Fri., July 29, 2011 4:55pm (EDT)

Altamaha Had Big Impact On Georgia's Growth
By Joshua Stewart
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Updated: 2 years ago

ATLANTA  —  
The Altamaha River at the Big Hammock Natural Area. The river basin drains a quarter of the state, stretching from Atlanta and Macon to Darien on the coast. It’s been an engine for economic activity since Native Americans and early settlers used it to travel to inland Georgia. (Photo Courtesy of <a href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/voodoosnakes/1420700746/>Anthony Zukoff via Flickr</a>.)
The Altamaha River at the Big Hammock Natural Area. The river basin drains a quarter of the state, stretching from Atlanta and Macon to Darien on the coast. It’s been an engine for economic activity since Native Americans and early settlers used it to travel to inland Georgia. (Photo Courtesy of Anthony Zukoff via Flickr.)
Georgia’s Altamaha River is sometimes called the “little Amazon.” It’s just 137 miles long, created by the merger of the Oconee and Ocmulgee rivers. But it drains a fourth of the state, reaching all the way from Darien to Macon and Atlanta. And it’s been an engine for commercial activity for hundreds of years.

Buddy Sullivan has studied the river and written about it extensively. He talked to GPB’s Joshua Stewart about the economic significance of the Altamaha.

NOTE: Travel down the Altamaha and learn much more about it on Georgia Outdoors premiering 8:30 p.m. Friday, July 29, and 6 p.m. Saturday, July 30, on GPB TV.