Sweetwater Creek State Park is a 2,549 acre

Acre

The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...

 (10.32 km²) Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

 state park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

 located east of Douglasville

Douglasville, Georgia

The city of Douglasville is the county seat of Douglas County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 30,961...

 in Douglas County

Douglas County, Georgia

Douglas County, Georgia has been experiencing numerous natural disasters over the most recent decades. Being located in the South Eastern United States the county experiences strong storms and tornadoes often because of its location in Dixie Alley....

, 15 miles (24.1 km) from downtown Atlanta. The park is named after Sweetwater Creek which runs through the park. The park features wooded walking and hiking trails, the George Sparks Reservoir, a visitor center, a bait shop, and a gift shop, as well as the ruins

Ruins

Ruins are the remains of human-made architecture: structures that were once complete, as time went by, have fallen into a state of partial or complete disrepair, due to lack of maintenance or deliberate acts of destruction...

 of the New Manchester Manufacturing Company. The Visitor Center displays artifacts that belong to Native Americans

Indigenous peoples of the Americas

The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

, remnants from the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 era, and mounted animals and birds. The park has rich biodiversity, geology, and history. The park's mission is to conserve environment for the present and future generations through use of various conservation methods such as bioretention ponds, solar panels, green roofs, and a composting toilet.

History

The area of the Sweetwater Creek park used to belong to the Cherokee

Cherokee

The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...

 and according to a legend “Sweetwater” means the name of Chief Ama-Kanasta . In 1819, hunger for land led the state of Georgia to appeal to the United States government to remove the Cherokee; the appeal was rejected .
In 1827, the state of Georgia began to divide the Cherokee lands through lotteries .
In 1829, just elected president Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson

Andrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States . Based in frontier Tennessee, Jackson was a politician and army general who defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend , and the British at the Battle of New Orleans...

 who was an ally of the state of Georgia challenged the reject of appeal .
Even though the U.S. Supreme Court’s decree stated that Georgia had no right to forbid the Cherokee government, in 1831, Georgia’s General Assembly arranged all Cherokee land inspected and distributed by lottery . In 1838, federal troops started forcing the Cherokee to leave Georgia and Alabama and about twenty thousand were forced to west to Oklahoma via the Trail of Tears

Trail of Tears

The Trail of Tears is a name given to the forced relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the United States following the Indian Removal Act of 1830...

 .

On the Georgia Gold Lottery, in 1832, Philip J. Crask won 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) Lot 929 in District 18 of the Second Section and paid $18 grand fee . In 1837, Lot 929 was sold at an auction to John Boyle for $12.50 who in 1845 sold it for $500 to Charles J. McDonald of Cobb County, a former governor of Georgia, and Colonel James Rogers of Milledgeville .
In 1846, Roger and McDonald started building water-powered mill along Sweetwater Creek and on December 21, 1849, the five story mill was in operation . McDonald and Rogers incorporated their business as Sweetwater Manufacturing Company, which made cotton, yarn and fabric .
In 1858, McDonald renamed the Sweetwater Manufacturing Company as New Manchester Manufacturing Company after the center of the British textile industry Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 .
By 1860, the factory produced seven hundred pounds of cotton which was transformed it in one hundred twenty bunches of yarn and five hundred yards of osnaburg

Osnaburg

Osnaburg was a coarse type of plain textile fabric, named for the city of Osnabrück . Originally made from flax yarns, it has been made from either flax, tow or jute yarns, sometimes flax or tow warp with mixed or jute weft, and often entirely of jute...

 per day.
In 1861, the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 began.
During summer of 1864 General Joseph E. Johnson removed the Confederate Army across the Chattahoochee River

Chattahoochee River

The Chattahoochee River flows through or along the borders of the U.S. states of Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers and emptying into Apalachicola Bay in the Gulf of...

 and the New Manchester factory was left exposed for the Union Army forces .
On July 2, 1864, two divisions of Union cavalry under Colonel Silas Adams (1st Kentucky) and an cavalry under Major Haviland Thompkins (14th Illinois) of General Stoneman’s personnel approached the factory and ordered to shut it down and arrest all the employees .
On July 9, 1864, following order of William Tecumseh Sherman

William Tecumseh Sherman

William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...

