About
Lake Spivey at sunset
The History of Lake Spivey
In the 1940's late Dr. Walter and Emilie Parmalee Spivey purchased hundreds of acres here.This site abounded with springs, wild azaleas and tall ferns. It was first used as a cattle farm then later as a peach orchard. In the late forties the Spiveys built the dam and Lake Spivey was formed. The 40 foot plus earthen dam was finished in September of 1957 and is rated by the Department of Natural Resources, who oversees the maintenance of the dam, as one of the safest in Georgia. At the site of the dam there once existed a village called "Mayday" - apparently a travelers stop. During excavation for the dam, a mill wheel was found at there and now rests in the Spivey Estate's garden.
After the creation of the lake, the residents shared it with a day resort open to the public. In 1984 after the death of Dr. Spivey, Mrs. Spivey deeded the lake to the Lake Spivey Civic Association to be managed in trust for the exclusive use of property owners with paid Lake Maintenance fees & Special Assessments.
In another century this area was the hunting grounds of the Creek Indians and a bloody battleground during the Civil War. Many artifacts were found during the building of homes around the lake.
Who Were the Creek Indians?
The Muscogean Indians who came to be known in Georgia and Alabama as "Creeks" never achieved as high a civilization as did the Cherokee, the other chief tribe of the southeast.
The Creeks were a hunting people. Agriculture was not as important to them as to some other tribes though they had become acquainted with the plow. They hunted and fished and traded their deerskins and such things with the whites.
Their most colorful festival was the Boos-ke-taus or Green Corn dance which began a new year for them. They held their general councils in the public square of their principal town. The cabin of their great chief always faced the sun. All of the cabins were painted red except those of the old men, these were painted white to symbolize age and virtue. In the center of the square a fire always burned.
The chief of each town was called the 'mica'. He was appointed for life, and was always succeeded by a nephew. The military chief was called 'the Great Warrior'. During the days of the Green Corn Dance, the Creeks pardoned all crimes except murder. They made a canoe by burying a big log for three years, then digging it up and burning out the center and pointing the ends.
These Indians never called themselves the 'Creeks' that was the white man's name for them. And like the other red men, they never referred to themselves as 'Indians". The Creeks had white( peace) towns and red (war) towns. Coweta was the leading war town and Cusseta was the leading peace town.
Clayton County History
Clayton County is steeped in rich and colorful history, and even today, while being a part of Metropolitan Atlanta, many Old South traditions prevail.
The county is named after the honorable Augustine Smith Clayton, a judge and U.S. Congressman from Georgia. The State's 125th county was formed out of portions of Henry and Fayette Counties on November 30, 1858.
Clayton County is located some 10 miles south of Atlanta and has a land mass of 146 square miles. The county's elevation of some 1,000 feet above sea level permits an ideal four-season climate.
A natural rise of land runs south from Atlanta, through Clayton County and forms a "Little Continental Divide" along what was the Central of Georgia Railroad.; All waters west of the railroad tracks eventually flow into the Gulf of Mexico, and all waters east of the railroad flow into the Atlantic Ocean.
Records show that our first settlement, Leakesville, was established in 1823. Later in 1845 it was to be called Jonesboro in recognition of a civil engineer, Samuel Goode Jones. He revived a bankrupt railroad took residence in the small town and became so popular with its citizenry that the town was renamed in his honor.
In 1846 Jones Macon & Western Railroad Company continued to extend its tracks through the northern parts of the county with stops at Morrow's Station (Morrow), Quick Station (Forest Park) & Rough & Ready (Mountain View) and on to Atlanta, to the place where Union Station once stood. Cotton from the local fields could be shipped in all directions.
Clayton County was the site of heavy fighting during the Civil War. After the battle of Rough & Ready and Jonesboro much of the county lay in ruins. Today, the Confederate Cemetery at Jonesboro is the burial place of approximately 600 Confederate troops and a few Federal soldiers. Although rows of markers have been placed in the cemetery, the bodies were actually placed in two long trenches. The Warren House located on the corner of Highway 54 and Magnolia was used as a hospital during the war. It is said that the conditions were so crowded that doctors amputated limbs and threw the dismembered part out the window for lack of a better method.
The first railroad depot was built by Central Railroad in Jonesboro in 1867. It serves as a museum today. The first newspaper published was the Clayton County Times - published in 1870.
