Dahlonega, GA is a unique town located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Lumpkin County enjoys the best the Southern Appalachians offers – clear rivers and streams and scenic mountain peaks and valleys. The U.S. Forest Service maintains several national recreation areas in Lumpkin County including the Chestatee Overlook, DeSoto Falls, Dockery Lake and Waters Creek and has helped turn Lumpkin County into an outdoor enthusiast’s dream.
Dahlonega is home to the University of North Georgia (previously North Georgia College), a much respected military co-educational college. The University of North Georgia is located on the site of the U.S. Mint in Dahlonega which burned and now is the site of the University’s Price Memorial Hall. The building’s spire is covered with 23 ounces of Dahlonega gold.
The downtown square in Dahlonega is on the National Register of Historic Places since it is the site of the first major gold rush in the United States back in 1828. Recently, tourism has become Dahlonega’s new “gold rush.” There are many gift shops, restaurants and a wide variety of type foods.
Dahlonega has the highest concentration of wineries and vineyards in North Georgia. Visitors to Lumpkin County’s vineyards can experience wine tastings, vineyard tours, festivals and events at Frogtown Cellars, Montaluce Winery & Estates, Three Sisters, and Wolf Mountain.
The Holly Theater is one of the top theatre companies in Georgia. The Holly Theatre Company is known throughout North Georgia as a professional quality theatre in a small-town atmosphere.
There are many festivals all throughout the year in Dahlonega from the well know Gold Rush, Bear on the Square, Mountain Flower Festival of Arts, Music in the Park, and Old Fashioned Christmas. The Appalachian musicians often congregate for impromptu picking and signing on the weekend afternoons from spring through autumn on the historic Public Square.
Situated only 71 miles north of Atlanta and connected to that major metropolis by Georgia Highway 400, which is only six miles from downtown, Dahlonega has easy access to interstate highways I-75 and I-85 and from there, to the rest of the state and the country.
