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October 7, 2006

Chatsworth: 100 years of history on display

By Kim Sloan

CHATSWORTH — Wayne Duckett of Fort Mountain often looked at Chatsworth’s Wright Hotel and wondered about its history.

“I buy fruit next to here,” Duckett said, relaxing in one of the turn-of-the century chairs in the former hotel Saturday afternoon. “My wife thought it was a hospital before.”

Duckett and his granddaughter, Hailey Smith, toured the three-story landmark during Chatsworth’s Centennial Celebration. The hotel, along with the re-opening of the depot and the opening of the section house, helped mark the town’s 100-year celebration.

Section houses were constructed for employees who maintained the railroad. The house the foreman occupied still stands in the city park here.

“We’re just here to see a little bit of history,” Duckett said. “You can’t know where you’re going until you know where you came from.”

The hotel opened in 1909, just three years after Chatsworth was established. The hotel housed such notable guests as Gov. Hoke Smith.

The hotel has been renovated, but at the request of its last resident, Kate Wright Raine, it has been maintained as much as possible to its original condition, furnished with turn-of-the-20th century furniture and artifacts.

Smith, 11, a student at Gladden Middle School, was surprised to learn the hotel was three stories, she said.

It was on the third floor that memorabilia from Raine was displayed. A public health nurse, her uniforms, bags and equipment were displayed.

Raine was a public health nurse on an Indian Reservation before returning to Murray County in 1968.

The hotel, the depot and the section house will also be open today as part of the Centennial Celebration from 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

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