I took advantage of two things Saturday: the sunshine and a resource that I apparently forgot was in my back pocket.
Usually when I research these blog posts, it starts in a book or online or a "You should go see...." and then I visit the thing for myself and the magic follows. This time around, I had an "Oh, duh" moment and immediately shot off an email to AccessWDUN's Rob Moore, we call him our Mountains Bureau reporter, who immediately called me with all the information I could ask for. This weekend, I was going to the Big Apple.
Not New York. Cornelia.
Armed with that wealth of information and a pair of sunnies, I jetted up 365, passed a bus graveyard (more on that in a future post) and landed myself in downtown Cornelia, and lo and behold. There it was.
The apple. The glorious, red, round apple.
It sits in a courtyard near a set of train tracks, a restored historic depot (another thing added to my list) and some shops, has plenty of benches, picnic tables and several other monuments there as well. It's like a bundle of neat stuff - a big red apple, a time capsule, placards and memory bricks, plus a garden or two.
The apple itself was built in 1925 in Virginia and was brought to Cornelia by train, donated by Southeastern Railroad. The city dedicated it in 1926 and holds both the Big Red Apple Festival and the Apple Blossom Festival in honor of the apples grown in the area.
Some specs: the apple is 22 feet in circumference, sits seven feet tall and on an eight foot tall pedestal that declares you're in Cornelia. The whole monument is 15 feet tall. It's made of steel and concrete and weighs about 5,200 pounds. That's a big apple.
It had a facelift in 2014, but could probably use some patching considering the gnarly weather we've had. One little section near the stem and leaf looks like it took a beating with all the rain. Despite that minor detail, the apple looks pretty dang good for being 91 years old.
I won't say I found the apple easily, despite the fact it was sitting pretty in a courtyard, because I'd never been to Cornelia before. I got the hang of the streets pretty quickly and if you've visited downtown Cornelia before, you should have no trouble finding it on Irvin Street/Clarkesville Street/Main Street/Why are there so many different addresses for this apple? I found it using both the first two street names. Head up 985/365 and go past Jaemor, cross the Habersham County line, wave hello to the bus graveyard that I'll post about later, and then follow the signs for Level Grove Road and head to the center of town.
Next week, we're talking gold - gold rush town Dahlonega, to be exact. I know I was missing in action for about a month, so we're going to get back into the swing of things here. Any place you'd like me to check out? Email me!
Until next time, stay curious.
