Barnesville, GA history

Education in Barnesville began in 1870 with a private school.

In 1877, James J. Hill, the railroad tycoon who built the Great Northern Railroad, completed the first track to the city and the days of being a railroad town began.

In 1880, the rail line was completed to Moorhead and Peter E. Thompson bought Barnes’ business.

By 1890, the City of Barnesville had grown to 1,069 people and had repair shops and a roundhouse.

On a more refined note, the Opera House was built in 1891.

In fact, the 1898 Pictorial Barnesville declared that “Barnesville enjoys the reputation of having the best grain market in the district.”

As early as 1904 Barnesville had its own physician, community medical service continues today with the Barnesville Area Clinic.

In 1907, the railroad shops were moved to Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, and the Golden Era of the railroad in Barnesville came to an end.

Ohio seed potatoes began to be grown in considerable numbers around Barnesville about 1908.

In 1910, long before a Lamar County would even exist, an effort to raise money and form a chamber of commerce began.

In April of 1911, a group calling themselves the Barnesville Convention formed in order to create a statewide trade body.

These eleven local business people would lay the groundwork for what would be formally incorporated and become, on July 10, 1959, the Barnesville-Lamar County Chamber of Commerce.

Over the years the fair has added many attractions, one of the most popular being the Demolition Derby which was started in 1968.

Georgia History Today, Spring 2008 Wol 2, No 2

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