"Old River City" Top 5 Page for this destination Columbus by BruceDunning

Though the river has been dammed up all along its 430 miles, it still tries to eek out a flow down to the Gulf Coast by Apalachicola Bay. This river used to be much larger and was used for commerce down to New Orleans for textiles and plantation goods. The river got its name from Indians (of course), in general terms meaning river rocks with marks. There are many islands and birms in the middle of the river due to low levels,making any boating near impossible.

Downtown View of old buildings

The city was founded in 1828, and served to process and ship the general plantation goods; mostly cotton. The Chattahoochee River runs alongside the city, and has been the mainstay for cultures since early BCE by the Indians. Growth in mid 1800's was attributable to the textile mills, but they were destroyed in the Civil War. After the war, they and the city were rebuilt, and thriving commerce lasted until early 1900's. By 1950's with closing of industries long ago, the city was deteriorated to a terrible condition. Much Government grant money was infused to renovate downtown and surrounding areas. The old circa 1800's buildings were rebricked and now used as shops and eateries, but most appear to be occupied by Columbus State College.
The city has about 300,000 people, and the SMSA area has close to 500,000 people. Due to lack of many bypass roads, traffic is congested. The Fort Benning now employs 50% of the workers in the area

• Pros:Good views along the river banks
• Cons:Too much traffic, and little to do here
• In a nutshell:If it were not for the college, not much would exist downtown