Editing Macon, Georgia (section)

==History==
{{see also|Timeline of Macon, Georgia}}
Macon was founded on the site of the Ocmulgee Old Fields, where the [[Creek Indians]] lived in the 18th century. Their predecessors, the [[Mississippian culture]], built a powerful agriculture-based [[chiefdom]] (950–1100 AD). The Mississippian culture constructed [[Earthworks (archaeology)|earthwork]] [[mound]]s for ceremonial, religious, and burial purposes. [[Indigenous peoples]] inhabited the areas along the Southeast's rivers for 13,000 years before Europeans arrived.<ref name="georgiaencyclopedia1">{{cite web |url=http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?path=%2FHistoryArchaeology%2FArchaeologyandEarlyHistory%2FArchaeologicalPeriodsinGeorgia%2FArchaicPrehistoricPeriod&id=h-810 |title=Georgia Encyclopedia |publisher=Georgia Encyclopedia |date=May 20, 2009 |access-date=2012-05-30 |archive-date=September 6, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110906084250/http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?path=%2FHistoryArchaeology%2FArchaeologyandEarlyHistory%2FArchaeologicalPeriodsinGeorgia%2FArchaicPrehistoricPeriod&id=h-810 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Macon was developed at the site of [[Fort Benjamin Hawkins]], built in 1809 at President [[Thomas Jefferson]]'s direction after he forced the Creek to cede their lands east of the [[Ocmulgee River]]. (Archeological excavations in the 21st century found evidence of two separate fortifications.)<ref name="macon">{{cite web |title=Fort Hawkins |url=http://cityofmacon.net/visitors-museums-fort_hawkins |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100919235143/http://cityofmacon.net/visitors-museums-fort_hawkins |archive-date=September 19, 2010 |access-date=2017-06-25 |website=cityofmacon.net}}</ref> The fort was named for [[Benjamin Hawkins]], who served as superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Southeast territory south of the Ohio River for more than 20 years, had lived among the [[Muscogee (Creek)|Creek]], and was married to a Creek woman. Located at the [[fall line]] of the Ocmulgee River, the fort established a trading post with native peoples at the river's most inland point navigable from the [[South Carolina Lowcountry|Low Country]].

[[File:Sholes' directory of the city of Macon, September 1st, 1888. Volume III - DPLA - 479e385385443ba8674ba7fafe08c6b4.pdf|page=6|thumb|right|Sholes' directory of the city of Macon, September 1, 1888]]

Fort Hawkins guarded the Lower Creek Pathway, an extensive and well-traveled [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|American Indian]] network that the U.S. government later improved as the [[Federal Road (Creek lands)|Federal Road]], linking Washington, DC, to the ports of [[Mobile, Alabama]], and [[New Orleans, Louisiana]].<ref name="macon"/> Used for trading with the Creek, the fort also was used by state militia and federal troops. It was a major military distribution point during the [[War of 1812]] and the [[Creek War]] of 1813. After the wars, it was a trading post and garrisoned troops until 1821. Decommissioned around 1828, it later burned to the ground. A replica of the southeast blockhouse, built in 1938, stands on an east Macon hill.  Fort Hawkins Grammar School occupied part of the site. In the 21st century, archeological excavations have revealed more of the fort, increasing its historical significance, and led to further reconstruction planning for this major historical site.<ref name="macon"/>

[[File:Mill Children in Macon 2.jpg|thumb|right|Child labor in Macon, 1909, photo by [[Lewis Hine]]]]
[[File:Recto Macon Savings Bank (Georgia) 25 cents 1863 urn-3 HBS.Baker.AC 1104558.jpeg|alt=25-cent bill inscribed "THIS CERTIFIES THAT THERE HAS BEEN DEPOSITED IN THE MACON SAVINGS BANK IN CONFEDERATE TREASURY NOTES TWENTY FIVE CENTS. Payable to the Holder with FOUR PER CENT INTEREST. after thirty days notice in Confederate Treasury Notes when presented in sums of FIVE DOLLARS MACON, GA. March 16. 1863."|thumb|1863 twenty-five cent bill from Macon Savings Bank]]
With the arrival of more settlers, [[Fort Hawkins]] was renamed "Newtown". After [[Bibb County, Georgia|Bibb County]]'s organization in 1822, the city was  chartered as the county seat in 1823 and officially named Macon, in honor of [[Nathaniel Macon]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Gannett|first=Henry|title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ|year=1905|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ/page/n194 195]}}</ref> a statesman from North Carolina, from where many early Georgia residents hailed. City planners envisioned "a city within a park" and created a city of spacious streets and landscapes. Over {{convert|250|acre|km2}} were dedicated for Central City Park, and ordinances required residents to plant shade trees in their front yards.

