Writer: Staff Reports
Published February 9, 2021
Rome News-Tribune
For over 170 years, the Lafayette Road district of Fort Oglethorpe has been full of American history.
The late 1830s, it would provide one of the sad routes to move the proud people of the Cherokee nation of Georgia to Chattanooga for what would be the start of the Trail of Tears. In the 1860s, Union troops would use the route on their march to the Battle of Chickamauga. Days later, Union troops would use the same route in their retreat back to Chattanooga at the end of the bloody battle. The area served as a cavalry post for the 6th Cavalry in World War I and the home of 4,000 German prisoners during that time. World War II found it as a major training center for the Women’s Army Corps (WAC).
The Lafayette Road (U.S. Highway 27) area, or what is now referred to as the historic district of Fort Oglethorpe, was a vibrant area of the community until the early 1970s, when Battlefield Parkway was opened, joining Highway 27 and Lafayette Road with Interstate 75. As the years passed, traffic patterns changed and the number of people utilizing this section of Lafayette Road dwindled. Fort Oglethorpe Mayor Earl Gray stated, “Unfortunately, nothing happened to our historic downtown district that hasn’t happened to thousands of areas across the country.”
Recently, the area received new hope for new life in the form of a $3 million ARC grant, designed to help revitalize the roadway. Jeff Epperson, chairman of the Fort Oglethorpe DDA, expressed his gratitude for the ARC’s partnership and shared vision of this road project. “The now retired ARC program manager for Georgia, James Thompson, was instrumental in making this project a reality,” Epperson stated.
Fort Oglethorpe Public Works Director Jeff Long said that citizens and visitors can expect new sidewalks and curbs on both sides of the roadway and new signal lights with pedestrian signals and pedestrian crossings. The road will be newly paved from the intersection of Battlefield Parkway to Harker Road. The project is expected to be completed in the spring.
Fort Oglethorpe City Manager Molly F. Huhn expressed her excitement for the revitalization of the area and voiced her appreciation to Chris McKeever for helping to obtain a RSVP grant from the Lyndhurst Foundation. The grant funds, says Huhn, will be sent to the Carl Vinson Institute of Government (part of the University of Georgia) and used to help the city develop a 10-15 year revitalization plan for the downtown and historic parts of the city.
Once completed, many hope that new growth and opportunities will develop in the area and that the revitalization will bring additional traffic to the businesses. Said Long, “This should provide a good opportunity for growth in our Historic Downtown District.
