Something for Everyone!
Leave behind the hustle and bustle and find yourself surrounded by beauty and charm. Visit Moultrie – a small city with big southern pride. You will find a thriving agricultural industry, historic homes, world-class recreational facilities, and one of the best cultural arts center in Georgia. Take a stroll down the tree-lined streets that surround our award-winning courthouse and enjoy shopping in the downtown eclectic specialty shops and dining in the restaurants. Be entertained by our concerts, festivals, and special events throughout the year on the downtown square, including the annual Spring Fling Festival, annual holiday festivities and award-winning lighted, nighttime Christmas parade.
Historic Downtown: A visit through downtown Moultrie will charm you at first sight. Specialty shops, antiques stores, and restaurants line the streets. Designated on the National Register of Historic Planes, the famed Colquitt County Courthouse, once voted the prettiest courthouse in Georgia, has recently been restored to its original splendor. Events are held year-round downtown, such as the Spring Fling, sidewalk sales, our annual holiday festivities which include our award-winning lighted courthouse and nighttime Christmas parade, and much more. For more information regarding the downtown area, call (229) 890-5455 or visit www.downtownmoultrie.com.
The Colquitt County Arts Center: From high school hijinks to high art museum, the Colquitt County Arts Center, formally Moultrie High School, is the landmark for the artistic community and offers extensive programming in the visual and performing arts. The galleries of the Arts Center display a number of world-renowned exhibits throughout the year and have played host to the likes of Henri Matisse and Armand Hammer exhibits. Housing permanent collections and hosting special exhibits which are highlighted throughout the year, here’s just some of what you can expect at the Arts Center: Fall Quilt Exhibition, theater groups, concerts, and education for youth and adults. Concerts and special events provide entertainment for all. For more information, call (229) 985-1922 or visit www.colquittcountyarts.com.
Golfing at Sunset Country Club: This course is a golfer’s delight for daily and weekend play. For the golf enthusiasts, Sunset Country Club offers a beautifully landscaped 18-hole course. Sunset is a private club with a full range of facilities and activities, including swimming, fishing, tennis, a full-service pro shop, and a restaurant-lounge. Guests are welcome. It is also the home of the annual Pot O’Gold Pro-Am Tournament held each spring. Call (229) 890-5555 for more information or to schedule a tee time.
Main St. Park: Main St. Park is 5.97-acre community park developed on historic, tree-lined South Main Street at the former site of the Vereen Memorial Hospital. Located in the heart of Moultrie, well landscaped and fenced passive park features an ADA compliant shelter with restrooms, a modern handicap accessible playground structure with play panels, and children’s swings. Other amenities include park benches, picnic tables, a quarter-mile walking trail, over 700 feet of sidewalks, and paved parking with curbs, gutters, and lighting. This attractive leisure area is open to the public daily and plays hosts to school groups, local residents, and out of town visitors as well.
Museum of Colquitt County History: Visit Colquitt County through the ages. The Museum of Colquitt County History houses articles depicting different aspects of early life in Colquitt County. Maintained by a core of volunteers, the museum welcomes all visitors and natives alike for a tour of special exhibits and permanent displays. Recently added was a permanent exhibit of the Colquitt County Sports Hall of Fame. For more information, call (229) 890-1626 or visit www.colquittmuseum.org.
Ellen Payne Odom Genealogical Library: Foreign roots can be found planted in Moultrie. Located in the Moultrie Public Library, the Genealogical Library offers a collection of genealogical, ethnic, and historical information for professional and amateur researchers. The library is an approved AAA travel destination attraction. The Genealogical Library attracts thousands of visitors to Moultrie for research purposes year-round. For more information, call (229) 985-6540 or visit www.mccls.org/odom_gen.htm.
