Columbus, Georgia

Columbus is a city located in Muscogee County, Georgia. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 186,291. The city is the county seat of Muscogee County1.

The current mayor of Columbus is Jim Wetherington, formerly the Chief of Police of Columbus.

Metropolitan Area
The Columbus metropolitan area comprises of three counties in Georgia, and one in Alabama.


 * Georgia
 * Chattahoochee County
 * Harris County
 * Muscogee County
 * Alabama
 * Russell County

Districts

 * Downtown
 * Wynnton, see also John Woolfolk
 * North Highland
 * East Highland
 * Bibb City
 * Midtown
 * Edgewood
 * Southside
 * Fortson
 * Midland
 * Lakebottom, see also Lakebottom Park

History
Founded in 1828 by an act of the Georgia Legislature, Columbus was situated at the end of the navigable portion of the Chattahoochee River and on the last stretch of the Federal Road before entering Alabama. The city was named for Christopher Columbus, its founders likely influenced by the writings of Washington Irving. The plan for the city was drawn up by Dr. Edwin L. DeGraffenried who placed the town on a bluff overlooking the river. Across the river, where Phenix City, Alabama  is now located, Creek Indians lived until their removal in 1836.

The river served as Columbus' connection to the world, particularly connecting the plantations in the region with the international cotton market via New Orleans and ultimately Liverpool, England. The city's commercial importance increased in the 1850s with the arrival of the railroad. In addition, textile mills began springing up along the river, bringing industry to an area reliant upon agriculture. By 1860, the city was one of the more important industrial centers of the South, earning it the nickname "the Lowell of the South," in deference to the industrial town in Massachusetts.

When the outbreak of war came in 1861, the industries of Columbus expanded their production and Columbus became one of the most important centers of industry in the Confederacy. In addition to textiles, the city had an ironworks as well as a shipyard for the Confederate Navy. The city finally saw its only fighting on Easter Sunday, April 16, 1865, when a Union detachment under General James H. Wilson attacked the city and burned many of the industrial buildings. The inventor of Coca-Cola, Dr. John Stith Pemberton, was wounded in this battle. The owner of America's last slave ship, Col. Charles Augustus Lafayette Lamar, was killed here. Ironically, the battle occurred after Confederate General Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, effectively ending the Civil War. A historic marker has been erected in Columbus marking the battle by Wilson's troops as the "Last Land Battle in the War Between the States."

Reconstruction began almost immediately and prosperity followed. The industrialization of the town led to rapid growth; the city had outgrown its original plan. Columbus was graced with the Springer Opera House on 10th Street, which has hosted over a century of great performers and still delights audiences today.

By the time of the Spanish American War, the city began to see much modernization including the addition of trolleys extending to outlying neighborhoods such as Rose Hill and Lakebottom and a new water works. Mayor Lucius Chappell also brought a training camp for soldiers to the area. This training camp named Camp Benning would grow into present day Fort Benning, named for General Henry L. Benning, a native of the city.

With the expansion of the city, the need for a university saw the establishment of Columbus College, a two-year institution which would later grow into Columbus State University, now a comprehensive center of higher learning. The city would consolidate city and county governments in 1971 and become the first of its kind in Georgia (and one of only 16 in the U.S. at the time). As the city has turned from its initial industry of textiles, it has provided a home for other prominent industries including the headquarters for Aflac, Synovus, TSYS and Carmike Cinemas.

During the 1970s and 1980s, urban blight, flight, and prostitution were serious problems in much of downtown Columbus and adjacent neighborhoods. Early efforts to halt the gradual deterioration of downtown included designation of various historic districts in and around downtown, demolition of large tracts of blighted areas, and construction of the Government Center. A significant period of urban renewal and revitalization occurred in the mid to late 1990s. With these improvements, residents and businesses began moving back to these formerly blighted areas. Examples of these municipal projects including the construction of a softball commons for the 1996 Olympic Games, construction of a riverwalk park on the Chattahoochee River, construction of the National Civil War Naval Museum at Port Columbus, the expansion of the Columbus Museum, and road improvements to include a new downtown bridge crossing the Chattahoochee River to Phenix City, Alabama. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, commercial activity expanded north of downtown along the interstate corridor. During the next several years, the expansion will continue starting with the growth at Fort Benning. Over the next several years more than 15,000 new troops will move to the Chattahoochee Valley.

Notable Columbus natives and residents
The following people are closely associated with the city of Columbus, or one of its surrounding communities, and have garnered a level of national or international recognition.

