Join us in beautiful Athens, GA for the 2009 BFA Annual Meeting on October 16-17. The Event is being held at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Hotel & Conference Center in Athens, GA.
GA CENTER HOTEL RESERVATIONS: Call 1-888-295-8894, event #69023. Single room (1 queen bed) $99, double room (2 queen beds) $119, both plus tax. Breakfast is not included. A block of rooms is being held for BFA members until
Sept. 15.
Friday night: 7 to 9. “Meet Your Kin” - introduction of all attending. Bring memorabilia, and photographs to share. Our meeting room will be locked except when we’re inside.
Saturday morning: 9 to 9:30: Registration.
9:30 to 10:30 Clint Bondurant’s PowerPoint presentation on how to use military
records to learn more about your ancestors.
11:00 to 12 Eve Mayes and Amy Sanders report on the Bondurant DNA project,
lines we have been able to establish, and how to get tested.
12 to 2 “Family Luncheon” - $22, pre-registration required. Please fill in and return
the reservation form found at end of this newsletter before 1 Oct. 2009.
2 to 3 Annual Business Meeting, nomination and election of officers, selection of
2010 site, and other business.
3 to 4 Good-byes until next year. Clear meeting room.
In 1785, the University of Georgia was chartered as America's first state college. The city of Athens, named after the ancient Greek center of higher learning, was chartered in 1806. Athens and the University developed a uniquely urbane culture that visitors can experience through historic districts, house museums, and historic landmarks. Athens boasts 15 neighborhoods on the National Register of Historic Places, including four distinctive house museums along our Museum Mile. Daily guided tours, an audio tour, and several self-guided walking tours give today's visitors a glimpse of Athens' past.
Just below the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, near the confluence of the North and Middle Oconee Rivers, lies the city of Athens. Among the rolling red clay hills of North Georgia, a city and a university grew into a center of culture and wealth, nurturing individuals and ideas that have commanded national attention.
The city of Athens began as a tiny settlement that emerged at Cedar Shoals, where an ancient Cherokee trail crossed the Oconee River. Clarke County was enacted on December 5, 1801, and originally contained present-day Oconee County, as well as parts of Madison and Greene Counties. Clarke County was named for Elijah Clarke, who came to Georgia from North Carolina in 1774 to fight in Georgia's battles with the Cherokee and Creek tribes. Clarke was instrumental in securing treaties with the Creeks in 1782 and the Cherokees in 1792, which temporarily halted hostilities between settlers of European descent and the indigenous Native American populations.
The City of Athens was incorporated on December 8, 1806. The University of Georgia had opened for classes in 1801, and the city was named in honor of the center of higher learning that had flourished in classical Greece. As fine federal homes began to appear around the new campus, the role of Athens as the intellectual center of Georgia became increasingly evident: the cultured social life surrounding the college attracted prominent families of wealth and national stature. Industry developed rapidly; Athens' economy during the first half of the nineteenth century was based primarily upon cotton, brick works, textile mills, and railroad transportation.
The War Between the States interrupted antebellum prosperity. Mercantile production was halted, and the local citizenry suffered the loss of more than 300 men and boys who were killed during the war. Athens was spared the fate of many of Georgia's cities, however, remaining virtually intact after hostilities had ended: Sherman's infamous army did not march through the area.
The Reconstruction period was devastating for the entire South; however, under the leadership of the University and such men as Benjamin Harvey Hill, Howell Cobb and Joseph Henry Lumpkin, Athens soon regained its momentum. In 1867, visiting naturalist John Muir described Athens as "a remarkably beautiful and aristocratic town," where "marks of culture and refinement" were everywhere apparent. Textile factories and related businesses flourished once again, resulting in a growth virtually unparalleled in the New South. The benefits of economic prosperity were reflected in the community: the Lucy Cobb Institute earned a reputation as one of the finest girls' schools in the country, while mansions of ever-increasing grandeur multiplied throughout the city during the Victorian period. The Athens Street Railway Company was organized in 1870, and, in 1871, the seat of Clarke County was transferred from nearby Watkinsville to Athens.
The 20th century continued the positive evolution of Athens, witnessing the growth of The University of Georgia into an internationally recognized educational and research institution. During the final quarter of the century, historical preservation became a great priority. The citizens of Athens value the stunning architectural heritage of the city, and irreplaceable treasures of the past continue to be restored to their original glory. Today, Athens-Clarke County, the commercial, medical, professional, and educational hub of northeast Georgia, is home to 101,489 residents (2000 U.S. census). The University remains a great influence on lifestyle, tempo, and outlook for the community, maintaining a crucial link with tradition while assisting in Athens' propulsion into the 21st century.