Moss Farms Diving Facility: This nationally sanctioned diving facility, named after Robert “Moose” Moss, was a dream that became a reality. Moose Moss put together a group of residents and built a diving complex like no other in the entire United States. The eight springboards, ten- meter platform, and indoor training facility has showcased some of the world’s best divers since its dedication in 1993. In 1996 seven Olympic diving teams training at the Moultrie facility in preparation for the 1996 Olympics held in Atlanta, Ga. With its state of the art indoor training facility, the Moss Farms Diving Complex is recognized as one of only 4 US Diving sanctioned training sites in the United States and hosts highly competitive diving competitions almost annually including the U. S. Diving National Championships. For more information, call (229) 890-5478 or visit www.mossfarmsdiving.com.
Hunting Plantations: Colquitt County is truly a sportsman’s paradise. Hunters from across the country and around the world marvel at the sporting opportunities of Colquitt County’s outstanding hunting preserves. Games include dove, turkey, deer, quail, and duck. Skeet shooting and sporting clays on a range are also an option at area gun clubs. For a complete list of plantations in Colquitt County, please contact us at (229) 985-2131 or visit our Chamber Plantation Members page.
Reed Bingham State Park: As a popular recreation area, Reed Bingham offers a variety of facilities and activities situated along the county lines of Colquitt and Cook counties. The 1,620-acre park encompasses a 375-acre lake and a 3.5-mile nature trail which includes a cypress swamp, a pitcher plant bog, and other habitats representative of South Georgia. Campgrounds and areas for picnicking, fishing, boating, swimming, biking, kayaking, and canoeing are available to the public, as well as a miniature golf course. You may even spot one of the resident bald eagles, alligators, or gopher tortoises. For more information, call (229) 896-3551 or visit www.gastateparks.org/ReedBingham.
Tom White Linear Park: Completed in 2002, this $1,100,000 “Rails to Trails” project provides a paved bike trail running 7.23 miles from the Municipal Airport to Downtown Moultrie. In addition to the ten-foot wide asphalt bike path with mile markers, it includes a six-foot wide gravel dust jogging track adjacent to the trail for runners that prefer a softer running surface. The trail includes paved parking at the airport and the Lower Meigs road trail head. Shelters, park benches, water fountains, trash receptacles, and even a Born Learning toddler trail is located along the trail at no charge for public use.
Sunbelt Ag Expo: Known as “North America’s Premier Farm Show,”™ the annual Sunbelt Ag Expo event has more than 1,200 exhibitors showcasing the latest in farming technology. The Expo’s unique site has a 100-acre exhibit area adjoining a 600-acre working research farm. In the exhibit area, which includes both indoor and outdoor exhibits, visitors will find every imaginable product and service a farm could ever need. In addition to the static exhibits, visitors can attend educational, entertaining seminars and demonstrations offered in a variety of specialized areas. Visitors can ride a tram from the exhibit area to the fields where cotton, peanuts, corn, soybeans, and hay are being harvested. These harvesting demonstrations, as well as tillage demonstrations, equipment driving ranges, irrigation technology, and precision ag demonstrations, all provide opportunities to see and compare a wide range of equipment in an actual working setting. Company representatives and specialists are in the fields to answer attendee questions. Whether you are a large acreage production farmer or a weekend lifestyle farmer, the Expo is an event you don’t want to miss. For more information, call (229) 985-1968 or visit www.sunbeltexpo.com.
Calico Arts & Crafts Show: This show is a one-stop shopping extravaganza for Southwest Georgia and the surrounding area. From ornamental iron home and garden décor, to painted glass and antiques, to whimsical painted children’s furniture and accessories… it’s all together in one location. Approximately 300 vendors from the nation’s southeast region exhibit their selections of fine art, handmade crafts, and hand-decorated items, offering unique purchase and gift options for you and your loved ones. In addition to the arts and crafts, Calico offers a wide selection of mouth-watering food and refreshments, as well as clogging performances. The show has become an established, highly-anticipated event held each March and November. Free parking and accessibility make it easy to start having fun immediately. For more information, call (229) 985-1968 or visit www.calicocrafts.com.
Automotive Swapmeet & