Spotlight: Macon
Experience the song and soul of the South
Located near the geographic center of Georgia, Macon boasts a rich past. Native Americans made the region home more than 17,000 years ago, and the 1600s and 1700s saw waves of settlers putting down roots. Today, living history abounds on the streets of Macon, with 14 designated historic districts and more than 6,000 structures nominated for the National Register of Historic Places.
Macon Music
Nothing makes Maconites prouder than their musical heritage. Jazz vocalist Lena Horne began her career with City Hall youth choir performances in the 1930s; the Reverend Pearly Brown, blind from birth and the last of America’s great street blues singers, began arriving from his hometown of Americus by bus in the 1940s to play his guitar with a cup attached; native son Richard Wayne Penniman—better known as Little Richard—redefined rock and roll in the 1950s; Otis Redding, “The Mad Man from Macon,” became the 1960s’ seminal soul artist; and the Allman Brothers honed Southern Rock here in the 1970s.
You can still walk in the footsteps of musical Macon giants in places like Grant’s Lounge, the Original Home of Southern Rock, and the Big House, a Tudor Revival mansion on Vineville Avenue where the Allman Brothers lived from 1970 through 1973.
Georgia Department of Economic Development
Touring History
Seeking more traditional touring? The Hay House on Georgia Avenue is often called the “Palace of the South” for its 18,000 square feet and stunning Antebellum-era Italian Renaissance architecture. Builder William Butler Johnston, a prosperous merchant, oversaw the Confederate treasury.
Macon blends its historical roots with outdoor recreation on the 11-mile Ocmulgee Heritage Trail, Middle Georgia’s only riverside trail and park system. A life-size bronze statue of Otis Redding resides trailside.
Macon also preserves the African American experience with more than 20 historic and cultural sites.
For More Information
Georgia Department of Economic Development
800-VISIT-GA
www.exploregeorgia.org
