Attractions

Other Attractions

A number of other attractions in Franklin County and the surrounding area engage and enrich residents and visitors alike. For heart-thumping excitement, there is stock car racing at the Lavonia Speedway a few miles out GA Hwy 77 in Hart County. But there is more to the Speedway than just stock cars. Other racing challenges include go-carts, motorcycles, and legend car racing.

Royston is the hometown of baseball's immortal Ty Cobb, regarded by many as the greatest player the game has ever known. Cobb was the first inductee into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Royston has honored the memory of the baseball player known as “The Georgia Peach” with the Ty Cobb Museum, which opened to the public on July 17, 1998, the 37th anniversary of Cobb’s death. The museum, with its 1,300 feet of exhibit space, contains an impressive collection of sports artifacts including news clippings, rare photographs and priceless baseball memorabilia. The museum is located in the Joe A. Adams Professional Building at 461 Cook Street, which is part of the Ty Cobb Healthcare System complex.

Community celebrations throughout Franklin County include fall festivals held in September and October in Carnesville, Lavonia and Royston. The festivals attract hundreds of people who enjoy the arts and crafts sales, food, music and entertainment all in anticipation of a pleasant autumn day. During the month of December, there are civic-sponsored Christmas parades as well as charity-sponsored tours of homes and a well-attended “Breakfast with Santa.”

A popular weekend attraction is Clem’s Shoal Creek Music Park in nearby Hart County. Every Saturday night year round, local artists perform their own special style of music, whether it be bluegrass, country or gospel. The music park, which offers camping facilities and hosts monthly special events, is located 1.5 miles from I-85 (Exit 177) on Hwy. 77 near Lavonia.

Franklin County has a number of sites with historical significance. Just north of Victoria Bryant State Park on Ga. Hwy. 327 is the Poplar Springs Methodist Camp Ground. Camp meetings have been held here every year since 1832, except for the four years during the Civil War. Four especially interesting historic properties worth visiting in Franklin County are the Carnegie Library and the train depot in Lavonia, Cromer’s Mill Covered Bridge near Carnesville, and the Franklin County Courthouse in Carnesville.

The Lavonia Library, one of the original Carnegie libraries, was established 1911 by a grant from steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Lavonia has the distinction of being the smallest city in the United States to boast an original Carnegie Library. The historic train depot in the center of Lavonia has been restored and is now the home of the Lavonia Chamber of Commerce.

A photographer’s or artist’s inspiration is the picture-perfect Cromer’s Mill Covered Bridge. It is one of only a handful of covered bridges remaining in Georgia. The courthouse in Carnesville was constructed in 1906 and still serves as a courthouse today. Both properties are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.