Nancy Hanks lives again…or does she? April 24, 2024

I been doin’ some hard travelin’, on down the road….

Here is the text of an email that I sent to many Effingham County, Georgia government folks today regarding the potential for Passenger Rail Service connecting Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia:

Original Nancy Hanks steam engine (Courtesy of Scott Thompson, Sr.).

Pardon my spam message, but I want to bring to your attention, if you are not already aware, of the ongoing plans for Rail Passenger Service from Atlanta to Savannah. This initial phase of this project (Atlanta to Savannah Intercity Passenger Rail) was awarded to the GDOT, Department of Intermodal by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) last year. This grant of $8 Million was awarded to the State of Georgia and the Phase 1 planning for project is currently underway. This was all news to me, until I read about it online. This will be a complex process and an Environmental Impact Assessment is not anticipated until 2028, but it is important to jump on the train NOW!  You can more read about it at this weblink:

https://atlsavpassrail-gdot.hub.arcgis.com

I hope that Effingham County and its municipalities will not miss the bus on this precious transportation opportunity. The GDOT is preparing to receive input from interested parties and I would hope that one or more Station Stops can be planned for Effingham.  Think about this as you stew in Highway 21 or Highway 30 traffic this Summer!

Best regards, or Get a Horse!

Daniel T. Elliott,

Citizen of Rincon and Effingham County (District 4) and

Member Rincon Planning and Zoning Board

101 Savannah Avenue, Rincon, GA 31326-9147

cell 706-341-7796

email dantelliott@gmail.com

LAMAR Institute Pledge Drive (sort-of) April 22, 2024

Hi there,

It would mean so much if you could take a look at my GoFundMe, “Empower Archaeology with The LAMAR Institute”. Please donate or share with others—any help gets me closer to my goal. Thanks in advance for your kindness and support.

Here’s the link: https://gofund.me/032a071b

Above is an early GPR image of a large historic subsurface feature that we recently mapped in Savannah, Georgia. The rectangular feature measures about 60 feet by 40 feet and is about 4 feet deep. From the looks of it, it appears to date to sometime between January and December 1740, but that is just a guess mind you….More later on this.

Earth Day Festival on the Trail, 2024, Guyton, Georgia April 21, 2024

Meanwhile, across Effingham County in Rincon, There is THIS:

Old Pines Raped Outside the Rincon Library–This Past Week!! So sad to see.

Earth Days 1970-2025 April 21, 2024

I participated in the first Earth Day in April 1970. I was a high school student at Walker in DeKalb County, Georgia. Richard Nixon was president, the Vietnam War was raging, the EPA had not been invented yet, and I was just a few years away from Draft bait. My memories of that day are vague, but it seems like I took a 10 mile walk around a section of urban and suburban DeKalb County (Metro-Atlanta area) with other like-minded people.

Fast forward to 2023, my second Earth Day celebration. This one was organized by my “Helpmeet” Rita. It was located in Guyton, Georgia, which is a small town in Effingham County, just up the road from Savannah. This was likely the first Earth Day celebration in the county, which lags behind DeKalb in some aspects. Like 53 YEARS BEHIND!

Tomorrow is the 2nd Earth Day Festival in Guyton (April 20, 2024), and I am on the hook for that one too. I hope you can come out to Guyton on the Trail to rescue me! It lasts from 8 AM to 2 PM. I will be a Carney hawking the Light Pollution Tent and the Sound Pollution Tent. I operated the Sound tent last year, but the Light Pollution tent is new this year. I have not seen the whole thing yet, but from the photos, it reminds me of Batman and Gotham City in the 1960s. A Retro-feel.

Several of us were mulling over the prospects of having a 2025 Earth Day celebration at Ebenezer, Georgia. It is a “Dead Town” where we have spent a lot of blood, sweat, brain cells, and toil. A wonderful setting for an Earth Day event I should say. Who is with me?

UPDATE- Sunday, April 21, 2024:

Yesterday’s Earth Day Festival on the Trail in Guyton was a real success. Congratulations to Rita and her EGG-Heads! Below are a few images from the event.