Press Release

Press Release

President’s Message

Welcome to the Cave Spring Historical Society Newsletter

In 1975, a small group of local artist and other lovers of beauty met and formed this

organization. They had been disturbed by the deterioration of several abandoned historical

buildings in lovely Rolator Park. They enlisted Diane Dawson, who was a local dynamo, to

spear head the renovation. First, they needed funds so they started the Cave Spring Arts

Festival which has now been active and popular for 40 years. Then they searched for Grants.

No Federal monies, State monies, Foundations were readily available. So what could they do

in a town of 900 citizens and no millionaires? They rolled up their sleeves and asked for

volunteers who wanted to be a part of a community action. Hundreds of people gave sweat

equity and worked thousands of hours so that you and I can enjoy these buildings featured in

this site.

Five years ago an observant citizen noticed a log cabin hidden inside an old dilapidated hotel

building. Since then it has been verified that this two story building was built by the Cherokee

Indians in 1810. It has been researched and documented for five years and again dollars are

not raining from the sky so the organization is asking for the community to again come

together and remove the dilapidated building that is hiding the treasure. We are seeing history

repeat itself. Come to Cave Spring and see what a determined citizenry can do with their own,

“blood sweat and tears.”

We’ve heard about community barn raising. Well, on April 11, 2015, the City of Cave SpringGeorgia under the auspices of the Cave Spring Historical society will have a Cabin revealing.

Five years ago an observant citizen, noticed something strange under the dilapidated clap

boards of an abandoned hotel. Five years of extensive research has verified that there is a two

story hand hewed log cabin built by Avery Vann, upstanding citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in

1810. Rooms were added sometime in the past 150 years that obscured the cabin structure.

The insides had been remodeled as hotel rooms. It was a huge surprise to even the 100 year

old citizens in our fair town. There had been rumors but they were discounted and now there it

was. Contrary to popular belief, grant monies haven’t rained from the sky, so we have decided

to have a big work day where maybe a 100 citizens: young and old, black and white, deaf and

hearing will come together and work as a team to remove the decaying structure that is hiding

the “diamond in the rough.”

We know this can be done because 40 years ago the historical society was formed to save

three abandoned buildings that were deteriorating in beautiful Rolator Park in our fair city. They

raised money through art festivals and through lots of sweet equity the Society and the citizens

of Cave Spring came together and saved these buildings from certain destruction and turned

them into beautiful, functional, historical buildings that you and I can enjoy. The historically

significant, Presbyterian Church, was donated to the Society for preservation. Again volunteers

came together to build a back porch close to but not attached to the historical building and

added two restrooms and a storage room so that the desanctified building could become an Art

Gallery to be enjoyed by visitors to our beautiful community snuggled in the foothills of

Northwest Georgia. Take a Saturday, April 11th to visit us and drink from our spring waters

judged best in Georgia on numerous occasions. While you are here you can picnic in the park

and enter our intriguing cave and on yeah, you can help us remove old boards and plaster and

expose what will in a short time be a tribute to our heritage and to those native Americans who

called our fair village home for hundreds of years.

March 29, 2015

Michael Burton

President of the Cave Spring Historical society

770-748-8542, BurtonMik@mac.com