[[File:Wesleyan College, circa 1877 - DPLA - 6098fed0d90914d03c98118db843e638.jpg|thumb|Wesleyan College ''circa'' 1877]]
Because of the beneficial local [[Black Belt (geological formation)|Black Belt]] geology and the availability of [[Slavery in the United States|slave labor]], cotton became the mainstay of Macon's early economy.<ref name="search.ebscohost.com">{{cite journal|last1=Davis|first1=Robert Scott|title=A Cotton Kingdom Retooled for War: The Macon Arsenal and the Confederate Ordnance Establishment|journal=Georgia Historical Quarterly|date=2007|volume=91|issue=3|pages=266–291|url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=26628620&site=eds-live&scope=site|access-date=15 February 2018}}</ref> The city's location on the Ocmulgee River aided initial economic expansion, providing shipping access to new markets. Cotton [[steamboats]], stagecoaches, and the 1843 arrival of the [[railroad]] increased marketing opportunities and contributed to Macon's  economic prosperity.

Macon's growth had other benefits. In 1836, the Georgia Conference of the [[Methodist Episcopal Church]] chose Macon as the location for [[Wesleyan College]], the first U.S. college to grant women college degrees.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/GeorgiaReferenceShelf/HigherEducation.html?Welcome |title=Colleges and Universities |publisher=Dlg.galileo.usg.edu |date=January 1, 1970 |access-date=2012-02-29}}</ref> Nonetheless, Macon came in last in the 1855 referendum voting to be Georgia's capital city with 3,802 votes.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://roadsidegeorgia.com/city/macon.html |title=Macon, Georgia |website=Roadsidegeorgia.com |date=March 19, 1990 |access-date=2017-01-29 |archive-date=December 19, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071219125047/http://roadsidegeorgia.com/city/macon.html |url-status=usurped }}</ref>
[[File:RG77_CWMF_N76_04.jpg|thumb|"Map of Macon and Vicinity" during the American Civil War, showing the Confederate arsenals, as well as [[Camp Oglethorpe]] and "Graveyard of Union Prisoners" (NAID 305649)]]
During the [[American Civil War]], Macon served as the official arsenal of the Confederacy<ref name="search.ebscohost.com"/> manufacturing [[percussion cap]]s, [[friction primer]]s, and [[Swaging#Firearms|pressed]] [[bullet]]s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Miller |first=Francis Trevelyan |title =The Photographic History of The Civil War |volume=5: Forts and Artillery |publisher =Castle Books |date =1957 |location =New York |page =162 }}</ref> Camp Oglethorpe was established as a prison for captured Union officers and enlisted men. Later,  it held only officers, at one time numbering 2,300. The camp was evacuated in 1864.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mycivilwar.com/pow/ga-macon.htm |title=Macon (Camp Oglethorpe) Prisoner of War Camp |website=Mycivilwar.com |access-date=2017-01-29}}</ref>

Macon City Hall served as the temporary state capitol in 1864 and was converted to a hospital for wounded Confederate soldiers. Union General [[William Tecumseh Sherman]] spared Macon on his [[Sherman's March to the Sea|march to the sea]]. His troops sacked the nearby state capital of [[Milledgeville, Georgia|Milledgeville]], and Maconites prepared for an attack. Sherman, however, passed by without entering Macon.

