Historic Green Street

Historic Green Street Walking Tour

Take a step back in time by embarking on a walking tour of Historic Green Street in downtown Gainesville, Georgia. This enchanting tour will let you picture what the tree lined Green Street was like in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The Historic Green Street walking tour map is available in print and ready for pick up at the Gainesville Visitor Center!

The Story of Green Street

Gainesville was founded in 1821, first known as a stopping place for Native Americans and wandering traders as Mule Camp Springs.

In 1828, gold was discovered in the region! Gainesville became the trading center for miners, merchants, and professionals; taverns, stores and offices erected around the square. After 1870, the first railroad reached the town. The rails greatly stimulated business; including a prosperous cotton market.

Green Street became the prime residential district; it was elevated above the business area, was level for a considerable distance, and much was well wooded. It served as a stage coach and freight route to the mining regions, and locally, it was a pleasant way to get to the Town Spring, known then as Gower’s Spring.

Beginning about 1880, many fine homes were built along the street. For over fifty years it was known to visitors as one of the outstanding residential neighborhoods in Northeast Georgia. The following description is quoted from the State Department of Natural Resources creating Green Street a Historic District:

“Gainesville’s major thoroughfare, Green Street, is a broad, tree lined street with a predominance of Victorian and Neo-Classical Revival residences dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Although Gainesville has other areas worthy of preservation, rapid commercial and civic building development has forced this district into its own separated area. Architecturally, Green Street has one of the finest relatively untouched group examples of Neo-classical architecture in North Georgia.”

Green Street Homes

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