 to burn mills, Major Thompkins burned the New Manchester mill .
Under arrest of 1st and 11th Kentucky cavalry and 14th Illinois cavalry, the mill employees were moved to Marietta and merged with other mill prisoners forming 600 people in one group .
By order of General Sherman to move prisoners north of the Ohio River, on July 15, 1864, female prisoners with children were sent to Nashville, Tennessee by groups in trains. On July 20, 1864, they were moved to Louisville, Kentucky . On July 21, 1864, civilian detainees were given opportunity to take an oath of allegiance

Oath of allegiance

An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to monarch or country. In republics, modern oaths specify allegiance to the country's constitution. For example, officials in the United States, a republic, take an oath of office that...

 to the Federal Government and be free north of the Ohio River

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

, but forbidden to come south of the river while the country was still at war . Some of the women returned back, and some of them were found by their families or spouses . The mill ruins still exist today and protected by the Sweetwater Creek State Park, which was founded to protect the ruins and the pristine area around it. All that remains today is the brick walls and millrace that lead to the factory's waterwheel.

Biodiversity

Birds

American Crow

American Crow

The American Crow is a large passerine bird species of the family Corvidae. It is a common bird found throughout much of North America...

 (Corvus brachyrhynchos),
American Goldfinch

American Goldfinch

The American Goldfinch , also known as the Eastern Goldfinch and Wild Canary, is a small North American bird in the finch family...

 (Carduelis tristis),
American kestrel

American Kestrel

The American Kestrel , sometimes colloquially known as the Sparrow Hawk, is a small falcon, and the only kestrel found in the Americas. It is the most common falcon in North America, and is found in a wide variety of habitats. At long, it is also the smallest falcon in North America...

 (Falco sparverius),
American Robin

American Robin

The American Robin or North American Robin is a migratory songbird of the thrush family. It is named after the European Robin because of its reddish-orange breast, though the two species are not closely related, with the European robin belonging to the flycatcher family...

 (Turdus migratorius),
Barred owl

Barred Owl

The Barred Owl is a large typical owl. It goes by many other names, including eight hooter, rain owl, wood owl, and striped owl, but is probably best known as the hoot owl.-Description:...

 (Strix varia),
Belted Kingfisher

Belted Kingfisher

The Belted Kingfisher is a large, conspicuous water kingfisher, the only member of that group commonly found in the northern United States and Canada. It is depicted on the 1986 series Canadian $5 note. All kingfishers were formerly placed in one family, Alcedinidae, but recent research suggests...

 (Ceryle alcyon),
Bobwhite (Colinus virginianus),
Brown thrasher

Brown Thrasher

The Brown Thrasher , sometimes erroneously called the Brown Thrush, is a bird in the Mimidae family, a group that also includes the New World catbirds and mockingbirds.-Description:...

 (Toxostoma rufum) State Bird of Georgia,
Chimney swift

Chimney Swift

The Chimney Swift is a small bird .-Physical description:In flight, this bird looks like a flying cigar with long slender curved wings. The plumage is a sooty grey-brown; the throat, breast, underwings and rump are paler. They have short tails.-Reproduction:The breeding season of Chimney Swifts is...

 (Chaetura pelagica),
Common Grackle

Common Grackle

The Common Grackle, Quiscalus quiscula, is a large icterid.-Description:The long adult has a long dark bill, pale yellowish eyes and a long tail; its feathers appear black with purple, green or blue iridescence on the head, and primarily bronze shine in the body plumage...

 (Quiscalus quiscula),
Common nighthawk

Common Nighthawk

The Common Nighthawk is a medium-sized crepuscular or nocturnal bird, whose presence and identity are best revealed by its vocalization. Typically dark , displaying cryptic colouration and intricate patterns, this bird becomes invisible by day. Once aerial, with its buoyant but erratic flight,...

 (Chordeiles minor),
Screech owl (Otus asio),
Cooper's Hawk

Cooper's Hawk

Cooper's Hawk is a medium-sized hawk native to the North American continent and found from Canada to Mexico. As in many birds of prey, the male is smaller than the female...

 (Accipiter cooperii),
Eastern Bluebird

Eastern Bluebird

The Eastern Bluebird, Sialia sialis, is a small thrush found in open woodlands, farmlands and orchards, and most recently can be spotted in suburban areas. It is the state bird of Missouri and New York....