The ''[[Macon Telegraph]]'' reported the city had furnished 23 companies of men for the Confederacy, but casualties were high. By the war's end, Maconite survivors fit for duty could fill only five companies.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/cottonfiredreams00davi |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/cottonfiredreams00davi/page/123 123] |quote=macon arsenal. |title=Cotton, Fire and Dreams |publisher=Mercer University Press |access-date=2012-05-30|isbn=9780865545984 |last1=Davis |first1=Robert Scott |year=1998 }}</ref>

The city was taken by Union forces during [[Wilson's Raid]] on April 20, 1865.<ref>[http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/georgiabooks/pdfs/gb0390.pdf "The Last Battle of the Civil War"]. Digital Gallery, University of South Georgia.</ref>

[[File:Georgia - Macon - NARA - 23937141 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Railyards in Macon, 1943]]
Because of its central location, Macon developed as a state transportation hub. In 1895, ''[[The New York Times]]'' dubbed Macon "The Central City" because of its emergence as a railroad transportation and textile factory hub.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dl.dropbox.com/u/7527719/Final-Master-Plan.pdf|title=College Hill Corridor / Mercer Village Master Plan|publisher=Mercer University City of Macon|date=January 2009|access-date=2012-08-07}}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> [[Terminal Station (Macon, Georgia)|Terminal Station]] was built in 1916.<ref name="railga.com">{{cite web|url=http://railga.com/Depots/macon.html |title=Macon Terminal Station |website=Railga.com |access-date=2017-01-29}}</ref> In the 20th century, Macon grew into a prospering town in Middle Georgia.

{{wide image|Macon, Georgia early 1900s.jpg|800px|[[Downtown Macon]] in the early 1900s,  looking northeast near the intersections of Cotton Avenue, First Street, and Poplar Street}}

Macon has been impacted by natural catastrophes. In 1994, [[Tropical Storm Alberto (1994)|Tropical Storm Alberto]] made [[Wiktionary:landfall|landfall]] in [[Florida]] and flooded several Georgia cities. Macon, which received {{convert|24|in|cm}} of rain, suffered major flooding.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/06/us/record-rain-pelts-georgia-4-die-in-flood.html |work=The New York Times | title=Record Rain Pelts Georgia; 4 Die in Flood | date=July 31, 2012 | access-date=2010-05-12}}</ref>

On [[Tornado outbreak sequence of May 7–11, 2008|May 11, 2008]], an [[Enhanced Fujita Scale|EF2]] tornado hit Macon. Touching down in nearby Lizella, the tornado moved along the southern shore of [[Lake Tobesofkee]], continued into Macon, and lifted in Twiggs County. The storm's total path length was {{convert|18|miles}}, and its path width was {{convert|100|yards}}.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Preiss |first=Enrique |date=2008-05-21 |title=Mother's Day Tornado Leaves Destruction in Macon, State of Emergency Declared |url=https://thecentralgeorgian.com/2008/05/21/mothers-day-tornado-leaves-destruction-in-macon-state-of-emergency-declared/ |website=The Central Georgian}}</ref> The tornado produced sporadic areas of major damage, with widespread straight-line wind damage to the south of its path. The most significant damage was along Eisenhower Parkway and Pio Nono Avenue in Macon, where two businesses were destroyed and several others were heavily damaged. The tornado also impacted Macon State College, where almost 50% of the campus's trees were snapped or uprooted and several buildings were damaged, with the gymnasium. The tornado's intensity varied from EF0 to EF2, with the EF2 damage and winds up to {{convert|130|mph}} occurring near the intersection of Eisenhower Parkway and Pio Nono Avenue.

