GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER STATE PARK
GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER STATE PARK
George Washington Carver State Park was a state park in the U.S. state of Georgia. It existed from 1950 to 1975, when it was assimilated into Red Top Mountain State Park.
Established in 1950, the park was Georgia's first state park for African Americans during segregation. It spanned over 345 acres.
The land was donated by prominent Atlanta physician Dr. Benjamin E Mays and his brother Joseph to honor George Washington Carver.
It featured a lake named Lake Allatoona where visitors could swim or fish, picnic areas, nature trails and rental cabins.
Influential figures like Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph David Abernathy Sr., Andrew Young visited this place frequently during their retreats from civil rights work.
However due to financial struggles it closed as a state park in the late '70s but reopened under Bartow County management until its final closure around mid-'80s
Today part of that area is now known as Red Top Mountain State Park while other parts are privately owned properties.