 (Sialia sialis),
Eastern Towhee

Eastern Towhee

The Eastern Towhee, Pipilo erythrophthalmus, is a large New World sparrow. The taxonomy of the towhees has been under debate in recent decades, and formerly this bird and the Spotted Towhee were considered a single species, the Rufous-sided Towhee....

 (Piplo erythroph thalmus),
Golden Eagle

Golden Eagle

The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...

 (Aquila chrysaetos),
Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron

The Great Blue Heron is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America as well as the West Indies and the Galápagos Islands. It is a rare vagrant to Europe, with records from Spain, the Azores and England...

 (Ardea herodias),
Great horned owl

Great Horned Owl

The Great Horned Owl, , also known as the Tiger Owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas.-Description:...

 (Bubo virginianus),
Northern Cardinal

Northern Cardinal

The Northern Cardinal or Redbird or Common Cardinal is a North American bird in the genus Cardinalis. It can be found in southern Canada, through the eastern United States from Maine to Texas and south through Mexico...

 (Cardinalis cardinalis),
Northern flicker

Northern Flicker

The Northern Flicker is a medium-sized member of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and is one of the few woodpecker species that migrate. There are over 100 common names for the Northern Flicker...

 (Colaptes auratus),
Red-bellied woodpecker

Red-bellied Woodpecker

The Red-bellied Woodpecker, Melanerpes carolinus, is a medium-sized woodpecker of the Picidae family. It breeds in southern Canada and the northeastern United States, ranging as far south as Florida and as far west as Texas...

 (Melanerpes carolinus),
Red-headed woodpecker

Red-headed Woodpecker

The Red-headed Woodpecker, Melanerpes erythrocephalus, is a small or medium-sized woodpecker from temperate North America. Their breeding habitat is open country across southern Canada and the eastern-central United States.-Taxonomy:...

 (Melanerpes erythrocephalus),
Red-shouldered hawk

Red-shouldered Hawk

The Red-shouldered Hawk is a medium-sized hawk. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California and northern to northeastern-central Mexico.-Description:...

 (Buteo lineatus),
Red-tailed hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...

 (Buteo jamaicensis),
Red-winged Blackbird

Red-winged Blackbird

The Red-winged Blackbird is a passerine bird of the family Icteridae found in most of North and much of Central America. It breeds from Alaska and Newfoundland south to Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, and Guatemala, with isolated populations in western El Salvador, northwestern Honduras, and...

 (Agelaius phoeniceus),
Ruby-throated hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

The Ruby-throated Hummingbird , is a small hummingbird. It is the only species of hummingbird that regularly nests east of the Mississippi River in North America.- Description :...

 (Archilochus colubris),
Sharp-shinned hawk

Sharp-shinned Hawk

The Sharp-shinned Hawk is a small hawk. In fact, "sharp-shins" or "sharpies" are the smallest to reside in USA and Canada, though some Neotropical species are smaller...

 (Accipiter striatus),
Starling

Starling

Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The name "Sturnidae" comes from the Latin word for starling, sturnus. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, are called mynas, and many African species are known as glossy starlings because of their iridescent...

 (Sturnus vulgaris),
Summer Tanager

Summer Tanager

The Summer Tanager, Piranga rubra, is a medium-sized American songbird. Formerly placed in the tanager family , it and other members of its genus are now classified in the cardinal family...

 (Piranga rubra),
Swainson’s thrush (Catharus ustulatus),
White-throated sparrow

White-throated Sparrow

The White-throated Sparrow is a passerine bird of the American sparrow family Emberizidae.-Description:The White-throated Sparrow is a passerine bird of the American sparrow family Emberizidae...

 (Zanotrichia albicollis),
Wood thrush

Wood Thrush

The Wood Thrush, Hylocichla mustelina, is a North American passerine bird. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American Robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Central America and southern Mexico...

 (Hylocichla mustelina),
Yellow-bellied sapsucker

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is a medium-sized woodpecker found in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.-Taxonomy:...

 (Sphyrapicus varius),

Animals

Beaver

Beaver

The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...

 (genus Castor),
Bobcat

Bobcat

The bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...

 (Felis rufa),
Common raccoon (Procyon lotor),
Coyote

Coyote

The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...

 (Canis latrans),
Deer

Deer

Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...

,
Feral hog,
Grey Fox (Urocyon cinereoagenteus),
Muskrat

Muskrat

The muskrat , the only species in genus Ondatra, is a medium-sized semi-aquatic rodent native to North America, and introduced in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands and is a very successful animal over a wide range of climates and habitats...

