Landmarks in honor of Asa Prior
With a keen eye for opportunity, brains for business, and a heart for benevolence, Asa Prior rose in stature to become the Father of Cedartown, Georgia. Almost everywhere in the beautiful little town, originally called Cedar Valley, you will see Asa’s invisible fingerprints.
There are landmarks dedicated in honor of Asa Prior, but more needs to be done. We owe more gratitude to him for all he has done.
Asa Prior and his wife, Sarah
Abigail “Sallie” (Witcher) Prior, married in 1801. Newspaper articles paint a picture of a strong romance. After they married in
North Carolina, Asa brought Sallie to Georgia. They had 14 children.
Five children were born Deaf.
Asa was a blacksmith, a farmer, and he bought and sold land. He accumulated more than 6,000 acres in Paulding and Floyd counties. A short time later, they moved from present-day Madison, Georgia, to present-day Cedartown. He significantly contributed to the development of the town. He built many buildings and gave back in different ways. His dream was to rename Paulding County to Prior County.
In 1832, Asa purchased land, including Big Spring Park with the second largest natural limestone spring in the southern United States. In 1852, he donated 19 acres that would become downtown Cedartown. The agreement stipulated that the spring would continue to provide drinking water to town residents.
The area is now preserved as the Cedartown Commercial Historic District, added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1992; Cedartown Waterworks, Women’s Building and Big Spring Park Historic District, added in 2000; and Northwest Cedartown Historic District, added in 2008. There are eight stands with historical information. Most are across from the Courthouse on land that Asa also donated. No wonder we call Asa the Father of Cedartown.
The first house Asa built for his family was on Ware Street. Unfortunately, the house was demolished in June 1961. There was a newspaper article about the tear down of the house titled, “Landmark Coming Down.” Asa built their second house on East Avenue. The Deaf Priors were homeschooled there in 1850 by Elzaphan R. King, even though Georgia School for the Deaf had already opened. The house is still standing today, but now faces College Street. It is 189 years old and now the Gammage Funeral Home.
The Old Mill, built by Asa in 1848, is not registered as a historical site yet. For nearly a century, it ground corn and wheat. From 1960 to 1991, it served as a restaurant. A movie called “The Baron and the Kid” was made there in 1984 with Johnny Cash starring. In 1991, it became a residence.
Prior, Georgia, shows up on some maps around the intersection of Prior Station Road and French Road. I hope there will be a sign with historical information erected there. Also, two roads have been named in honor of the family, Prior Street and Prior Station Road. There was even a railroad depot named after them in the Prior area.
Another landmark, one mile from the family’s first home on two acres donated by Asa, was the First Baptist Church, where the little-known Cedar Valley Academy originated. The building is gone now, but a stand explains the history of the church on Herbert Street in downtown Cedartown. CVA is not mentioned on the informational stands. Hopefully that will change. The present-day Asa Prior Cemetery is next to the site of the former First Baptist Church.
Asa was instrumental to establishing GSD. While Asa pushed for a Deaf school in Georgia, he sent his older Deaf sons, Ephraim and Middleton, to American School for the Deaf in Hartford, Connecticut. Meanwhile, John J. Flournoy successfully influenced Gov. Wilson Lumpkin to pass a law establishing GSD on Dec. 20-21, 1833. John was an alumni and frequent visitor to ASD. Asa, Ephraim, Middleton, and John must have met at some point.
The Cedartown Welcome Center and Polk County Chamber of Commerce have a stand about the history of Cedartown with mentions of Asa Prior. Hawkes Children’s Library houses research documents, pictures, maps, and belongings of the Priors. Polk County Historical Society Museum has a wealth of knowledge about the history of the county, including books and information about the Prior family. A large picture of the mill Asa built and a spinning wheel they used are on display in the museum.
There are celebrations being planned to honor the Deaf Priors, CVA, and the 175th anniversary of GSD.
The unveiling of a monument donated by the GSD Alumni Association in honor of the Deaf Priors and CVA will take place at 11 a.m. on July 28 at the Asa Prior Cemetery on Brooks Street in Cedartown. Everyone is invited to join. What a great way to celebrate Angeline A. Prior’s birthday, which falls on the same day!
Prior deserves a county named in honor of his family and him. The family also deserves more credit for their roles in the history of Polk County. There are many more landmarks and stories that should be captured and preserved.