Join Autrey Mill Nature Preserve in welcoming Bill Witherspoon, co-author of the popular guide, Roadside Geology of Georgia, for a talk and hike, “Geology, Gold, and the Making of Georgia”.
The event is FREE and open to the public. Don’t miss this unique program; register today!
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When
Saturday, April 12, 2026
Starts at 2 PM
Where
Autrey Mill Nature Preserve
9770 Autrey Mill Road
Johns Creek, GA 30022
More Information:
The geology hike will pass by a vertical shaft in the preserve, likely dug during gold prospecting. Though not among the six prospects in Fulton County mentioned in Georgia’s 1896 and 1909 state gold reports, this shaft lies only two miles west of two of them, in the vicinity of Johns Creek High School, and four miles east of two others, near The Home Depot on Holcomb Bridge Road.
Preceding the walk will be a slideshow with animations. Dr. Witherspoon will explain the science behind the formation of North Georgia’s gold deposits over a time span of half a billion years, from earliest volcanic activity through the rise of the Appalachians to the settling of nuggets in streams.
Although Georgia did not host the first gold discovery in the US, it can claim the first gold rush. Many of Georgia’s ‘29ers took their know-how to the 1849 California gold rush. Insights from historians show how Georgia’s gold rush fostered it’s industry and helped give it a different character from neighboring states.
Roadside Geology of Georgia, a full-color 320-page guide, has sold more than 10,000 copies. “Our goal is to take the reader to Georgia’s natural wonders and explain the science that lies behind the scenery,” says Witherspoon, who taught geology to K-12 students and their teachers for 17 years at DeKalb County Schools’ Fernbank Science Center, and co-authored the 2013 book with Dr. Pamela Gore of Georgia State University.