 (Ondatra zibethicus),
North American River otter (Lutra Canadensis),
Red Fox

Red Fox

The red fox is the largest of the true foxes, as well as being the most geographically spread member of the Carnivora, being distributed across the entire northern hemisphere from the Arctic Circle to North Africa, Central America, and the steppes of Asia...

 (Vulpes fulva),
Skunk

Skunk

Skunks are mammals best known for their ability to secrete a liquid with a strong, foul odor. General appearance varies from species to species, from black-and-white to brown or cream colored. Skunks belong to the family Mephitidae and to the order Carnivora...

,
Squirrel

Squirrel

Squirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots , flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have been introduced to Australia...

.

Reptiles

Brown Water Snake

Brown Water Snake

The brown water snake is a large species of Natricine snake found in the southeast United States.Lycodonomorphus rufulus is sometimes also called the brown water snake, but L...

 (Nerodia taxispilota),
Red-Bellied/Yellow-Bellied Water Snake (Nerodia erythrogaster),
Northern Water Snake

Northern Water Snake

The Northern water snake is a large, nonvenomous, well-known snake in the Colubridae family that is native to North America.-Behavior:...

 (Nerodia sipedon),
Queen Snake

Queen snake

The queen snake is a nonvenomous member of the colubrid family of snakes. This species ranges through the temperate region of North America east of the Mississippi River from western New York state to Wisconsin and south to Alabama and northern Florida...

 (Regina septemvittata),
Brown Snake

Brown snake

Brown snake is the common name given to a number of very different species of snakes:*The genus Pseudonaja, Australian brown snakes*The genus Storeria, North American brown snakes...

 (Storeria dekayi),
Red-Bellied Snake (Storeria occipitomaculata),
Eastern Ribbon Snake

Eastern Ribbon Snake

The Eastern Ribbon Snake or Common Ribbon Snake is a subspecies of ribbon snake found in the northeastern United States....

 (Thamnophis sauritus),
Common Garter Snake

Common Garter Snake

The Common Garter Snake is a snake indigenous to North America. Most garter snakes have a pattern of yellow stripes on a brown or green background and their average length is about , maximum about .-Subspecies:...

 (Thamnophis sirtalis),
Smooth Earth Snake (Virginia valeriae),
Rough Earth Snake (Virginia striatula),
Eastern Hognose Snake

Eastern Hognose Snake

The Eastern Hognose Snake is a harmless colubrid species found in North America. No subspecies are currently recognized.-Geographic range:...

 (Heterodon platyrhinos),
Ringneck Snake (Diadophis punctatus),
Eastern Worm Snake

Eastern Worm Snake

The Eastern worm snake is a nonvenomous colubrid found in the Eastern United States.Carphophis amoenus amoenus or the Eastern worm snake can be found east of the Mississippi, from Southwest Massachusetts down to Southern Alabama across to Louisiana and then up to Illinois...

 (Carphophis amoenus),
Racer

Racer

-Snakes:* Coluber, a genus of harmless colubrid snakes.* Drymobius, a.k.a. neotropical racers, a genus of harmless colubrid snakes.* Masticophis, a.k.a...

 (Coluber constrictor),
Coachwhip (Masticophis flagellum),
Rough Green Snake (Opheodrys aestivus),
Corn Snake

Corn Snake

The Corn Snake , or Red Rat Snake, is a North American species of Rat Snake that subdues its small prey by constriction. The name "Corn Snake" is a holdover from the days when southern farmers stored harvested ears of corn in a wood frame or log building called a crib...

 (Elaphe guttata),
Rat Snake

Rat snake

Rat snakes are medium to large constrictors that can be found through a great portion of the northern hemisphere. They feed primarily on rodents and birds and, with some species exceeding 3 m , they can occupy top levels of some food chains. Many species make attractive and docile pets and one,...

 (Elaphe obsoleta),
Eastern/Black Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula),
Mole Kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster),
Scarlet Kingsnake/Milk Snake (Lampropeltis triangulum),
Scarlet Snake (Cemophora coccinea),
Southeastern Crowned Snake (Tantilla coronata),
Copperhead

Copperhead

Copperhead may refer to:Snakes:* Agkistrodon contortrix, a venomous pit viper species found in parts of North America.* Agkistrodon piscivorus, a.k.a. the cottonmouth, another venomous pit viper species found in North America....

