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Tools and Strategies for Local Preservation Planning
The historic Jesup Depot is adjacent to the former bus station. Built in 1902 to replace an earlier depot, the train station sustained heavy damage in a 2003 fire. Rehabilitation plans are currently being completed to return the depot to community use, providing a waiting area for Amtrak passengers, office space for the Tourism Board, and a multi-purpose room for rent. The community was able to obtain a special federal transportation earmark for the depot’s rehabilitation. Jesup is one of only two stops in Georgia (other is Savannah) along Amtrak’s Silver Meteor/ Palmetto line between New York City and Miami. It is utilized by people from all over South Georgia who come to Jesup to catch the train or pick up travelers. Rehabilitation of the Jesup Bus Station, establishment of the farmers’ market, and the planned rehabilitation of the Jesup Depot are important components of Jesup’s continuing downtown revitalization efforts. Other efforts in recent years have included Georgia Department of Transportation Enhancement grant-funded streetscape improvements, addition of a train enthusiasts’ viewing area, restoration of a historic caboose and railroad workers section house, renovations to the Wayne County Courthouse, and the City of Jesup’s rehabilitation of the Work Projects Administration (WPA)-era post office for its new city hall.
Historic Bus Stations
Although these may not be as highly recognized as train depots, historic bus stations are another community resource that can be rehabilitated and adaptively reused. Transportation enhancement funds through the Georgia Department of Transportation are available for this type of project.
Historic Bridges
Historic bridges are iconic structures in many communities. The passage of time, increased traffic volume, and technological obsolescence have taken a toll on these functional structures: however, historic bridges can become pedestrian bridges, interpreted with historic markers or appropriate signage, or, as a last resort, even moved. Of particular interest are Georgia’s wooden covered bridges. The Georgia Department of Transportation utilized transportation enhancement funds to restore more than a dozen of these surviving structures and kept many of them in continued service on low-volume rural roads.
Historic Watson Mill Bridge, Madison County