Today’s Mystery photo was once a residence, but no more. See if you can spot where it is located, and then tell us what its function is now. Send your idea to ebrack2@gmail.com, and tell us where you get your mail.
Sara Rawlins of Lawrenceville was first in identifying the recent mystery. “The mystery photo is the Dahlonega Gold Museum in Dahlonega, Ga. It was built in 1836 as the Old Lumpkin County Courthouse. Today, it houses many artifacts, from gold nuggets to gold coins to mining equipment from the Gold Rush of 1836. The museum is for people to come and see what it was like during that time period.” The photo was taken by Susan McBrayer of Sugar Hill.
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas gave additional information: “The building was Lumpkin County’s original courthouse, built in 1836, making it the oldest surviving courthouse in Georgia. In 1965, the county moved the courthouse to its current location, approximately 1/2-mile away and repurposed the original building as the Dahlonega Gold Museum.
“Dahlonega is best known for being the site of the first major gold rush in the United States in 1828, long before the famous California Gold Rush of 1849. The town’s name itself originates from the Cherokee word “Dalonige,” meaning “yellow” or “gold.” Gold from Dahlonega was used to mint U.S. coins at the Dahlonega Mint (1838–1861), and some of these coins are now extremely rare and valuable. Traces of gold can still be found in the local rivers and streams in the area.
“One of the coolest things about the Dahlonega Gold Museum is that the courthouse’s bricks were made with locally mined gold … so the building actually has gold in its walls!”
Others recognizing the photo were Barbara Myers Mason, Big Canoe; George Graf, Palmyra, Va.; Larry Key, Cumming; Cindy Hall, Canton; Stewart Ogilvie, Rehobeth, Ala.; 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.
Now colorfully sprouting out all around Georgia are the purple blooms of Wisteria. Charles Anderson of Hartwell sent in this photo of the plant that can get to be invasive. One city where you can see this blossoming tree is in Lawrenceville, previously known as the “Wisteria City.”
Follow Us