety of wildlife, including a fledgling great horned owl (right) that perched on a log in broad daylight within six feet of the Everhart Trail. The “fuzz ball” made only a slight rustling sound that attracted the attention of the project coordinator, who was absorbed in clearing sticks from the walking trail in the nature preserve. Other images of wildlife will be posted on the website to demonstrate the diversity of flora and fauna protected by this preservation project.

The SNCA Heritage Team appreciates all contributions, great or small, of cash or in-kind donations that help establish the African American Heritage Site at the Nacoochee Valley Heritage Preserve. One major sponsor gave a HOOT about History and Heritage and made a significant individual donation to the project, with no expectation of special recognition.

Herb Arnold, former member of the Board of Directors of the Sautee Nacoochee Community Association, is a major donor who helped match the federal funds ($50,000) awarded by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) to restore the cabin and to maximize opportunities for local craftsmen to be involved in the project. Satisfied that this fledgling program area would further enhance SNCA’s mission by sharing an untold history that will resonate with wider audiences, Herb gave his financial support to the African American Heritage Site. The Heritage Team gratefully acknowledges Herb’s extraordinary generosity.

The contributions of all donors and volunteers are greatly appreciated and essential for progress on this ambitious project; from landscape design to clearing trails, from strategic planning to architectural drawings, from historical research to educational displays, from building rock piers to feeding volunteers. “Junior” Dorsey (left), a ninth grader and a direct descendant of slaves who lived and labored in Nacoochee Valley, raked trails and scattered pine straw at the Heritage Site in anticipation of a tour of the site by the Williams Family. After working in the hot sun for one day, Junior joked that he could not be a slave without a cell phone, but he discovered, “Singing spirituals do make the work go better.” Likewise, gifts of labor and funds, time and resources, do make the work go better and help establish the African American Heritage Site sooner. Donations to this unique project will help preserve the vanishing history and heritage of the African American experience in Northeast Georgia. Your investment in the Nacoochee Valley Heritage Preserve, with its two distinct and complementary components (environmental and historic preservation), will be a permanent contribution to SNCA, to the Bean Creek and Valley residents, and to this special place – the Nacoochee and Sautee Valleys Historic District.

Planning and Preservation News from the Heritage Team

A temporary entrance sign, visible from State Highway 17, features the slave cabin as it may look after restoration. The sign acknowledges the on-going support of sponsors and participating partners of this important preservation project. Another name will soon be added in recognition of the topographical survey was done by Construction Engineering Services.

With the recommendations of architects, engineers, exhibit designers, and preservationists, specialty teams are finalizing plans for the Heritage Preserve, including the Winn House interpretive center, the trails, the “slave yard” and areas designated for exterior exhibits and living history demonstrations. Design details and documentation will be used by representatives of the Georgia Mountain Development Center to compile a formal business plan for the Heritage Site and Nature Preserve.

Meanwhile, volunteers continue to make progress on other initiatives, including clearing the Everhart Trail. Jimmy Turner brought an impressive pile of large rocks for future steps and led the Trail Team on a tour of the Heritage Preserve to survey the efforts of Audrey Moylan, Tom Wilbanks, Patty Lowe, Tom and Lark Hutto, and others. Tom Wilbanks estimated that he leveled the walking path at a recording breaking speed of “20 feet per hour”.

Last year, Elizabeth Etheridge donated and transported five massive white oak logs from Virginia to the Valley for use at the Heritage Site. This year, James London supervised his crew as the logs were cut into “manageable” pieces by Top-Notch Tree Service. Thick slabs of wood from that ancient white oak will be used in the Winn House interpretive center and slave cabin. Volunteer craftsman and interpreter Bob Slack offered to “rive” oak shingles for displays and demonstrations. The 170 growth rings are visible on the “rounds” (cross sections) may be fashioned into a tactile timeline that delineates the history of slavery in the Valley, from construction of the cabin in 1850 to the opening of the Nacoochee Valley Heritage Preserve.

