The Obediah Barber Homestead is a late-19th century homestead of Obediah Barber (1825-1909). The homestead was built in 1870 and is near the northern edge of the
Okefenokee Swamp
The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000-acre (177,000 ha), peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia–Florida line in the United States. A majority of the swamp is protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Ref ...
in
Ware County, Georgia
Ware County is a County (United States), county located in the Southeast Georgia, southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 36,251. The county seat ...
, 7 miles south of
Waycross, Georgia
Waycross is the county seat of and only incorporated city in Ware County in the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 13,942 in the 2020 census.
Waycross gets its name from the city's location at key railroad junctions; lines from six di ...
. Barber, who was known as the "King of the Swamp", was a great explorer of the swamp. The main house, the detached kitchen, and the well were added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
in 1995.
NRHP form
/ref>
Today
Today the site is run as a museum to show typical life of the late 1800s in the area. There are over 20 structures, but none of them are original except the main house and the kitchen. The site features a large collection of pre-mechanical farming equipment and a moonshine
Moonshine is alcohol proof, high-proof liquor, traditionally made or distributed alcohol law, illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of distilling the alcohol (drug), alcohol at night to avoid detection. In the first decades of the ...
still. It contains a nature trail and few animals.
Photos
File:Obediah Barber Homestead, inside, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Inside
File:Obediah Barber Homestead - detached kitchen building, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Detached kitchen (for fire safety)
File:Obediah Barber Homestead well, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Well
File:Obediah Barber Homestead, log details, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Log details
File:Obediah Barber Homestead, porch, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Porch
File:Obediah Barber Homestead, main house, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Main house
File:Obediah Barber Homestead, side details, Ware County, GA, US.jpg, Side details
References
External links
*
Official website
Tourist info
Buildings and structures in Ware County, Georgia
Houses completed in 1870
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state)
National Register of Historic Places in Ware County, Georgia
{{WareCountyGA-NRHP-stub