 (Agkistrodon contortrix),
Canebrake Rattlesnake (Crotolus horridus).

Geology

Geologic history

The historical geology of the Sweetwater Creek State Park is divided into three periods such as deposition

Deposition (geology)

Deposition is the geological process by which material is added to a landform or land mass. Fluids such as wind and water, as well as sediment flowing via gravity, transport previously eroded sediment, which, at the loss of enough kinetic energy in the fluid, is deposited, building up layers of...

 of sediments, metamorphism

Metamorphism

Metamorphism is the solid-state recrystallization of pre-existing rocks due to changes in physical and chemical conditions, primarily heat, pressure, and the introduction of chemically active fluids. Mineralogical, chemical and crystallographic changes can occur during this process...

 and folding, and uplift

Tectonic uplift

Tectonic uplift is a geological process most often caused by plate tectonics which increases elevation. The opposite of uplift is subsidence, which results in a decrease in elevation. Uplift may be orogenic or isostatic.-Orogenic uplift:...

 and erosion

Erosion

Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...

 .

Deposition

The rocks at the surface at the park were deposited at least 450 million years ago . A sequence of sediments formed rocks such as shales

Shalës

Shalës is a municipality in the Elbasan District, Elbasan County, central Albania. The municipality consists of the villages Shalës, Licaj, Kurtalli, Xibrake, Xherie and Kodras....

, sandstones and greywackes. When these sediments were deposited, the environment was similar to that off the coast of Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

 today . These deposits were formed constantly through layering of older deposits by younger ones . Later these deposits were covered by basaltic lava . Eventually, the lava cover was mantled by thousands feet of sediments .

Metamorphism and Folding

It is likely that the deposition continued until 450 million years before the present causing increase of weight of the sediments in the basin . When subsidence stopped uplift began due to compression of the subsidence from the sides . Due to the compression, temperature and pressure rose which led to a reformation of the rocks in the basin . Increasing temperature led to recrystallization

Recrystallization

Recrystallization may refer to:*Recrystallization *Recrystallization *Recrystallization...

 of minerals in the rocks . As the result of recrystallization

Recrystallization

Recrystallization may refer to:*Recrystallization *Recrystallization *Recrystallization...

 the micas were preferentially oriented, or oriented in the same position . Due to this orientation, foliation

Foliation

In mathematics, a foliation is a geometric device used to study manifolds, consisting of an integrable subbundle of the tangent bundle. A foliation looks locally like a decomposition of the manifold as a union of parallel submanifolds of smaller dimension....

 took place . Recrystallization and foliation changed the shales, sandstones, greywackes and basalts into mica schists, quartzite

Quartzite

Quartzite is a hard metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink...

s, metagraywackes and amphibolite

Amphibolite

Amphibolite is the name given to a rock consisting mainly of hornblende amphibole, the use of the term being restricted, however, to metamorphic rocks. The modern terminology for a holocrystalline plutonic igneous rocks composed primarily of hornblende amphibole is a hornblendite, which are...

s . It is likely that metamorphism destroyed fossil remains that may have been in the rocks . Along with metamorphism folding and faulting of the rocks took place . There were two periods of the folding in the park . Pressure led to breach of the rocks .

Uplift and Erosion

Until approximately 250 million years ago uplift, folding, and faulting of the rocks took place . During and after uplift streams changed landscape . Streams carried away dissolved organic acids and groundwater decomposed the rocks . These processes take place today in the park . The washed sediments were found in the Coastal Plain of Georgia . Due to the erosion, the rocks below several miles are exposed to the earth's surface .

Environmental Conservation

The mission of the Sweetwater Creek State Park is to sustain, enhance, protect and conserve Georgia’s natural, historic and cultural resources for present and future generations. The wise use of the resources of the park is necessary in order to provide recreational and educational prospects and facilities. The protection of the park resources is critical during fast urban growth. Atlanta grows and its demand for land use increases. The urbanization

Urbanization

Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....

 creates urban heat island effect, which is due to absorption of heat by asphalt and concrete cover. As trees and green cover help to reduce urban heat island effect, the protection of parks is important. In 1998, the Chattahoochee River

Chattahoochee River

The Chattahoochee River flows through or along the borders of the U.S. states of Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers and emptying into Apalachicola Bay in the Gulf of...

 was names one of the nations’ most Endangered Rivers by the American Rivers Environmental Group . The river receives a large amount of pollutants brought by rainwater runoff which is due to the urbanization

Urbanization

Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....

