GwinnettForum | Number 25.30 | April 15, 2025
NEW ROUNDABOUT: Peachtree Corners plans to add a second roundabout in the city, adding to the first one built in 2018. The new roundabout will be on Peachtree Corners Circle at the Forum entrance near Trader Joe’s, where Creme de la Crème is opposite the Forum. Designed to improve traffic flow and safety, this new intersection will feature pedestrian-friendly crossings, dedicated bike lanes and better access to local businesses, according to the city. Peachtree Corners officials and engineers from Kimley-Horn, whose offices are at 3930 East Jones Bridge Road, produced the design, traffic impact and construction timelines. The first roundabout in Peachtree Corners is on Medlock Bridge Road and the eastern end of Peachtree Corners Circle.
TODAY’S FOCUS: What was Gwinnett like before Europeans settled it?
EEB PERSPECTIVE: The Masters always is a classic, stimulating show
SPOTLIGHT: Howard Brothers
FEEDBACK: Why Congress needs to act now on Social Security
UPCOMING: Policing to be subject of Peachtree Corners meeting
NOTABLE: Ga. Tech Coach Brent Key to be Hall of Fame speaker
RECOMMENDED: Tales For Jung Folk, by Richard Roberts
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Richmond Hill, once small, now enjoying growth
MYSTERY PHOTO: Soaring cathedral is today’s Mystery Photo
CALENDAR: 4 sessions on writing your memories at Collins Hill Library
What was Gwinnett like before Europeans settled it?
Current view of Elisha Winn House, where Gwinnett was founded.
(Editor’s note: Enjoy this glimpse of the history of Gwinnett County before it was founded. The author is a former chairwoman of the Gwinnett County Commission and most recently president of the Gwinnett Historical Society. –eeb)
By Charlotte Nash
DACULA, Ga. | Thousands of years before Europeans came to Georgia, Native Americans lived in what is now Gwinnett. Two groups were dominant in Georgia when the colony was founded: the Cherokees in the north and the Muscogee, or Creeks, in central and south Georgia.
Nash
The area now in Gwinnett County was near the dividing line between the two groups, with the boundary’s exact location shifting over time. Reminders of these early occupants of Gwinnett’s land include place names, like Chattahoochee, Apalachee and Suwanee, while echoes of Indigenous peoples are also found in a few surviving rock structures and remnants of stone tools.
Although some whites settled illegally in the Gwinnett area earlier, it was officially opened for settlement after the American Revolution. Prior to then, the frontier boundary was located to the east. However, the new nation and its states quickly focused on westward expansion. In 1783, the Cherokees ceded all their land east of the Oconee River to the State of Georgia.
Since the Apalachee River is a tributary of the Oconee, its basin was included in the ceded area. The headwaters of the Apalachee River, just west of where the current intersection of Georgia Highways 124 and 324 is located, marked the new frontier boundary. It is no coincidence that Fort Daniel and at least one previous fort were situated here, as a series of frontier forts were built in the late 1700s and early 1800s to protect settlers.
The unshaded area is headrights land. The large type refers to the Militia District..
When Franklin County was created in 1784, it encompassed the newly ceded area. Thus, part of Gwinnett was initially located within Franklin County. This portion of Gwinnett, north of Dacula and east of Hog Mountain, is known as the headrights district based on the method used to distribute land to settlers there. In 1796, the western half of Franklin was taken to form Jackson County, and Gwinnett’s headrights district became part of Jackson County.
Some settlers came to the newly created Franklin County from parts of Georgia to the south along the Savannah River and the coast, but most came from the Carolinas and points to the north. A likely route followed by many was the Upper Road that ran from Fredericksburg, Va. through North and South Carolina before reaching Georgia. The Upper Road crossed into Georgia near where Interstate 85 now enters Georgia from South Carolina, illustrating the linkage between modern roadways and those of earlier times.
When Gwinnett County was created in 1818, official settlement of its headrights district, including the area that would become part of Barrow County in 1914, had already been underway for several decades. Many of the early leaders of Gwinnett, like Elisha Winn and William Maltbie, settled in the headrights district during this pre-Gwinnett period. In fact, Elisha Winn’s home just north of the Apalachee River near Dacula that served as the first seat of Gwinnett’s government pre-dates Gwinnett’s formation.
The early days of Gwinnett County, though, provided a portent for its future as the fledgling county’s population almost doubled from 1820 to 1830!
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The Masters always is a classic, stimulating show
Via Wikimedia.