===Consolidation===
[[File:Bibb County Georgia Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Macon Highlighted.svg|thumb|right|Location of Macon within Bibb County before consolidation]]
On July 31, 2012, voters in Macon (57.8% approval) and Bibb County (56.7% approval) passed a referendum to merge the governments of the city of Macon and most of unincorporated Bibb County. The vote came after the [[Georgia General Assembly]] passed House Bill 1171, authorizing the referendum earlier in the year;<ref name=maconbibb/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www1.legis.ga.gov/legis/2011_12/sum/hb1171.htm |title=HB 1171 – Macon-Bibb County; create and incorporate new political body corporate |access-date=2017-06-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120609043238/http://www1.legis.ga.gov/legis/2011_12/sum/hb1171.htm |archive-date=June 9, 2012 }}</ref> Four previous consolidation attempts (in 1933, 1960, 1972, and 1976) failed.<ref name="City-County Consolidation Proposals, 1921 - Present">{{cite report |url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Documents/City%20County%20Consolidations.01.01.2011.pdf |title=City-County Consolidation Proposals, 1921 - Present |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719083354/http://www.naco.org/Counties/Documents/City%20County%20Consolidations.01.01.2011.pdf |archive-date=July 19, 2012 |website=National Association of Counties |access-date=2011-02-11 |year=2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite report |url=http://www.ai.org/legislative/interim/committee/2005/committees/prelim/MCCC02.pdf |title=The Effects of City-County Consolidation: A Review of the Recent Academic Literature |publisher=Indiana Policy Review Foundation |location=Fort Wayne, IN |first1=Samuel R. |last1=Staley |first2=Dagney |last2=Faulk |first3=Suzanne M. |last3=Leland |first4=D. Eric |last4=Schansberg |date=November 16, 2005 |access-date=2017-01-29 |archive-date=July 21, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140721082018/http://www.ai.org/legislative/interim/committee/2005/committees/prelim/MCCC02.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=autogenerated3>Consolidation pass for Macon and Bibb county in the 2012 vote. [http://etd.lib.fsu.edu/theses/available/etd-04152005-170723/unrestricted/05_lsj_CHAPTER_4_b.pdf "Consolidation of City and County Governments: Attempts in Five Cities"]. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120034927/http://etd.lib.fsu.edu/theses/available/etd-04152005-170723/unrestricted/05_lsj_CHAPTER_4_b.pdf |date=January 20, 2013 }}. Retrieved September 14, 2010.</ref>

As a result of the referendum, the Macon and Bibb County governments were replaced with a mayor and a nine-member county commission elected by districts, and a portion of Macon extending into nearby Jones County was disincorporated. [[Robert Reichert]] was elected the first mayor of [[Bibb County, Georgia|Macon-Bibb]] in the September 2013 election, which required a runoff with [[C. Jack Ellis]] in October.<ref name="redsignedGovernment">{{cite news |last1=Lee |first1=Maggie |title=Macon-Bibb merger proposes smaller, redesigned local government |url=https://www.macon.com/news/article28642771.html |access-date=17 January 2022 |work=The Telegraph |location=Macon, Georgia |date=28 February 2012}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url = http://www.macon.com/2012/07/31/2116420/first-macon-bibb-county-consolidation.html|title = Macon-Bibb County consolidation wins with strong majorities|author = Mike Stucka|newspaper = The Telegraph|location=Macon, Georgia|date = July 31, 2012|access-date = August 1, 2012|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140719125943/http://www.macon.com/2012/07/31/2116420/first-macon-bibb-county-consolidation.html|archive-date = July 19, 2014|url-status = dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.13wmaz.com/news/topstories/article/188608/175/Consolidation-3-Areas-of-Macon-and-Bibb-Affected-Differently |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130116000154/http://www.13wmaz.com/news/topstories/article/188608/175/Consolidation-3-Areas-of-Macon-and-Bibb-Affected-Differently |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |title=Consolidation: 3 Areas of Macon and Bibb Affected Differently |publisher=13 WMAZ |date=July 13, 2012 |first=Erica |last=Lockwood }}</ref><ref name="ReichertMaconBibb">{{cite news |last1=Gaines |first1=Jim |title=Reichert wins Macon-Bibb mayor's office by wide margin over Ellis |url=https://www.macon.com/news/politics-government/election/article30124359.html |access-date=17 January 2022 |work=The Telegraph |location=Macon, Georgia|date=15 October 2013 |ref=ReichertMaconBibb}}{{subscription required}}</ref>