McIntosh Reserve
A Unit of Carroll County Parks
Park Hours, Directions and Guidelines
McIntosh Reserve Park is open year round except for Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Years Day. Park office hours are 8 am until 5 pm daily. Park hours are 8 am until 8 pm (Summer) and 8 am until 7 pm (Winter). Pavilion reservations may be made by phone or in person M-F from 8 am until 5 pm. Camp sites are available on a first come, first serve basis, with the exception of group camp sites which must be reserved. Picnic tables not occupied by campers are available on a first come first serve basis. Quiet time for campers begins at 10 pm and continues until 7 am. Pets are allowed, but must be in control of the owner at all times. Dogs should be on leashes at all times. Horses should be not be tied to individual trees which could result in damage to the tree.
McIntosh Reserve Park is located 35 miles southwest of Atlanta along the Chattahoochee River and can be reached via U.S. Alt. 27 from Carrollton or Newnan and GA Hwy. 5 from Douglasville. Direct access to the park is provided by a county-maintained road that connects with GA 5 two miles west of Whitesburg, Ga.
Calendar of Events
March 30, 2013 Easter Egg Hunt
September 14, 2013 Annual Rivers Alive
- Chattahoochee River Clean-Up
- Hot dog lunch served to volunteers @ 12 pm.
- 80s Concert during Lunch.
September 28-29, 2013 Fall Festival
- Annual Fall Festival. Native American Pow-wow, Arts & Crafts, Food, Music, Living History.
October 12, 2013 (tentative) Annual Cross Country Meet
- Hundreds of runners compete at the high school level.
October 26, 2013 (tentative) Annual Shriners' Car Show
- Antique and Classic Cars, Food, etc. 9 am -4 pm
About McIntosh Reserve
“This massacre is only the signal for a ferocious Indian war, bursting upon us like a thunderbolt.”
So wrote President John Adams in his diary on May 16, 1825, after learning of the murder of Chief William McIntosh. McIntosh was the son of a Scottish captain in the British Army and a full-blooded Creek Indian woman belonging to the influential Wind Clan. He ultimately became a chief aligned with the lower Creek faction and operated a backwoods plantation, tavern and ferry on the Chattahoochee River.
The Indian War Adams feared did not immediately materialize, but the controversy surrounding the death of McIntosh during the period of removal of the Creeks and Cherokees from Georgia created a crisis between the federal government and the state of Georgia.
In 1978, Carroll County acquired 527 acres of land adjacent to the Chattahoochee River. Included in this parkland is the site of McIntosh’s plantation, known as Lochau Talofau, or Acorn Bluff. It was here on the morning of May 1, 1825, that Upper Creek Indian warriors, under the command of Menawa, a Redstick who had fought against McIntosh and Jackson at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, carried out the Creek National Council’s orders of “Fire and Blood.” They killed McIntosh and another chief, burned the plantation, destroyed what stock they could not carry off, but spared the lives of all women and children and one white man.
Today, visitors to the site can camp, hike and picnic on the ground where two diverse cultures collided, causing the death of an important historic figure. Displays and signs within the park help the public understand this violent period in our history.
McIntosh Reserve was developed as parkland by Carroll County in order to provide for the public enjoyment of this site’s natural and cultural resources, while at the same time ensuring the preservation of these resources. The park combines recreation activities, preservation of cultural heritage, public education, fish and wildlife management and conservation of the Chattahoochee River Corridor.
This project has been assisted in part by a Land and Water Conservation Grant, Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service, U.S. Department of Interior.
Chief William McIntosh
Chief William McIntosh, Jr. was born the son of a Scottish Captain in the British Tory Army around the time of the American Revolutionary War and a native Creek Indian woman belonging to the influential Wind Clan of the Creek Nation. During his lifetime the Chief would be directly and indirectly involved in many treaties negotiated on behalf of the State of Georgia, the U.S. Government, and the Creek Nation, as well as military engagements brought about in some cases as a result of those associations. At one of these treaty negotiations, he made a trip to Washington, D.C., where he met and talked with then President Thomas Jefferson on behalf of the Creek Nation while standing in for an ailing Speaker of the Creeks. He made a favorable impression on Jefferson and helped to further the view that he was well versed in the politics of both worlds, native and non-native. During the Creek Indian War of 1813-14, McIntosh distinguished himself under the command of another future President , Andrew Jackson, at the pivotal battle of Horseshoe Bend in what is now Alabama. McIntosh was not only well connected at the National level of U.S. society; near the end of his life, his Paternal cousin, George Troup had been elected Governor of the State of Georgia on the platform of removing all Native Americans from the same. He showed little concern for the effects this policy may have on Chief McIntosh and unfortunately for the Chief, as his reputation grew in both societies he became more entangled in the National and State of Georgia policies of the day concerning the eventual removal of all native peoples from the southeastern United States. Ultimately Chief William McIntosh, Jr. lost his life due in part to his prominent positions in both societies.
Contact Information
Daryl Johnson, Park Manager
1046 West McIntosh Circle
Whitesburg, GA 30185
Phone: 770-830-5879
Fax: 770-214-3124
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