OHC NEWSLETTER

October, November, and December 2025
The Waycross Post Office Building: A Century of Service & History
By Kemberly Stephens-Cone

Did you know that the handsome brick building at 605 Elizabeth Street once stood at the very heart of Waycross’s civic life? For more than six decades, it served as both Post Office and U.S. District Courthouse, a hub for communication, justice, and the growing rail-town community.

1911 – A Grand Federal Presence
Designed by James Knox Taylor, the U.S. Treasury’s Supervising Architect, the building opened with elegant Renaissance Revival / Romano-Tuscan styling. With red-tile roof over one-story brick & basement structure, terrazzo and maple floors, oak woodwork, marble stairs & wainscoting and rows of brass postal boxes gleaming in the lobby. It was built to show that Waycross had become an important regional center.

1936 – Expansion for a Growing City
Architect G. W. Stone designed a major addition. This expansion reflected Waycross’s rise during the railroad-era boom.

1911-1975 – Federal Service Era
For decades the building bustled with mail clerks, postmasters, and daily customers at the counters. Federal judges and juries workded upstairs in the courtroom. Shipments arriving and departing by rail, binding South Georgia to the nation

1964 – Regional Sectional Center
A new mail-sorting hub on Frances Street handled increasing volumes of regional mail, signaling a shift in operations. …

Find out more in our Newsletter, click the link below:

OHC Newsletter

October, November, and December 2025
The Waycross Post Office Building: A Century of Service & History
By Kemberly Stephens-Cone

Did you know that the handsome brick building at 605 Elizabeth Street once stood at the very heart of Waycross’s civic life? For more than six decades, it served as both Post Office and U.S. District Courthouse, a hub for communication, justice, and the growing rail-town community. …

OHC Newsletter

July, August and Sept 2025
50th Anniversary

The Okefenokee Heritage Center celebrated its 50th anniversary on Saturday evening, May 31st, with a Golden Bowl Celebration. In true OHC spirit, the evening was family-friendly, casual, and tailored toward community connections.

OHC Newsletter

April, May and June 2025
The Unusual Story of the Okefenokee Heritage Center and Southern Forest World,
written by Susan Lott Clark
(Article abridged by Carla Cornett)

An appreciation for the arts in their various forms – visual, music, and drama – first gave support to having the Okefenokee Heritage Center. We recognized the importance for cultural enrichment and enhancing the quality of life in this area.

OHC Newsletter

Jan, Feb and March 2025
Okefenokee Heritage Center turns 50!
An excerpt from the book:
“The Unusual Story of the Okefenokee Heritage Center and Southern Forest World”, written by Susan Lott Clark
(Article abridged by Carla Cornett)

How it all began!

At the regular meeting of the Waycross Service League, on May 5, 1964, the following came as a recommendation from the executive committee: …

OHC Newsletter

Oct, Nov and Dec 2024
Happy 200th Birthday Ware Co!
History of Ware County, by Robert L. Hurst, 2004

Ware County was formed in extreme southeast Georgia when Appling County was divided by the state legislature on December 15, 1824. It was named for a man who never visited the area, Nicholas Ware, an active politician known for his flamboyant lifestyle.

OHC Newsletter

July, August & Sept 2024
Waycross Sesquicentennial & Ware County Bicentennial
C.C. McCray City Auditorium

The Waycross City Auditorium was dedicated on May 9, 1937. More than 1,000 folks attended the dedication ceremonies, to inspect and “enjoy the beautiful new building which offers decidedly the largest auditorium in Southern Georgia,” reported the Waycross-Journal Herald.