This roadside marker is located not far from the traffic circle where Kings Way meets Frederica…read moreRoad. There is no good spot for a car to stop with a soft shoulder, but the pedestrian path nearby is close enough. The marker was erected by the Georgia Historical Society in 2007 and is still in excellent condition. You'll need to stop to read the small print, "In 1804 William Page purchased land on St. Simons Sound and named it Retreat. With later purchases, Retreat became one of the preeminent plantations on St. Simons Island for the production of long-staple cotton. In 1827 the Pages' only child, Anna Matilda, who had married Thomas Butler King of Massachusetts, inherited Retreat. She was active in the management of the plantation and its slave population. Mr. King became a Georgia state senator and U. S. Congressman, where he led efforts to strengthen the U.S. Navy. Retreat land stretched from the Frederica River to the Lighthouse. Part of Retreat, including the Avenue of Oaks, is now home to Sea Island Golf Club, and other portions are residential and commercial areas and public parks." Retreat Plantation was one of the most prosperous plantations and was located on the southern tip of St. Simons Island. Anna Page King, who inherited the land in 1826, planted the famous Avenue of the Oaks. It is said that Anna grew such an abundance of flowers at Retreat Plantation that sailors nearing St. Simons Island could smell the flowers' fragrance before they saw the Island shores. Once the entrance to Retreat Plantation, the Avenue of the Oaks is now the entrance to the Sea Island Golf Club. There is a drive around the double row of live oak trees which create the Avenue of the Oaks, most dating to around 1830. [Review 15743 overall - 425 in Georgia - 1247 of 2021.]

Wonderful historic site that was a former rice plantation. The same family lived in the home for…read moremultiple generations and the last heir left the estate to the state of Georgia. Beautiful antiques, cool grounds, and amazing landscape. All left in It's original state. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and shared many interesting facts. Definitely worth visiting!

The history of this region is worth thinking about, but tough to see. Most of these sorts of…read moreplantations are long abandoned; the story of how this one fell into the hands of the state government is told, along with other context, on a half-hour tour of their small mansion. The tour starts on the hour, and having arrived shortly in advance, they told me to drive down a service road that said not to drive down on it so I could park at the house and make it on time. The tour content focuses on the family line that owned the house; there is some discussion of the people they owned early in its history, but a more detailed take on the forced labor system involved in rice farming is given in the museum back where one starts. It is a distinctive and difficult topic, but the films they play offer a relatively level-headed take. The area is very swampy now; I got outside of the house and thought to wander around and take pictures, but was immediately beset by flies. Fortunately, I had the luxury of my car. Seeing these places in person makes one wonder how anyone ever lived and labored here without modern conveniences. There's plenty of food for thought.

Steeped in centuries of history, the Lover's Oak in Brunswick, Georgia stands as a testament to…read moretimeless affection and enduring strength. Legend speaks of this magnificent 900-year-old Southern live oak as a rendezvous spot for Native American lovers, whispering their vows beneath its sprawling branches. Located in the heart of the Brunswick Old Town Historic District, this living monument has witnessed countless stories of love and devotion. This tree is easy to find in the Historic District in downtown Brunswick. You'll see signs with directions to the tree throughout the area.

Lovers Oak is a very old Live Oak tree (dated to the 12th C), in the Historic District of…read moreBrunswick. It's in a residential neighborhood, at the corner of Albany and Prince Streets. There is kind of a median strip in the middle of the street, where the tree lives. It has a plaque and a small sign. The lore is that Native American lovers "met under the tree." Hmmm... and then what? Ate pizza? Anyway, it's a beautiful old majestic tree, with a trunk diameter of 13 feet!!!! Worth a look-see, and a photo. It's a lot more public now than it once was, but you could probably eat some pizza under it with your sweetheart.

I've seen this bridge dozens of times as I drive I-95 but it isn't the I-95 bridge. The Sidney…read moreLanier Bridge carries four lanes of US-17 over the Brunswick River. It is a cable-stayed bridge that is the longest spanning bridge in Georgia and is 480 feet tall. It is named for poet Sidney Lanier (1842-1881) who was hailed in the South as "the poet of the Confederacy." The bridge was completed in 2003 and features a span of 1250 feet that has 185 feet of clearance over the water. It has four lanes of traffic. The original Sidney Lanier Bridge was opened June 22, 1956, and was built by Sverdrup & Parcel, the same firm that designed the I-35W Mississippi River bridge which collapsed in 2007. On November 7, 1972 the ship African Neptune struck the bridge, causing parts of the bridge to collapse and causing several cars to fall into the water. Ten deaths were caused by the accident. On May 3, 1987 the bridge was again struck by a ship, this time by the Polish freighter Ziemia Bialostocka. If you squint your eyes, you could see this bridge being compared to Charleston's Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge https://www.yelp.com/biz/arthur-ravenel-jr-bridge-mount-pleasant-2?hrid=adycp2YtNWJNWD6GJRhgFA though this one has straight pilings where the Charleston bridge is diamond shaped. [Review 15746 overall - 428 in Georgia - 1250 of 2021.]

