The Wren's Nest: Home of Joel Chandler Harris

Creator of the Uncle Remus stories and exponent of the New South, Joel Chandler Harris was born December 9, 1848 in Eatonton. After serving an apprenticeship on a plantation newspaper The Countryman near Eatonton and working on several Georgia dailies, he joined the staff of the Atlanta Constitution in 1876. His prolific pen has immortalized the Negro folklore of the Old South. In 1880, he purchased this house for his home, calling it "Snap-Bean Farm". When a wren built her nest in the mailbox, he changed the name to "Wren's Nest". Soon after his death, July 3, 1908, the Uncle Remus Memorial Association was organized. On January 10, 1913, it purchased the "Wren's Nest". That same year the Uncle Remus Library was organized and remained here for 17 years. The Uncle Remus Memorial Association was rechartered August 20, 1957, as the Joel Chandler Harris Memorial Association. The "Wren's Nest" is owned and operated as a memorial by the association.