Clayton County remained an agricultural area for some years. The Conley Quartermaster Depot (now known as Fort Gillem) was built during World War II and played a major role in the county's expansion, contributing to the thriving progressive area it is now.
Henry County History
Land obtained from the Creek Indians by treaty was divided by an act of the legislature of May 15, 1821, into the counties of Henry, Houston, Monroe, Dooly and Fayette. Henry County at one time encircled all parts of Spalding, DeKalb, Fulton, Newton, Butts, Rockdale, Clayton and Campbell Counties. John Clark was the governor of Georgia. The county was named after Patrick Henry of Revolutionary War fame. The town of McDonough was named after another Revolutionary war hero - Commodore McDonough. The town of Hampton was named after the Hampton family from South Carolina.
Traces of the Indian possessions of the County are still to be found in the broken bits of pottery and arrowheads occasionally picked up in such names as Indian River, and Indian Fisheries and in a road known as the 'old McIntosh Trail' in Spalding County and which was the route followed by Indians on their pilgrimages to and from the medicinal water of Indian Springs.
Originally Henry County was about 70 miles square. It is now about 27 miles in length and 15 miles in width. Henry County lost land on all sides. DeKalb County was made almost entirely from Henry County. Fulton was made from DeKalb in 1853. DeKalb gave a portion of her land at an earlier date to Campbell County. In 1825 Butts County was created and embraced part of Henry. In 1851 Spalding was created; from territory that included a bit of Henry. In 1858 Clayton County was formed and embraced a generous portion; of Henry. In 1870 Henry again made a contribution to Rockdale upon the creation of that county.
The earliest settlers came mainly from the counties of Morgan, Walton, Putnam & Jasper and scattered over a broad area. The main point of entrance to the county was at the convergence of two Indian trails at a place on the Ocmulgee River, which was later given the name of Keys Ferry after one of the earliest settlers. This road was a part of the stagecoach line between McDonough and Madison.
Agriculture was the leading pursuit of the residents but cotton was not the main crop, corn and tobacco was raised more extensively.; Surveys were made by the Central of Georgia Railroad but because of violent opposition among some of the older residents, it was never built in McDonough but built instead in Griffin and Hampton. Many people left McDonough and moved their homes (houses)-literally - to these towns.
For comments or questions about this website, please e-mail us at administrator@lakespivey.org
In the 1940's late Dr. Walter and Emilie Parmalee Spivey purchased hundreds of acres here.This site abounded with springs, wild azaleas and tall ferns. It was first used as a cattle farm then later as a peach orchard. In the late forties the Spiveys built the dam and Lake Spivey was formed. The 40 foot plus earthen dam was finished in September of 1957 and is rated by the Department of Natural Resources, who oversees the maintenance of the dam, as one of the safest in Georgia. At the site of the dam there once existed a village called "Mayday" - apparently a travelers stop. During excavation for the dam, a mill wheel was found at there and now rests in the Spivey Estate's garden.
After the creation of the lake, the residents shared it with a day resort open to the public. In 1984 after the death of Dr. Spivey, Mrs. Spivey deeded the lake to the Lake Spivey Civic Association to be managed in trust for the exclusive use of property owners with paid Lake Maintenance fees & Special Assessments.
In another century this area was the hunting grounds of the Creek Indians and a bloody battleground during the Civil War. Many artifacts were found during the building of homes around the lake.
Who Were the Creek Indians?
The Muscogean Indians who came to be known in Georgia and Alabama as "Creeks" never achieved as high a civilization as did the Cherokee, the other chief tribe of the southeast.
The Creeks were a hunting people. Agriculture was not as important to them as to some other tribes though they had become acquainted with the plow. They hunted and fished and traded their deerskins and such things with the whites.
Their most colorful festival was the Boos-ke-taus or Green Corn dance which began a new year for them. They held their general councils in the public square of their principal town. The cabin of their great chief always faced the sun. All of the cabins were painted red except those of the old men, these were painted white to symbolize age and virtue. In the center of the square a fire always burned.
The chief of each town was called the 'mica'. He was appointed for life, and was always succeeded by a nephew. The military chief was called 'the Great Warrior'. During the days of the Green Corn Dance, the Creeks pardoned all crimes except murder. They made a canoe by burying a big log for three years, then digging it up and burning out the center and pointing the ends.
These Indians never called themselves the 'Creeks' that was the white man's name for them. And like the other red men, they never referred to themselves as 'Indians". The Creeks had white( peace) towns and red (war) towns. Coweta was the leading war town and Cusseta was the leading peace town.
