Historical Marker
Clarke County
Historical marker location:
325 East Washington Street, Athens, Georgia
( Marker is on East Washington Street, 0 miles west of North Thomas Street, on the right when traveling west.)
Marker installed: 1956
Georgia was the site of the first American gold rush, but it was also the site of the first American oil rush. In 1905, oil was discovered in Bibb County, and the state's oil industry began to grow rapidly.