Allen Stovall (left), UGA landscape architect, authored the SNCA sponsored Sautee and Nacoochee Valleys: A Preservation Study, which presented preservation principles and proposals in 1982 that remain the benchmarks for preserving the resources within the Historic District and surrounding areas of historical and environmental importance. Allen, a resident of Sautee, measured the cabin and examined topographical features at the African American Heritage Site. SNCA called on Allen Stovall’s vast experience and commitment to the Valley’s preservation to guide the project during the design and development phase in collaboration with the preservationists and Heritage Team.

Hands on History at the Heritage Site

Walter Daves and Chris Brooks performed traditional music for students at the African American Heritage Site on the rim of Nacoochee Valley. Chris, Director of the Folk Pottery Museum and interpreter of folk life skills (on banjo) told the students about the history of musical instruments in African and slave culture. Walter Daves (on fiddle), a talented member of several local musical groups, plays for Contra Dances at the old Nacoochee Gym and serves on the SNCA Board of Directors.

Bean Creek resident and White County School bus driver Andy Allen watched as Barry Stiles demonstrated the skill of blacksmithing on a portable forge for Nara Allen’s class of fifth graders at the Heritage Site. The craftsman and the students made metal hooks, both decorative and utilitarian.

Nara Allen used traditional methods, technology, and experiential education to teach twenty two students about slavery in American history. Nara (right) holds butter churned by students. SNCA volunteer Lark Hutto encouraged each student to take a turn with the wooden dasher. Come Butter, Come!

Sautee Valley resident, craftsman and interpreter Bob Slack demonstrated the craft of basket making with white oak splits. Students learned about the froe, the maul, and various other tools as they watched Bob weave the bottom and sides of a split oak basket like those used by the slaves and early settlers.

During their first visit, students took turns on a two-man cross cut saw, watched shingles being made, and learned about the lives and skills of slaves in NEGA.

Native Plants “Rescued” for Heritage Site!

SNCA volunteers and Bean Creek residents are working together to rescue native flowers, shrubs, and trees from sites that are threatened by test wells, access roads, the water storage tank, and home sites in the Bean Creek Community. A great variety of flora will be transplanted to the African American Heritage Site & Nature Preserve. With the blessings of property owners O’Nether Cannon, White County Water Authority, and Habitat for Humanity of Northeast Georgia, the Nature Preserve Team is enhancing the native plant collection for the Heritage Site.

Rambles along the nature trails continue to enlarge our list of inventoried lists of wildlife. Many thanks to the volunteers who participated in the rescue: Lester Richardson, Patty and Rocket Roy Lowe, Lark Hutto, Sandy Minnick, Mary Geidel, Rick and Sharon Miller, Lynda and Ted Doll, Audrey Moylan, and Tom Wilbanks.

Please call Lynda Doll, 706-878-2526, to help with future rescues or “transplant” parties. No special knowledge or tools needed!

Heritage Site & Cabin Restoration

Stone mason David Vandiver built piers to support the cabin using rocks from the original site. Before he reassembles the chimney and hearth, Vandiver will construct a portion of the “emancipation wall” along an embankment that leads to the cabin and other exterior exhibits. Barry Stiles used white oak logs and traditional tools to replace rotted sills with hand-hewn timbers. The broad axe he used was made in 1860. As funds are available, the careful and costly restoration of the Slave Cabin (c. 1850) will continue with scrupulous attention to detail and authenticity.

Nature Preserve

Donated by Lillian Heptinstall Everhart to SNCA, the land provides a natural and serene setting for the Heritage Site on the rim of Nacoochee Valley. Long before preparations began for the cabin, Barry Stiles, amateur botanist and Jack-of-all-trades, identified patches of Partridge Berry, Angelica, and transplanted clusters of Crane Fly and Rattlesnake Orchids located in the path of the parking area and access drive.

