THOMASVILLE, Ga. (WTXL)--Thomasville is a southern paradise to many with all sorts of outdoor activities, shopping, and history. A lawmaker who helped create Thomas County, Thomas J. Johnson, also built the first house on Pebble Hill Plantation in 1827. It's a landmark in Thomasville that's open to the public.
Let me take you back in time to a much different way of life, life at the Pebble Hill Plantation in the 20th century.
For the longest time Thomasville has been a winter resort for guests.
A warm escape from the midwest winters is what drew Howard Melville Hanna to buy pebble hill plantation in 1896 as an escape from the snow in Cleveland, Ohio.
"He gave his plantation to his daughter Kate in about 1901 and Kate had the plantation until her death until about 1936," said Barbara Cohenour, the museum manager. "She was followed by her daughter Pansy who died in 1978."
Barbara Cohenour says it was actually a very typical country house at the time for a wealthy family. You can see their love for south Georgia throughout the home, including their collections of paintings.
"People would go out and hunt during the day and then sit down in the dining room in their evening attire for a gorgeous dinner," said Cohenour. "The men would wear their coats and ties to breakfast before putting their hunting clothes on."
Barbara Cohenour says what intrigues her most about the family was their humanity. Kate Hanna Ireland added schools to the property so employees' children could get an education. She also would pay their way through college, a tradition Pansy Poe continued. Jack Hadley, who was born on the plantation, remembers.
"Mrs. Pansy was a type of person very benevolent," said Hadley. "She took care of the people on her plantation."
Hadley says his dad worked there for 53 years, raising 14 children.
jack hadley,
"I got one brother, three sisters that went to college and my dad didn't pay nothing," said Hadley. "They went to FAMU, Fort Valley, and Savannah State."
Now the plantation is just how Pansy left it. She established a trust for it to become a museum and that's how the Pebble Hill tradition continues today.
What's in store for the future at Pebble Hill?
Cohenour tells us they are working with the University of Georgia to digitize some home movies made at the plantation, the first ones she says shot on film in Georgia.