Spectacular views of the coastal Georgia area from the bridge. From his bridge you can see Jekyll…read moreand Saint Simons Island and downtown Brunswick Georgia. I won't add to or reiterate what other reviewer's have done here so well. All I'll say here is this: see the photo below. This is what a view from the bridge looks like during a hunters moon. It's a view few will ever see unless they live in the areA. A trip to this bridge is worth it with you stop at Saint Simons, Jekyll, or Brunswick or not. It's about 8 miles off of I 95

Tony and I traveled up the coast from Jacksonville FL to Darien GA. We located this home on Route…read more17, Butler Island Plantation. This is not the original Plantation house, this is referred to as the Huston House (second owners) Plantation was a Huge Rice Plantation owned by Major Pierce Butler, one of the founding fathers of USA. When he died property was handed down to his unwed daughter Frances Butler, over 436 Slaves sold in 1859 and this was considered the largest slave sale in American History. During Civil War, the plantation was abandoned. After Civil war attempts made to revive and reconstruct the plantation but it never happened. Sold in 1926 to Tillinghast Huston and turned into a Lettuce & Dairy Farm. Now it's owned and ran by State of Georgia Natural Resources. Free for use, you can walk around, picnic, and enjoy the area, even fish here!!

It was a beautiful house, however it has burned completely to the ground by a person trespassing…read more There was no protection to keep people off the property. This was a great piece of history lost.

On top of a concrete plinth, there is a covered steel pot. On the concrete is carved, "In this pot,…read morethe first Brunswick Stew was made on Saint Simon Isle, June 2, 1898." A great debate rages over where the first Brunswick Stew was cooked. Was it here in Brunswick Georgia or was it in Brunswick County Virginia as depicted on https://www.yelp.com/biz/brunswick-county-historical-marker-freeman?hrid=cYawMoEAPFnn9WF3SNDPsg. I'm not going to take sides but I will point out that the pot here says 1898 and the sign there was 1828. So there's that. Brunswick Stew, whether Georgian or Virginian, is a tomato-based dish that was originally made with squirrel or rabbit or opossum as the base protein. In more modern times, it is usually pork or chicken or beef. I won't call it a chili because it's not that. It's a stew with beans and other vegetables and we will say no more. The pot is located next to the Farmers Market structure adjacent to Mary Ross Waterfront Park. I don't know if there are restaurants nearby that sell stew. I had Chinese for dinner. [Review 16827 overall - round number 500 in Georgia - 340 of 2022.]

Back in the day in the 1800's, Vernon Square was like a hub they had a couple banks here, and this…read morewas also a place to socialize. Now it is the center in which the Open Gate B & B resides, as well as two churches and a few homes. It has a nice water fountain and nice grass and trees. A perfect place for the kids and dogs to run and enjoy the day under the trees. It is a nice quiet simple spot to think about what it must have been like here in past times!

Vernon square is a lovely place to read. Nice quiet park and it is beautiful. Picnic. Ďog walk…read more Just beautifully put together with some history behind it...

It was messy. Half the bathrooms were out of service…read more Dirty floors in men's restroom.

There are lots of reasons to exit the interstate right in the middle of nowhere, but on this day…read moreleading up to the Memorial Day Weekend it seems most were pulling over for the same reason, some dashing, some hobbling but all were making their way to the facilities located quite aways from the parking area depending on where you were able to find an open space. From the condition of the restrooms it's apparent they did get their share of use this fine Friday afternoon, whew this is not a place to linger or touch anything - this is why wet wipes were invented. Well at least there weren't any long lines with one exception. There was this one gentleman that a small crowd had gathered around in the parking lot parallel to the building housing the restrooms as he so proudly proclaimed to have some of the best if not the best Georgia grown peaches and today he was willing to part with them for $5.00 a bucket, it's actually a small carton but no use in splitting hairs with this old guy, this side show pickup truck business was thriving as people stood in line with their fist filled with dollar bills to get their hands on some of these juicy ripened fruits at what seemed to be a bargain price. Well I can't say I was impressed with the cleanliness of the facilities but them peaches were pretty tasty although a little pricey in my opinion, but this review is based on the rest area itself since the unlicensed vendors only shows up occasionally for a short while I'm sure as do the attendances who get paid to clean this place...