Making a Park

About the Book

What stories lie beneath the trails you walk every day? In Making a Park: Sweetwater Creek State Park: A History of Land and People, Emily D. Springer uncovers the layered history of one of Georgia’s most visited natural spaces. This nonfiction work blends environmental history, cultural insight, and regional storytelling to reveal how geology, Indigenous life, colonial expansion, and industrial ambition shaped the land we see today. From the ancient tectonic forces that formed the Piedmont landscape to the presence of Muscogee communities and the impact of European settlement, the book traces a continuous narrative of transformation. Readers explore the rise of the New Manchester Mill, the human labor behind it, and the social systems that defined life in the region. Each chapter connects natural processes with human decisions, showing how land and people continuously influence one another. Written for history enthusiasts, educators, and curious visitors, this book offers a deeper understanding of Sweetwater Creek beyond its scenic trails. Discover the hidden history beneath the landscape—and see the park in a way you never have before.

About the Author

Emily D. Springer is an Atlanta native, former Sweetwater Creek State Park employee, and current President of the Friends of Sweetwater Creek State Park volunteer group. Though her career is in veterinary medicine, her long connection to the park inspired this, her first published book, written to celebrate fifty years.