Atlanta, Ga., April 18, 2017 - The Georgia Historical Society will dedicate a new historical marker, Wednesday, April 19, to the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) and the creation of the state highway system.
“The foresight of Georgia’s county governments to anticipate the need for a state highway department has shaped the economic, cultural, and physical landscape of Georgia,” said W. Todd Groce, President and CEO of the Georgia Historical Society. “By connecting our state’s 159 counties they fostered tourism and commerce. Now, through this historical marker and the ACCG’s records housed at the Georgia Historical Society’s Research Center, visitors, scholars, and residents can gain a greater understanding of this history of cooperation and innovation.”
The marker will be dedicated near the site of the ACCG's first organizational meeting at 1 Peachtree Street SW, in Atlanta at 10:30 a.m. Speakers will include Ross King, Executive Director, ACCG; Russell McMurry, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Transportation; Robert L. Brown, Jr., Georgia Department of Transportation Board Chairman and GHS Board of Curators Chairman Emeritus; Tommy Lyon, ACCG President and Elbert County Chairman; Sen. Steve Gooch, Majority Whip and Transportation Committee Vice Chairman, Georgia State Senate; Rep. Kevin Tanner, Chairman of the Georgia House Transportation Committee; and Dr. W. Todd Groce, President and CEO of the Georgia Historical Society.
The Historical Marker reads:
ACCG and the Creation of the State’s Highway System
On April 14–15, 1914, 135 officials from 19 counties met near this site at the Kimball House Hotel to create the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG). Inspired by the need for cooperation between counties to address common issues such as growing demands for modern roads, ACCG helped create the first State Highway Department – now the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). When federal funds became available through the Federal Aid Road Act of 1916 to establish state highway departments, ACCG coordinated Georgia’s counties to secure $16 million dollars in bond funding as the required state match. ACCG continues to provide Georgia’s 159 counties with strategies and programs to address common issues and effective local governance, and to partner with GDOT and cities to build and maintain Georgia’s state and interstate transportation systems.
Erected by the Georgia Historical Society,
Association County Commissioners of Georgia,
and the Georgia Department of Transportation
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Georgia Historical Society (GHS) is the premier independent statewide institution responsible for collecting, examining, and teaching Georgia history. GHS houses the oldest and most distinguished collection of materials related exclusively to Georgia history in the nation.
To learn more visit georgiahistory.com.
The Georgia Historical Society (GHS) administers Georgia’s historical marker program. GHS has erected over 250 new historical markers across the state on a wide variety of subjects and recently assumed responsibility for the maintenance of more than 2,100 older markers. Online mapping tools allow users to design driving routes based on historical markers and a mobile app helps visitors locate and learn about markers nearby. Visit georgiahistory.com for more ways to use Georgia’s historical markers and experience history where it happened.