Miscellaneous

 * Columbus is the third largest city in Georgia and the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state. Columbus was the second largest city in Georgia in 1996, when Augusta and Richmond County consolidated, making it the second largest city in Georgia.
 * Birthplace of writer Carson McCullers, who based much of her fiction on the people and places of the area.
 * The companies Aflac and Synovus locate their headquarters in Columbus.
 * Habitat for Humanity also has its world headquarters there.
 * Birthplace of Chicago White Sox superstar Frank Thomas.
 * Columbus lies right next to Fort Benning, home of a U.S. sniper training school, and one of the largest basic training facilities in America for infantry.
 * From 1916 through 1958, Columbus was the site for every college football game, except one, between the University of Georgia and Auburn University. Georgia won 21 times, Auburn won 16 times, and there were 2 ties.
 * Tom's Foods was based in Columbus before the company closed in October, 2005. Its facilities are now used by Lance, Inc
 * Every November, SOA Watch organizes a protest, which is held in Columbus just outside the main entrance to Fort Benning, against the former School of the Americas. Celebrities who have appeared at the protest have included Martin Sheen and Susan Sarandon.  Since 2002, a counter-protest called God Bless Fort Benning Day has been organized by local residents.
 * Was the home of RC Cola until the 1980s.
 * Coca-Cola was developed here by Dr. John Pemberton, who resided in Columbus during the 1860s.
 * Columbus was nicknamed the Fountain City for the many fountains that were installed early in the 20th century.
 * Was the site of the first ever Olympic women's fast-pitch softball competition during the 1996 Olympic Games.
 * The all-star team from Columbus’ Northern Little League captured the 2006 Little League World Series Championship on August 28, 2006, with a 2-1 victory over Kawaguchi City, Japan at Howard J. Lamade Stadium in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
 * In 1987, the Columbus City Council passed an anti-lewdness ordinance in reaction to a controversial Beastie Boys concert. This led to the city receiving the dubious distinction of being insulted by rapper Ice-T in his 1991 single "Freedom of Speech".  Ice-T had planned to do a show in Columbus, but was threatened with jail time if the show contained profanity.  He cancelled the show and condemned the Columbus city fathers for being narrow-minded and interfering with his right to free expression.
 * The National Infantry Museum is now located with in city limits, and after its completion, will be the largest military museum in the country.
 * In 2007, a documentary film entitled "The Last Ditch" debuted on public television.  It detailed the Civil War battle for Columbus, a struggle many historians consider to be the final "official" battle of the war.
 * The Columbus Stockade, immortalized in the song "Columbus Stockade Blues" is still standing and is still used to house non-violent prisoners.
 * The Columbus Ledger newspaper founder, Mirabeau B. Lamar, became the 3rd President of the Republic of Texas.
 * Columbus's longest current professional sports franchise are the Columbus Cottonmouths hockey team which began play in 1996. They have brought 2 Championships to the city, winning the Central Hockey League Levins Cup in 1998, and were the Inaugural Southern Professional Hockey League President's Cup Champions in 2005.
 * The city uses a "tax freeze" property tax system in which the property tax valuation and tax rate for a homeowner's primary residence is frozen in the year in which the property is purchased. The tax freeze remains in effect until the homeowner either sells the home to a new owner, or obtains a building permit and upgrades the property, triggering a new valuation.  The tax freeze is opposed by some local residents who view it as a form of unequal taxation.  Under this system two neighbors with equally valued property can have very different tax bills, especially when one neighbor has lived in his home for a much longer period of time than the other.  However, a majority of Columbus voters have consistently decided against changing the system and the law was upheld as constitutional by the Supreme Court of the State of Georgia in 2003. \
 * Columbus, Georgia has two malls, Peachtree Mall and Columbus Park Crossing.
 * Columbus Square Mall was a former mall in the city. It was also one of the first indoor malls in the state of Georgia.
 * In its June-July 2008 issue, Best Life magazine ranked Columbus #4 among US metropolitan areas as one of the best cities in the country to raise a family.

Newspapers

 * The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, the only daily newspaper in Columbus
 * The Columbus Times, a weekly publication featuring African-American perspectives of current events
 * The Edge Magazine, a monthly entertainment and sports magazine.
 * Playgrounds Magazine, a monthly entertainment and arts magazine.
 * The Saber, Columbus State University campus newspaper
 * Thursday (newspaper), the innovative weekly newspaper published in the 1970s by J. Edward Wilson.

Television

 * WRBL Channel 3, CBS affiliate
 * WTVM Channel 9, ABC affiliate
 * WCGT-LP Channel 16, Independent
 * WJSP-TV Channel 28, PBS member station, Georgia Public Broadcasting
 * WLTZ (formally WYEA) Channel 38, NBC affiliate
 * WXTX Channel 54, Fox affiliate
 * WLGA Channel 66, The CW affiliate

AM

 * WDAK-AM 540
 * WSHE-AM 1270
 * WOKS-AM 1340
 * WRCG-AM 1420
 * WHAL-AM 1460
 * WEAM-AM 1580

FM

 * WJSP-FM 88.1
 * WKZJ-FM 92.7
 * WRLD-FM 95.3
 * WIOL-FM 95.7
 * WAGH-FM 98.3
 * WKCN-FM 99.3
 * WGSY-FM 100.1
 * WEAM-FM 100.7
 * WBOJ-FM 103.7
 * WVRK-FM 102.9
 * WFXE-FM 104.9
 * WSTH-FM 106.1
 * WCGQ-FM 107.3

Films made in the Columbus area

 * The Green Berets (film) starring John Wayne
 * Jumping Jacks (film) 1953, starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
 * The Phenix City Story
 * Tank (film) 1983, starring James Garner and Shirley Jones
 * Tarantula (film) 1955 science fiction B movie
 * We Were Soldiers starring Mel Gibson