Art show at historical sites this weekend

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October 2, 2009

Two of Chatsworth’s most historic buildings will be open for tours today and Sunday. The Chatsworth Depot and the Wright Hotel will be open during the Chatsworth Art Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today and again on Sunday afternoon.

The depot is where Chatsworth began. Constructed in 1905 by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, the depot was literally built in the middle of the woods but soon the town of Chatsworth was established around it. The depot was moved from its original location on the tracks for preservation by the Whitfield-Murray Historical Society. Now on First Avenue adjacent to the hotel, the building houses many displays relating to early Chatsworth, the talc industry which helped build the town, and the railroad.

It is the only depot still in existence in Murray County and will house a special display of art done by local residents this weekend. No admission is charged for the art show.

In downtown Chatsworth at the corner of Market Street and Second Avenue, the Wright Hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The structure was built for the Thomas Wright family in 1909 and opened for business in 1910. Operated by the family for more than three decades, the hotel was then leased by others until the 1960s.

Katherine Wright Raine, daughter of the original builders, returned to Chatsworth in the 1970s after a long career as a public health nurse among the Indians of the American Southwest. She carefully restored most of the hotel and then bequeathed the building to the historical society upon her death in 1986.

Today the property contains many original antiques, various old hotel furnishings, numerous Indian crafts, nursing memorabilia and a few recent additions. Among the new items that will be featured are some hand-tufted bedspreads, a child’s chair made by Confederate veteran Monteville Roberts around 1872, and a gun carried by William Lafayette Roberts as he delivered mail between Spring Place and Chatsworth near the turn of the 20th century. Also to be shown for the first time is longtime educator Easter Elrod’s class ring from Chatsworth High School. These items have been donated by Peggy Roberts Cochran of Dalton and Pat Ausmus of Chatsworth.

Another highlight of the weekend will be a living history encampment by a group of War of 1812 military re-enactors led by Bob Cullinan of Cisco. According to legend, soldiers came through Murray County on their way to fight in the Florida Indian Wars of the early 1800s.

Various publications and historical society items will be available in the hotel gift shop. Admission to the hotel is $2 for adults and $1 for ages 12-18. Children are free. Several society members will be on hand to give guided tours.

Both the depot and the hotel will be open again during the “Fall for Chatsworth” festival on Oct. 24-25. For more information contact Jan McNeill at (706) 695-4313 or Pat Ausmus at (706) 695-4200.