It’s Friday afternoon and the work week has really been a drain on you this week.  You want to do something for the weekend but you’re tired and the thought of a long drive is not something you are looking forward to.  Add to this the gas prices and the cost of eating out with the family and you now aren’t sure you want to do something after all.  Well, a great day trip is just around the corner, down the street or just a little ways down the right road or highway.  You can be a tourist in your Wayne County.  What is there to do in Wayne County you ask?  Lots of things if you’re in the mood to do them.  Let’s see what there is to do.

Let’s start in Mount Pleasant – probably the last place you thought you would start.  In the beginning of the county, the Post Road was the most important north-south route of travelers.  It is called Post Road simply because the mail traveled by stage coach on it.  It the early 1800s, Congress created a system of roads that were the official routes for mail to be carried.  Early settlers lived on this roads for easier travel and for mail purposes.  Turning to the right on Post Road will take you to the Fort Cemetery where a single grave marks the site of what was once the burial place for a prominent early Wayne County family.  Traveling on along Post Road will take you to the Hopewell Baptist Church where some of the oldest settlers of the county worshipped.  Going on further down on Post Road will take you a point where Wayne, Glynn and Brantley County meet.  Here you will find the Whitaker Hills Cemetery and the grave of the female Revolutionary War soldier, Sibbiah Earl Blair.  Going back to your starting point and turning left in Mount Pleasant, you cross the railroad tracks and go to the left to view Williamsburg Landing Road.  This scenic drive will take you to the site of the town of Williamsburg which was established in 1792.  This area has been developed into a nice picnic area with boat ramp through a joint venture of the Wayne County Commissioners and the US Department of the Interior.  As you stand on the bluff at Williamsburg, you can imagine canoes and boats of traders making the turn in the Altamaha River making their way to Mount Venture, the site of Mary Musgrove’s trading post.

Coming back out to River Road and turning right, you can head to Union Church, possibly the oldest church building in Wayne County.  The Union Church itself is another church built of Wayne County heart pine.  The cemetery contains some of the oldest graves in the county and is great for cemetery buffs.  The road turns from dirt to pavement here at the church and following the paved road into Gardi will take you along the Old River Road so named because river raft hands who floated timber rafts down the Altamaha River to Darien would have followed this route on foot as they made their way home to Jesup, Doctortown, Baxley or Lumber City.  On the way into Gardi, you will find Midway Church another old congregation established in 1891.  This cemetery contains many prominent members of the Bennett family and will be another great choice for an afternoon visit.  Just past Gardi on the right you will find Mary Grove Baptist Church.  The church was established in 1885 but the existing church building stands on land obtained from the Harper family in 1909. 

Perhaps the most significant landmark in all of Wayne County is the Doctortown Railroad Trestle.  Spanning the Altamaha River, the trestle serves as a link between Wayne County between our past, present and future.  It is believed to be named for a Creek Indian chief, Alechua, which is the Creek word for doctor.  Alechua has been anglicized into Aleck hence the origin of the name of Aleck Creek.  Doctortown itself appears on an 1823 map of Wayne County.  The trestle was a target for Union troops during Sherman’s March to the Sea.  Sherman dispatched troops to destroy the trestle as it was a main corridor for supplies coming to Confederate troops.  The 4th Georgia Cavalry and the Wayne Home Guard among other Southern troops defended Doctortown handing Sherman his only loss on his infamous march.  Today you can see the historical marker on the bluff overlooking the site of the town itself and the remains of the McCann Lumber Company.  Recent work done by Rayonier has exposed some of the remains of the commissary and other buildings important in the life of the people that were Doctortown. 

There are lots of old cemeteries around the county that offer interesting conversation and information.  You can locate veterans of all wars from the Revolutionary War on to today.  Be sure to look for signs of military service on tombstones.  Years ago, every church had a cemetery and usually families had their own as well.  There are any number of historic cemeteries to visit: the Knight Drawdy Cemetery on Hwy 341 North, the Odessa Cemetery on 341 South, the Friendship Church Cemetery on Hwy 169 North, or the Piney Grove Church Cemetery on Beards Bluff Road. 

Maybe you don’t want to drive as far as Mount Pleasant or Crossroads on your day out.  Maybe a ride around Jesup is more interesting to you.  The Wayne County Tourism Board has a driving tour available at the office it shares with the Chamber of Commerce and the Industrial Development Authority.  This is a tour of the historic homes in and around the downtown area.  While in the downtown area, you can also look at the buildings in the central business district.  There are dates and names that you probably have never noticed but are there if you look close enough.  Look for Whaley, Wilkins and O’Quinn.  At the corner of Broad and Cherry there is an interesting marker on the side facing Cherry Street.  Be sure to check this out.

While you’re in the downtown area, check out the Jesup Train Triangle – the ACL caboose, the Wayne County Heritage Center and the Jesup Railfan Platform.  On the railfan platform, you are able to hear traffic between the trainmaster in Jacksonville and the trains passing through Jesup on their way north to Savannah or south to Waycross or Jacksonville.  Be sure to listen for the train conductor to call the signals at Doctortown as well as Slover and Broadhurst.  Take your kids and make a day of noting the number on the engine as well as counting the number of cars on the train.  Once you know the number of cars on the train, you can listen for the defect detectors at Slover and and South Jesup to call the number of axles on the train.  Doing a comparison of number of cars and number of axles will really get your brain to pondering!  

Once you’ve had your visit to the train triangle, head on down Southwest Broad Street.  At the end of the Jesup City Cemetery facing Southwest Broad Street, you will find Oak Hill, the oldest section of the cemetery.  Before you stop here, stop at the standing water tower at SW Broad and Pine.  Read the names of the mayor and city council responsible for the water system in Jesup.  Then look for the graves of these prominent men in Oak Hill.  Be sure to look for Mr. Goodbread as well. 

Screven and Odum have their sites to visit as well.  In Screven you can drive by the home of Captain C. C. Grace, one of the first important men to come to Screven following the Civil War.  Captain Grace came to Screven in 1867 and established himself in turpentine, ginning, and mercantile.  His grandson, Lindsay Grace, built his home beside his grandfather’s and was also well known for his sense of civic responsibility.  Through his cooperation, the Lake Grace recreational area was established.  The old side of the Screven City Cemetery serves as the resting place of many of the town’s early settlers and families for cemetery buffs to visit.  While you are out Screven’s way, you can take a quiet walk in the Little Satilla Wildlife Management Area.  Odum has the National Register of Historic Places listed Martin House as well as several other houses of historical interest.   While you are on the Odum end of the county, drive out Beard’s Bluff Road and follow the boat ramp signs to Upper County Landing. 

Upper County Landing offers a great view of the river and features a picnic area and a nature trail.  This landing has recently been renovated and has lots of paved parking and access to the river.  If sitting by the river is for you, Upper County Landing is a great place to be or you might try Oglethorpe Landing or as the locals call it – Pig Farm Landing.  This landing is off O’Steen Branch Road which is off Oglethorpe Road.  And, if you decide you want to try canoeing and kayaking on the river, the Tourism Board can provide you with outfitter information.  A quiet trip down the river is medicine for anyone’s soul. 

At Christmastime, you read and hear advertisers reminding you to shop at home.  Now you see the many ways you can stay at home and be a tourist in your own town.  It’s a great way to spend a day with family and friends.