 . One of the goals of the park is protection of the rivers that flow through the park and fish population in those rivers. Due to urban growth, the demand to the park increases creating problems with trail compaction and erosion

Erosion

Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...

 and unmanageable litter. The park offers several programs for public to participate in the park conservation such as: Rivers Alive Cleanup, P2AD-Pollution Prevention, Waste Management

Waste management

Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,managing and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics...

, Trail Maintenance

Trail

A trail is a path with a rough beaten or dirt/stone surface used for travel. Trails may be for use only by walkers and in some places are the main access route to remote settlements...

, Recycling

Recycling

Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...

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Visitor Center

Due to conservation efforts, the Visitor Center was built in a sustainable design in 2006 . It is 9000 square feet (836.1 m²) building which construction cost $1.5 or $173/SF . The Visitor Center has received the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....

 (LEED) Platinum Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, which is the highest level attainable . In 2007, the Visitor Center was one of only twenty platinum rated buildings in the world and it was the first in the Southeast . The building’s reduced impact: 77% reduced in water use, 51% reduction in electricity use, 80% of construction waste diverted from landfill, no increase in stormwater runoff after construction, and daylighting in 83% of interior spaces .
The building is built into a hillside to minimize the physical and visual disturbance to the land . To reduce the urban heat island effect and water runoff, two 2800 square feet (260.1 m²) building’s roofs are planted with native plants, green roof

Green roof

A green roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane. It may also include additional layers such as a root barrier and drainage and irrigation systems...

s . The green roof

Green roof

A green roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane. It may also include additional layers such as a root barrier and drainage and irrigation systems...

s are 12 inches (304.8 mm) deep .

The sun-controlling feature of the building allows the sun to warm the interior in winter and reduces solar energy in summer . The northern side of the building has clerestory windows that allow indirect sunlight into the building . The southern side of the building has shelves that bounce light into the interior . The building uses photocells and motion sensors for general lighting . Approximately 20% of the building electricity is produced by 10.5 kW photovoltaic arrays consisting of new and recycled solar panels . The building’s long side faces south allowing the solar panels to receive maximum sunlight . The building’s annual energy savings are 57,969 kilowatt hours which avoid 27 tons of carbon emissions per year .

The Visitors Center uses the existing parking lot, minimizing more disturbance . The park has bioretention ponds to prevent downstream flooding and to filter storm water runoff with aquatic vegetation . The building’s construction materials such as steel structure, aluminum siding and framing are made from recycled materials . The construction waste is recycled . In order to save fuel by avoiding transportation of goods from farther away, the park used masonry stucco, fly-ash concrete and other local materials . In order to save water, the park collects rain water, has a composting toilet

Composting toilet

A composting toilet is a dry toilet that using a predominantly aerobic processing system that treats excreta, typically with no water or small volumes of flush water, via composting or managed aerobic decomposition...

, Clivus multrum that uses no potable water, waterless urinals, and pervious concrete

Pervious concrete

Pervious concrete is a special type of concrete with a high porosity used for concrete flatwork applications that allows water from precipitation and other sources to pass directly through, thereby reducing the runoff from a site and allowing groundwater recharge. The high porosity is attained by a...

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Facilities

• 2,549 Acres
• 215 Acre Lake
• Visitor Center-Museum
• 2 Fishing Docks
• Playgrounds
• 11 Picnic Shelters
• Group Shelter and BBQ Pit
• Benches along Sweetwater Creek

Activities

• Hiking, on 9 miles (14.5 km) of trails in the park
• Lake and stream fishing (electric boat motors only)
• Canoe and Fishing Boat Rental
• Picnicking
• Intrepretive Programs

Annual events

• Ruins and Rapids Full Moon Hike (September through December)
• New Manchester Days Festival and Arts & Crafts Show (September)
• A Walk Through Time: Sweetwater Valley 75 Years Ago (September)
• SweetH20 50K Trail Race (Spring)

External links

• Georgia State Parks
• Sweetwater Creek State Park
• Directions to Sweetwater Creek State Park