Winterville, GA — A Historic Town with a Bright Future
By Liza Goodlett
From the moment one drives through the one stop light in Winterville, GA, grabs a bite to eat at Little City Diner or Off The Vine Produce, walks through Pittard Park, or strolls around downtown admiring the old Train Depot; Winterville automatically feels like a step back in time.
Although the small town seems as though it is frozen in the past, the history is what keeps it alive.
The Train Depot is the town’s icon, and sits at the beginning of the downtown circle that boasts city hall, the police department, the library, a book store, the doctors, museum, the bank, Pittard Park and the community garden. Winterville is well on its way to restoring historic buildings and participating in the region’s latest recreational activity, the firefly trail.
One of the most recent restoration projects is taking place just down Church Street at the Winterville Auditorium. The auditorium was built in the early 1900’s along with the Winterville high school that sits beside it.
George Chandler, chairman of the planning and zoning board, was born and raised in Winterville, GA, and he remembers opening night of the auditorium saying,
“It actually burned to the ground on opening night. I will never forget cleaning off the bricks that were torched in the fire so they could be used again in the rebuild. The community really came together to build it back up.”
Athens-Clarke County eventually found the auditorium in their possession, which had fallen into despair back in 2002. The ceiling was caving in, leaks ruined half of the original seats, and critters started to call the auditorium home; not actors or performers. The government had no use for the building, and came to an agreement that it would be deeded back to the city of Winterville for a $1. From then on, it was Winterville’s mission to bring the auditorium back to life.
Mary Quinn, a council member in Winterville, explained that the 2011 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) was used to hole up the leaky roof in the auditorium. Just this past year, the Fox Theatre in Atlanta awarded the auditorium a grant for $56,000 that allowed to auditorium to receive a brand new HVAC system. Along with these large money donations, the city has organized multiple “clean-up days” at the auditorium.
Mayor Dodd Ferrell has had his sights on the auditorium since he found himself in office two years ago. After the major renovations that have already taken place, Mayor Ferrelle sees a bright future for the auditorium.
“Moving forward we are going to work on the backstage area and make the stage look a little nicer. We have the original tin ceiling that is pure copper that were going to place in 20x20 squares just for historical records. Then we are going to paint the ceiling midnight blue and add some starlights. It will be really beautiful. The main goal is to keep it as the community auditorium, but then transform it into a regional draw.”
Along with the renovation of the auditorium, Wintervillians are excited about the segment of the firefly trail that will bring bikers, walkers, and runners to their town.
The Firefly Trail is a “proposed, partially funded multi-purpose path for pedestrian, bicycle and other non-motorized uses that will stretch about 39 miles from Athens to Union Point, Georgia,” according to the firefly trail’s website. However, small sections will be the first goal that Athens-Clarke County will tackle.
The firefly trail has been a discussion for the past twenty years and a portion of the trail has already hit the ground. The beautiful stretch of the firefly trail starts behind The Mark apartment complex in Athens, and runs 1.1 miles through Dudley Park and along the North Oconee River Greenway heading towards Winterville.
Due to the Transportation SPLOST that was passed last year, Winterville plans to start construction very soon on their mile long segment of the trail.
“We have the plans sitting here in my office, and we will get the right-of-way. While we work on the right-of-way, we will put together construction documents to bid out to contractors and that process takes a few months.”
“I have been told 18–24 months, and then the trail will be on the ground,” Mayor Ferrell added about the project.
Not only will the trail bring happy bikers and those who enjoy jogging and walking, it will also bring an economic impact to the area. The Swamp Rabbit Trail in Greenville, SC connects downtown Greenville to Travelers Rest, which is a small town very similar to Winterville. Travelers Rest has seen a major impact to their small town with bikers stopping in for lunch, ice cream, and more. Quinn mentioned that one business has already expressed interest in opening a coffee shop along the trail in Winterville.
Off The Vine Produce, a country store that offers fresh produce, lunch, ice cream, and other knick knacks, plans to add a bike rack out front that will be available to rent. It is also conveniently located directly across the street from the planned start of the trail. The owner, Leonard Culbertson, better known as L.C., wants those to enjoy his store while also being able to enjoy the trail.
“What I’m going to do is put in a bike rack, and I am acquiring 15–20 bicycles that people can rent. We are also going to do free pickle shots for those doing races on the firefly trail because you know, pickles help ward off cramps.”
With the one section complete in Athens, and the next section set to begin construction in Winterville within the next year, the firefly trail is well underway. The next step is to connect downtown Athens to Winterville, which is about an eight mile trail. Eventually, the ultimate goal is run the trail all the way from Athens to Union Point, which would be 39 miles total. Most of the rails were taken up in 1984 and the land was converted to private ownership, but those in favor of the trail are hopeful for easy cooperation of land owners.
The third and final renovation project in Winterville includes something that is way down the line, but still in Mayor Ferrell’s plans. The upstairs of the community center, that was the old high school, has not been touched since 1956. He plans to create the upstairs space into a Heritage room along with art spaces. Mayor Ferrell recalls when the construction company went up there for the first time.
“When they went in to do the renovation, they walked into that big room upstairs, there was a chalkboard up on the wall with the last lesson from 1956. The chalk was still in the tray, and the chairs in the room like they had just walked out.”
The walls, the one-inch-thick pine floors that are tongue and groove, and the building as a whole contains a character and a charm that can not be described unless one see’s for themselves.
“We want to capture the history of Winterville because that is what gives it its’ charm. Capture the history of Winterville, while we move Winterville into the future.”
Ferrell’s wife is an artist and Mayor Ferrell himself is a very talented guitarist, so the two of them know that other artists would love to be in that space.
“One of my goals is to have a heritage room up there, because we don’t have that in Winterville right now. It is in everyone’s attics and their heads, so we need to save the heritage. We are going to lightly renovate and let the buildings speak for themselves. We are also going to make an art space and artists will eat that up.”
With all of the reconstruction, remodeling, and restoring happening in Winterville, the small town has formed its own identity outside of Athens. Although it is a short drive away, it feels as though you have escaped the hustle and bustle.
“Winterville is just simply a great place to live for young and for the old. It is a great place to raise your children, but also a great place for the autumn years in your life. We have our own police, fire department, and government. It is like a small pond. We can all be friends and look out for each other and care for each other. I believe that revitalization has been going on for 25 years. I also believe that we are unique. I think we are an asset to the downtown Athens community,” Quinn added.
Mayor Ferrell has found himself and his young family a forever home, while also being close to Athens.
“I think Winterville is proudly independent. It is a lot different from Athens, while also being an extension of Athens. You feel like you are a million miles away, which is cool to have such a creative city and the University so close. We are out here in our two-wide mile bubble we are really proud of.”