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
APRIL 15, 2025 | The beautiful weekend in Augusta produced another classic Masters Golf Tournament, it’s 89th! Many fans were pulling for Rory McIlroy to win a victory which would be a capstone to his career, and he, eventually, did it! He not only won Sunday’s tournament for the first time, but took his place in golf history as the sixth player to claim the career Grand Slam.
McIlroy did it the hard way, laying back the first two rounds, having an amazing round on Saturday, then looking like he was cruising during the opening nine on Sunday, leading by four strokes.
Yet the back nine on Sunday was trouble for him, as he ended the day one over par. For a while, it looked like he would not make a Green Jacket, as he lost the lead, then regained it, only to muff a short putt on the 18th green to send the play into overtime with Justin Rose, who had led the first two days of the tournament.
But the playoff was short, as Rory hit a great second shot, landing perhaps three feet from the cup. Next, Rose blew the tournament when he missed a 20-foot putt. He has never won the Masters.
That set the deck for McIlroy. He calmly steered the ball into hole on his third shot for a birdie, fell to his knees, and who could not blame him, shed tears of relief and joy! It will go down as one of the cherished Masters stories, since this was his 17th attempt to win this championship.
In his final nine holes of regular play on Sunday, he had three birdies and two par holes, but had three bogeys and a double bogey. He also became the first golfer to win this championship with four double bogeys during the week’s play.
There is nothing like the traditions of the Masters Golf Tournament, though we must admit we have never attended. Golf as such is not my sport. But when the Masters puts on its annual beautiful show in Augusta, it is nothing less than a classic in every way, and yes, I stay glued to the television set.
The classics are wonderful, no matter the field. We like Beethoven, Brahms and Bach. Coca-Cola is another classic. Our favorite author in the classic tradition is Alexander McCall Smith. And what a classic car the MG (A) was when we owned one!
Simply put, you can always depend on the Masters putting on a great show with elegance during the first full week in April, and for the many fans watching the long, slow stalking of golfers on television. There’s always the calm, low-key analysis from the announcers. There’s the pressure building on the course as the top golfers do their best to win. And suddenly you find yourself pulling for one of those professionals to pull off a victory, someone you may not have followed much before.
The Masters always does every aspect and with such good taste.
We learned this week that attendees can go anywhere on the course they want, though for the best spots, they must get in early. And we learned that no one is allowed to have a cell phone while on the course! Good for the Masters!
We’re always sure to be entertained when watching the Masters. Bet many of you enjoyed the 89th Masters, too!
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Howard Brothers
The public spiritedness of our underwriters allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today’s sponsor is Howard Brothers Outdoor Power Equipment and Hardware. John and Doug Howard are the “brothers” in Howard Brothers. This family-owned business was started by their dad, and now John and Doug’s children are helping to lead in the business. Howard Brothers has locations in Alpharetta, Athens, Doraville, Duluth, Lula, Oakwood, and now store no. 7 in Dallas. They specialize in hardware, outdoor power equipment and parts and service. Howard Brothers are authorized dealers of STIHL, Exmark, Honda, Echo, and other well known brands in the green industry. Howard Brothers is also an authorized Big Green Egg dealer, and is one of the only Platinum Traeger Grill dealers in the state of Georgia.
- Visit their web site www.howardbrothers.com.
- For a list of other sponsors of this forum, click here.
Why Congress needs to act now on Social Security
Editor, the Forum:
One more comment concerning the Trust Fund that is a part of Social Security taxes, relative to it being used for purposes other than social security benefits.
To clarify, when the fund carries a surplus, by law, it can only invest in special US Treasury securities. The purpose of the restriction is to minimize risk for the fund. When the fund buys Treasury securities, it is loaning the government money at market interest. That loan is a part of our national debt.
The government does use that money for other governmental purposes; however, the fund receives interest and securities are redeemed when needed to pay benefits. The current problem with future benefit payments results from the need to dip into the reserve balance more frequently now since current revenue into the fund is not sufficient to cover benefits. To prevent fund depletion and/or a cut to benefits, Congress must address future funding.
– Elaine Still, Braselton
At what part does Trump’s up and down become illegal?
Editor, the Forum:
For the past week, during the ups and downs of the stock market responding to Donald Trump’s tariff proposals, it has seemed that there is a great deal of tone-deafness in Washington.
With yesterday’s announcement of a 90-day hold on these same tariffs and Trump’s flippant remarks about some people being “yippy,” it became apparent that this is just a game to him.
His comments on last Tuesday that “now is the time to buy” stocks suggest that he is doing a great deal of market manipulation intentionally. He seems to want to see how much he could roil world markets.
