Bostwick’s character endures for more than 100 years
In the early 1900s, Mayor John Bostwick Sr. helped establish Bostwick, a city of 300-something people, around a cotton oil mill. Today, descendant John Bostwick is mayor of that community, still with a population of around 300 people and home to one of Georgia’s last operational cotton gins. Fast-growing locales from the southeast Atlanta exurbs to the college town of Athens surround Bostwick, but the tiny city encircled by farms hasn’t changed much in more than a century.
Small-town houses and countryside properties
Homes are mainly within city limits and spaced out thanks to lots that typically measure at least an acre. Cape Cods, ranch homes and Arts and Crafts styles dot straight roads lined with oaks and magnolias. Houses become sparse beyond the city limits, with farmhouses on 10-plus acres. Prices vary from $300,000 to $405,000.
The CAP Index Crime Score is 1 out of 10, much lower than the national average of 4.
Morgan County Charter Schools located in nearby Madison
The county’s public school district is made up of charter schools, which are publicly funded and don’t have admission requirements for children in the district. Morgan County Primary School teaches kindergarten through second grade, while Morgan County Elementary oversees third through fifth grade. Both schools receive A-minus grades from Niche, as does Morgan County Middle. Starting in ninth grade, students can go to A-rated Morgan County High. The high school is known for its extensive career pathways that expose students to forestry, culinary arts and more. The school system is a major reason people move to Morgan County, says Danielle Copeland, an Ansley Real Estate agent in Madison.
Bostwick sits between Hard Labor Creek State Park, Heritage Park
Swimmers and kayakers can go just south of Bostwick to Hard Labor Creek State Park, where a beach and boat ramp provide access to Lake Rutledge. The park’s 24 miles of trails are open to horseback riders, who can camp while their horses sleep in nearby stalls. Wedged between trail systems and lakefront, The Creek Golf Course spans 18 narrow fairways that are open to the public. On the north end of the park, Georgia State University’s observatory invites people inside during monthly open houses. East of Bostwick, 15 miles of bike and equestrian trails wind through Heritage Park and lead to the Apalachee River.
Few businesses in Bostwick, but more options in Madison, Athens
A cluster of brick buildings and tin sheds makes up the center of town. At the city’s only traffic light, a gas station sits across the street from Market 83. The burger joint also sells beef cuts from cattle the owners raise on their farm a mile away. Farms and convenience stores are scattered across the outlying areas of Morgan County. About 5 miles south of the community, restaurants, clothing boutiques and home goods stores line the town square in Madison. Plus, the bars, breweries and eateries of Athens await 15 miles north of Bostwick. Locals can do their grocery shopping in Madison or 10 miles north in Watkinsville.
Barbecuing every Independence Day, catching concerts in Madison
The community gathers in a pecan grove every Fourth of July to barbecue pigs and chow down. The tradition, which started in the ‘60s, raises money for the Bostwick Fire Department and the Masonic Home of Georgia, a children’s home in Macon.
Locals can also head to Madison to catch live music and other events at the Madison-Morgan Cultural Center, a converted red-brick school built in 1895. “They do community events, host the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and they’ve had songwriters from Nashville come in,” Copeland says.
Located between Madison and Athens
Georgia state Route 83 slices through the center of Bostwick, providing a direct route to Madison. It takes 30 minutes to drive to Athens, where the University of Georgia employs more than 10,000 people and where tens of thousands of football fans flock on fall Saturdays. The 60-mile trip to Atlanta lasts one to two hours, depending on traffic.
Written By
Alex Soderstrom
