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Atlanta:
Gateway to the New South
 Atlanta
Travel Services brings you the best of Atlanta with
destination information and great rates on
hotels/resorts,
condos and extended-stay accommodations and
rental cars.
Atlanta is a relatively
young city. Only incorporated in 1847, it was little
more than a minor transportation center until the Civil
War, when its accessibility made it a good site for the
huge Confederacy munitions industry and consequently a
major target for the Union army. In 1864, Sherman's
army burned the city, an act immortalized in "Gone with
the Wind." Recovery after the war took just a few years:
Atlanta was the archetype of the aggressive, urban,
industrial ''New South,'' furiously championed by
newspaper owners, bankers, politicians and city leaders.
Industrial giants who based themselves here included
Coca-Cola, source of a string of philanthropic gifts
to the city.
Today's Atlanta is at
first glance a large American city. Its population has
reached 3.5 million. The city is undeniably progressive,
with little interest in lamenting a lost Southern past.
Atlanta's layout is
confusing, following old Native American trails rather
than a logical grid system, with no fewer than 32
streets named "Peachtree"; take care to note whether
you're looking for Avenue, Road, Boulevard and so forth.
The most important is Peachtree Street, which cuts a
long north-south swath through the city. Sights are
scattered, but relatively easy to reach on public
transportation. Once you're there, the downtown area,
the Martin Luther King Jr. Historic District ranged
along Auburn Avenue, and the trendy neighborhoods of
Little Five Points and Virginia-Highland are all easy to
explore on foot. |