At what point does this become illegal activity (Oh, I forgot, the president isn’t under the law, is he?)?? The concept that he is playing with people’s lives does not seem to register in his attempts to get attention and keep it focused on himself.
– Margot Ashley, Lilburn
Doesn’t see possibility that J.D. Vance would be president
Editor, the Forum:
I’m glad you asked about Vice President J.D. Vance being elevated to the presidency if convicted felon 47 can’t finish out four years. If I recall, VP Vance (before he was tapped to be VP) had some critical choice words about convicted felon 47 that weren’t flattering. But when he was the VP choice, he did a 180 turnabout and “butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth.”
So, I don’t see him being our next president either early or after four years. He has too much baggage that can be used against him. Especially if we all survive these next four years with convicted felon 47 or Vance as president.
– Sara Rawlins, Lawrenceville,
Dear Sara: Hmmmm. Don’t understand how Vance would not be elevated if Donald Trump was not the president. That is, if we still had the rule of law concept. –eeb.
The key to Middle East is the hostage situation
Editor, the Forum:
Not too bad the recent op-ed from Jack Bernard, (“Is a solution possible for the Israeli-Palestine fight?” of March 11, 2025, in GwinnettForum). However, Jack failed to mention the hostage situation. That is a really big problem with this war. Israel will never give up until they are released, dead or alive. At least we are talking to Iran now after 10 years and they control Hamas, so an end may be in sight.
– Stew Ogilvie, Rehobeth, Ala.
Send us your thoughts: We encourage you to send us your letters and thoughts on issues raised in GwinnettForum. Please limit comments to 300 words, and include your hometown. The views of letters are the opinion of the contributor. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Send feedback and letters to: ebrack2@gmail.com.
Policing to be subject of Peachtree Corners meeting
The future of law enforcement in Peachtree Corners is under discussion by city officials. The city is planning a community meeting on policing in the city. The meeting will be on May 8 at 7 p. m at Christ the King Lutheran Church, 5775 Peachtree Parkway.
This meeting will feature a presentation by City Manager Brian Johnson on the findings of a comprehensive Police Analysis and Staffing Study. It evaluated the feasibility and projected costs of forming a city police department based on current workload, crime levels, and community demographics.
The presentation will also include budgetary considerations, comparative models, and the advantages and disadvantages of a county vs. city police department. Following the presentation, there will be time for a Q&A and open dialogue.
The city noted that attendance is limited to 300. Those anticipating attending should arrive early. The meeting will be live-streamed. A follow-up survey will be posted on the project page following the meeting.
Ga. Tech Coach Brent Key to be Hall of Fame speaker
The 14th annual Gwinnett County Sports Hall of Fame has secured a local speaker for its May 19, 2025, meeting. He is Brent Key, Georgia Tech football coach.
The Hall of Fame induction, which is presented by the Gwinnett County Public Schools Foundation, is scheduled to be held on May 19, 2025 at Gas South Convention Center in Duluth at 6:30 p.m.
The Foundation also has announced its inductees for the 2025 dinner. They include Jennifer Gardner, Norcross High, in basketball; Will Hinton of Dacula High in shooting; Brian McCann, Duluth High, in baseball; Dexter Wood former athletic director and head football coach at Buford; and Bradley Roby, from Peachtree Ridge, in football, basketball, and track and field.
Brent Key, a Georgia Tech alumnus, was named the 21st head coach in Tech football history on Nov. 29, 2022. Key was a four-year starter at guard for the Yellow Jackets from 1997-2000. He was a team captain and all-ACC performer as a senior and graduated from Tech in 2001 with a management degree. He and his wife, Danielle, have a daughter, Harper. Since becoming the coach at Georgia Tech, his record is 18-16, including bowl appearances in his first two complete seasons.
Key grew up in Trussville, Ala., near Birmingham. Key played guard at Georgia Tech under coach George O’Leary, starting all four years. During his four-year playing career, Georgia Tech would go on to four straight bowl appearances, finish the season in the AP poll top-25 four times, beat rival Georgia three straight times, and rank No. 1 nationally in total offense in 1998. He was voted team captain and all-ACC as a senior in 2000.
