"Welcome to Helen, GA or Alpine Helen as... " a Helen Travel Page by tpangelinan

Welcome to Helen Georgia, this is a small Bavaria village town in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It wasn't always this Alpine village, the town has a long history back prior to 1800 the Cherokee Indian ruled this land. What is now hwy 17 & 75 was an old wagon trail that he Cherokee Indian approved to be constructed 1813 which ran from Savanah to Tennessee. Soon gold was discovered in 1828 and the Great Georgia Gold Rush was on in this area and the Cherokee Indian moved on. Gold mining was taking over the area all the way to Dehlonega, GA but by the end of the century all miners had left. Next came the lumber companies and railroads up the Chattahoochee River to Helen, the valley was named after the railroad survayors daughter in 1913. Lumber opperations ran until 1931, shut down and again the people left for opportunities eslewhere. By 1960 all that was left was a small town with one story concrete building that looked like every other mill town. In 1968 the town got together to see what they could do to improve the town to bring in more tourist and to boost the economy. They asked an artist friend for some help, he had been stationed in Germany and sketched out the buildings with gingerbread, more color and changing the faces of all building and recreate a old Bavaria village. In 1969 construction began, giving the whole town a facelift creating what you see now. If you like Octoberfest, well, here it goes on all year.