Clayton County History
Clayton County is steeped in rich and colorful history, and even today, while being a part of Metropolitan Atlanta, many Old South traditions prevail.
The county is named after the honorable Augustine Smith Clayton, a judge and U.S. Congressman from Georgia. The State's 125th county was formed out of portions of Henry and Fayette Counties on November 30, 1858.
Clayton County is located some 10 miles south of Atlanta and has a land mass of 146 square miles. The county's elevation of some 1,000 feet above sea level permits an ideal four-season climate.
A natural rise of land runs south from Atlanta, through Clayton County and forms a "Little Continental Divide" along what was the Central of Georgia Railroad.; All waters west of the railroad tracks eventually flow into the Gulf of Mexico, and all waters east of the railroad flow into the Atlantic Ocean.
Records show that our first settlement, Leakesville, was established in 1823. Later in 1845 it was to be called Jonesboro in recognition of a civil engineer, Samuel Goode Jones. He revived a bankrupt railroad took residence in the small town and became so popular with its citizenry that the town was renamed in his honor.
In 1846 Jones Macon & Western Railroad Company continued to extend its tracks through the northern parts of the county with stops at Morrow's Station (Morrow), Quick Station (Forest Park) & Rough & Ready (Mountain View) and on to Atlanta, to the place where Union Station once stood. Cotton from the local fields could be shipped in all directions.
Clayton County was the site of heavy fighting during the Civil War. After the battle of Rough & Ready and Jonesboro much of the county lay in ruins. Today, the Confederate Cemetery at Jonesboro is the burial place of approximately 600 Confederate troops and a few Federal soldiers. Although rows of markers have been placed in the cemetery, the bodies were actually placed in two long trenches. The Warren House located on the corner of Highway 54 and Magnolia was used as a hospital during the war. It is said that the conditions were so crowded that doctors amputated limbs and threw the dismembered part out the window for lack of a better method.
The first railroad depot was built by Central Railroad in Jonesboro in 1867. It serves as a museum today. The first newspaper published was the Clayton County Times - published in 1870.
Clayton County remained an agricultural area for some years. The Conley Quartermaster Depot (now known as Fort Gillem) was built during World War II and played a major role in the county's expansion, contributing to the thriving progressive area it is now.
Henry County History
Land obtained from the Creek Indians by treaty was divided by an act of the legislature of May 15, 1821, into the counties of Henry, Houston, Monroe, Dooly and Fayette. Henry County at one time encircled all parts of Spalding, DeKalb, Fulton, Newton, Butts, Rockdale, Clayton and Campbell Counties. John Clark was the governor of Georgia. The county was named after Patrick Henry of Revolutionary War fame. The town of McDonough was named after another Revolutionary war hero - Commodore McDonough. The town of Hampton was named after the Hampton family from South Carolina.
Traces of the Indian possessions of the County are still to be found in the broken bits of pottery and arrowheads occasionally picked up in such names as Indian River, and Indian Fisheries and in a road known as the 'old McIntosh Trail' in Spalding County and which was the route followed by Indians on their pilgrimages to and from the medicinal water of Indian Springs.
Originally Henry County was about 70 miles square. It is now about 27 miles in length and 15 miles in width. Henry County lost land on all sides. DeKalb County was made almost entirely from Henry County. Fulton was made from DeKalb in 1853. DeKalb gave a portion of her land at an earlier date to Campbell County. In 1825 Butts County was created and embraced part of Henry. In 1851 Spalding was created; from territory that included a bit of Henry. In 1858 Clayton County was formed and embraced a generous portion; of Henry. In 1870 Henry again made a contribution to Rockdale upon the creation of that county.
The earliest settlers came mainly from the counties of Morgan, Walton, Putnam & Jasper and scattered over a broad area. The main point of entrance to the county was at the convergence of two Indian trails at a place on the Ocmulgee River, which was later given the name of Keys Ferry after one of the earliest settlers. This road was a part of the stagecoach line between McDonough and Madison.
Agriculture was the leading pursuit of the residents but cotton was not the main crop, corn and tobacco was raised more extensively.; Surveys were made by the Central of Georgia Railroad but because of violent opposition among some of the older residents, it was never built in McDonough but built instead in Griffin and Hampton. Many people left McDonough and moved their homes (houses)-literally - to these towns.
For comments or questions about this website, please e-mail us at administrator@lakespivey.org