Tales For Jung Folk, by Richard Roberts
From Karen J. Harris, Stone Mountain: Richard Robert’s book is an inspired journey into the world of archetypes and how they impact lives. He introduces The Dream Castle wherein archetypes live, and the interior life evolves over time. There are six additional chapters which each describe how each archetype impacts life. In Ruckus in the Well, the shadow is introduced in a whimsical story about how not keeping check on negative aspects of self can result in negative outcomes. The Crystal People is about projection explains why one might be either attracted to or repulsed by a person or persons. If we wait for optimal conditions, we may miss a growth spurt that cannot be replicated. At the end of each story there is a Primer section which explains the ideas in the story and the overall teaching that is revealed in each. It is a short book filled with insightful ideas worth pondering. The full title is Tales for Jung Folk: Original Fairy Tales for Persons of All Ages.
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Richmond Hill, once small, now enjoying growth
Richmond Hill, situated on the Ogeechee River 15 miles south of Savannah, is the largest municipality in Bryan County with a population of 19,567 (although Pembroke is the county seat). It is best known as the winter residence of the automotive pioneer Henry Ford during the 1930s and 1940s.
The history of the area goes back to the earliest days of the Georgia colony, when General James Oglethorpe built Fort Argyle near the juncture of the Ogeechee and Canoochee rivers. The legalization of slavery in 1750 and the availability of agricultural bottomland near the Ogeechee River led to rapid settlement in lower St. Philip Parish (Bryan Neck) before the American Revolution (1775-83).
In 1793 Bryan County was created from Chatham and Effingham counties and was named in honor of the colonial patriot Jonathan Bryan (1708-88.) Because of the proximity of the Ogeechee River, rice became the primary cash crop of the local agricultural economy. Lower Bryan County was the locale of some of the most productive rice plantations of tidewater Georgia in the three decades before the Civil War (1861-65). The larger operations were those managed by the area’s leading enslavers.
Shipment of rice from the region was expedited by the completion of the Savannah–Ogeechee Canal in 1830. The Savannah, Albany, and Gulf Railroad, built in 1856 to link Savannah with southwest Georgia, passed through Bryan Neck, traversing the rice fields of Richard Arnold and William J. Way. The station depot of the railroad was designated Ways Station, No. 1 1/2. A small settlement developed at Ways Station, the forerunner of Richmond Hill.
After the Civil War, emancipated African Americans on Bryan Neck began to purchase their own land from plantation owners. Blacks worked for wages at the revived Ogeechee River plantations, and the area prospered until hurricanes in the 1890s wiped out the rice industry in tidewater Georgia. Later many Blacks found employment in the local lumber industry. In about 1904 the Hilton-Dodge Lumber Company of Darien opened a large sawmill and timber-exporting center at Belfast, near Ways Station. This activity continued until 1916.
In 1925 the automobile-industry pioneer Henry Ford of Dearborn, Mich., began purchasing land on Bryan Neck, eventually owning about 85,000 acres on both sides of the Ogeechee. Ford was interested in the social and agricultural improvement of the area around Ways Station, then one of the most impoverished places in Georgia.
Ford hired local residents to manage his agricultural operations, provided housing and medical facilities, and built churches, community centers, and schools for Black and white students. He developed a sawmill and a vocational trade school, improved roads and other infrastructure, and generally brought Ways Station into the 20th century. In 1941 the town’s name was changed to Richmond Hill in honor of Ford, who had built his winter residence, Richmond, on the site of the former Clay plantation.
After Ford’s death in 1947 much of the land on Bryan Neck was sold to timber companies. Richmond Hill was incorporated in 1962, and it remained a quiet rural community until about 1980, when the building of interstate highways in the area and the influx of Chatham County residents into lower Bryan spurred rapid growth.
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia article online, go to https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Soaring cathedral is today’s Mystery Photo
Yes, today’s mystery is a cathedral, one of the world’s classical edifices. Your job is simply to tell us where it is located. Send your idea to ebrack2@gmail.com, including your hometown.
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas, easily recognized another remote lighthouse. He wrote: “Today’s mystery photo is of the Dry Tortugas Light, located on Loggerhead Key, a small, remote island that is part of a chain of seven small islands approximately 70 miles west of Key West. When the lighthouse was originally built in 1858, it was officially known as the Loggerhead Key Lighthouse, named after the island it sat on, which itself is named after the loggerhead sea turtles that nest there.
“Unlike most lighthouses of its era, the Dry Tortugas Light was built in 1858 of cast iron rather than stone or brick. It was added to the island chain to complement the smaller, less effective lighthouse that was built on Garden Key, two miles east of Loggerhead Key. At 157 feet high, the Dry Tortugas Light was the tallest lighthouse in Florida at the time of its construction. Also, unique was the choice to paint the top of the tower black so that mariners who were navigating the area during daylight hours could easily distinguish it from the nearby Garden Key Lighthouse, which was painted white.”