Flora and Fauna

Environmental Group members Patty Lowe, Audrey Moylan, Lark and Tom Hutto have begun a comprehensive assessment of the flora and fauna under the supervision of Seamus (James) Sullivan of Georgia Forest Watch. He is helping volunteers acquire and apply information that protects the habitats and biodiversity in the Nature Preserve. The group makes regular rambles along the trails and is creating an inventory of the seasonal diversity of wildlife.

Once the Slave Cabin is restored and major supporting exhibits are in place, the Heritage Site and Nature Preserve will become accessible to Valley residents, visitors and school groups.

Please note: All photographs and other materials presented on this webpage were kindly provided by the Bean Creek History Project; their use is strictly reserved; they may not be reproduced in any form without the explicit prior permission and written consent of the Bean Creek History Project Coordinator, Caroline Crittenden.

Slave Cabin moved to Heritage Site

Most of you are aware of SNCA's plans for a Heritage Site to commemorate African-Americans who labored as slaves in the Sautee and Nacoochee Valleys.  The focal point of the Site will be the rustic slave cabin that was given to us by Jim and Courtney Johnston. The cabin was moved several hundred yards from the Johnston's property down Highway 17 to the Heritage Site, located on a scenic bluff overlooking the Nacoochee Valley.

1:  Slave Cabin is ready to leave for it's new site.	2:  Power lines on Hwy 17 need to be lifted for the Slave Cabin to pass under.
3:  Backing the Slave Cabin down into the Heritage Site.	4:  The Slave Cabin is safely in place at it's new permanent home.
5: David Looper only needed a few minutes on November 2 to move the Slave Cabin a few hundred yards to its new site overlooking Nacoochee Valley, just west of the Sautee Creek Bridge. After the cabin was safely resting on its new foundation, Bean Creek History Project Coordinator Caroline Crittenden told enthusiastic spectators, “It only took three years and 15 minutes,” while SNCA member Barbara Williams correctly noted, “This is just the beginning, not the end.”
Craftsman Barry Stiles is using traditional methods and materials in replacing rotten wood in the cabin. Making a hand hewn beam with a broad axe dupli-cates the texture of the original timber and provides an appreciation of the labor, skills, and tools of the mid 19th century. Hand split white oak shingles will replace the tin roof before rock mason David Vandiver reassembles the stone chimney and fire-place. While the cabin restoration is underway, tours of the Heritage Site will be by appointment only.

The photos above document the move. The relocation of the cabin to its new home is a landmark event in the development of the Heritage Site and represents a tremendous amount of work that has been done to get to this point by Caroline Crittenden, Barry Stiles, and the supporters and volunteers of the Bean Creek History Project. Due to safety concerns as work continues on restoring the cabin and preparing the Heritage Site, visitors will be allowed by appointment only.

Witness to History:
White Oak from Virginia Will Become Split Shingles for Heritage Site

Elizabeth Etheridge, a descendant of the original owner of the Slave Cabin, recently made an unusual and important gift to SNCA- BCHP. She sent five sections of a white oak tree (45 inches in diameter) from her home in Farmville, Virginia to the Heritage Site. The wood will link the history of Nacoochee Valley with national events and notable figures from the Civil War.

The old oak tree stood witness to the retreat of Confederate forces, including boys from this area who served in the 24th Regiment, as they marched towards Appomattox, followed by Union forces, in April 1865. General Robert E. Lee held his last meeting with his senior officers in Farmville. On Easter Sunday, about two weeks later, there was a memorial service for Abraham Lincoln in the Farmville Presbyterian Church.

Elizabeth, who is an author and historian, went to extraordinary lengths and considerable expense to honor a noble tree that was losing its limbs and slowly dying. “A tree witness to that kind of history deserves a better fate,” she decided, upon learning that a white oak was needed for the restoration.
Craftsman Barry Stiles recovered nearly 40 of the 30-inch-long split-oak shingles that formed the cabin’s first roof. He estimates that new shingles fashioned from Elizabeth’s ancient tree could protect the Slave Cabin for another 80 years.