A visit to the Bartow History Museum is indeed a trip back in time.

Modern-day Bartow County, Georgia, has grown from a Mississippian culture along the Etowah River, to the hunting trails and towns of the Cherokee, to become Cass County with iron ore and rich mineral deposits, and then to the Bartow County of cotton and textiles.

The museum documents the history of northwest Georgia's Bartow County, spanning more than 200 years since the Cherokee were the area's primary residents. Artifacts, photographs, documents, and a variety of interactive permanent exhibits tell the story of settlement, Cherokee removal, Civil War strife, and lifestyles of years past. Regional experiences and events are explored and re-discovered. Even a national or global event, such as the Second World War, had an impact here at home in Bartow County, and our exhibits bring that to light.

Permanent Exhibits
The Bartow History Museum focuses on the settlement and development of Bartow County, Georgia, beginning with the early nineteenth century, when the Cherokee still inhabited the area. Early European settler life, the iron ore and bauxite industries, Civil War strife, post-war recovery, the Great Depression era, early textile industry, and notable figures are depicted through interactive exhibits in the permanent gallery space.

Current Exhibit: "The Rebirth of the 1869 Courthouse"- The exhibit includes before and after photos of the building, concept drawings of our new exhibits, and objects and images related to the Courthouse's history.                                         

Our temporary exhibits highlight various aspects of Bartow County, the State of Georgia, and the Southeastern United States history.