Sending in the photograph was Mickey Merkel of Berkeley Lake.
Also recognizing the mystery were George Graf, Palmyra, Va.; and Lou Camerio, Lilburn.
- SHARE A MYSTERY PHOTO: If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Click here to send an email and please mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
4 sessions on writing your memories at Collins Hill Library
The PDC Club in Norcross will have as its speaker on April 16 Coleen Kiernan, from Gateway85 Community Improvement District. The meeting will start at 8:15 a.m. and be finished at 9 a.m. at 45 South Café. All are invited.
Calling all gardeners, garden enthusiasts, and everyone in between! Garden Fest is returning for its sixth year at the Grayson Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library Thursday, April 17. Hours will be from noon to 6 p.m.
Writing Your Memoirs is the subject of a three-session workshop on April 16, 23 and 30 at the Collins Hill Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library. Learn how your experiences and life lessons can entertain and inspire others in this writing workshop.
Mindful Spaces will be presented at the Snellville Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library on April 17 at 6 p.m. Learn about the mental health benefits of decluttering and organizing. Utilize tips and tricks to overcome the feeling of being overwhelmed.
Day of Play for kids will be Friday, April 18, from 10-11 a.m. at Lillian Webb Park in Norcross. Join the City of Norcross for a totally free hour of games, giggles and good vibes! From silly relays to active adventures, it’s the way to create memories—with laughter, movement and fresh air. Hosted by the City of Norcross and Live Healthy Gwinnett, this feel-good Friday event is all about playing together. Closed-toe shoes are a must—we’re bringing the energy!
Two Easter Egg Hunts will take place in Norcross on April 19 at Rosie Brundage Park. The first hunt will be at 10 a.m. packed with hidden treasures and the Easter Bunny. Then at 1 p.m. there is a hunt designed for kids with special needs, featuring beeping eggs and special scoops for those in wheelchairs. The hunts are sponsored by the City of Norcross.
Recycling day in Peachtree Corners will be from 9 a.m. Saturday, April 19, until noon, at City Hall. Residents may dispose of paper materials and electronic waste free of charge.
Stand-up comedy writing workshop will be at Lionheart Theatre in Norcross on Saturday, April 19 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This is for ages 17 and up. Cost is $20. Visit the Classes page on lionhearttheatre.org to register.
Ribbon cutting of Georgia Tech Atrium in Peachtree Corners will be April 21 at 10 a.m. within Curiosity Lab’s Innovation Center. This will be an academic and research space designed to foster hands-on student research, industry collaboration and technology break-throughs and regional epicenter for innovation and experimental learning.
Author talk: Join L.S. Topping as she discusses her creative nonfiction book, The Other Woman, about a journey of rediscovery, resilience, and the power of an unbreakable spirit. The talk will be on April 22 at 6 p.m. at the Lawrenceville Branch of Gwinnett County Public library. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
Wesleyan Artist Market, the 27th annual, will be April 25-26 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Wesleyan School in Peachtree Corners on Friday and from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturday. Featured will be a curated selection of artwork, handmade goods, and jewelry, with offerings from professional artists as well as students. Admission is free.
Gwinnett’s first Arboretum will have its ribbon cutting in Norcross on April 25 at 2 p.m. The site is at Pinnacle Park Arboretum off Brookhollow Parkway. It is a project of the City of Norcross and its Tree Preservation Board.
Author and entrepreneur Dr. Lakeysha Hallmon, will discuss her new book, No One is Self-Made, an inspirational guide that dismantles the myth of individualism and reveals how collective support can shatter systemic barriers to success. Books will be available for purchase and signing. The talk will be April 26 at 6 p.m. at the Snellville Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library.
Earth Day Recycling will be Saturday, April 26, from 9 a.m. until noon at Coolray Field. Residents can drop off electronics, clothing and sneakers, latex and oil-based paints and tires. Paper shredding will be available. It is presented by Gwinnett Solid Waste Management and Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful.
Annual Plant Sale by Gwinnett County Master Gardeners will be Saturday, April 26, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the parking lot of the Lilburn City Hall – Library, 4817 Church Street, NW, Lilburn. On sale will be trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, vegetables, garden art, and more. There will be numerous Master Gardeners on hand to answer all your garden questions
Spring concert: Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra and Youth Orchestra will present Chamberworks III on April 27 at 7 p.m. at the Discovery High Theatre in Lawrenceville. Music to be presented will include Vaughan Williams Fantasy on a theme by Thomas Tallis and Elgar’s Serenade for Strings.
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