Early Trading Post

White County · dedicated 1955 · On Unicoi Turnpike (Georgia Route 17) 0.7 miles east of Helen Highway in Helen.

At this point, just north of the safest ford in the Chattahoochee River, the first white settlers in this area built their campfires in 1822. A trading post was soon established on the site and Indians traded gold nuggets and gold-dust to the settlers for merchandise. The first Nacoochee post office was established at the trading post with Charles Williams, son of one of the first settlers, serving as Postmaster for more than 50 years. To this same site in 1838 soldiers gathered the Indians from surrounding valleys and highlands to begin their "Trail of Tears" to the West.

TodayHistorical map

Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Example

under a mile from where William Gabby lived in the 1760s

what this marker records spans 1777 to 1789, overlapping William Gabby's years here

From one family's 77-marker roster

Upload your family tree and TreeAlive finds the markers near where your own ancestors lived.

See your family's markers

Start with a tree file, a FamilySearch sign in, or a WikiTree ID.

Report a problem with this page

The marker isn't at this spotOur pin may be off. If you know where it stands, tell us.I couldn't find the markerWe record what the source recorded. We have not been to look.The sign reads differentlyThat would be an error, and we can pass it to the program.The historical map looks wrongThe period map behind the pin, not the marker itself.Something else

We may pass what you report to the state's marker program. Please don't include personal details.

This marker is part of the Georgia Historical Marker Program, administered by the Georgia Historical Society. Marker texts and locations come from the Society's own marker database.

More markers nearby

Nacoochee Valley: Valley of the Evening Starunder 1 mi
Nacoochee Indian Moundunder 1 mi
White Methodist Churchunder 1 mi
The Unicoi Turnpikeunder 1 mi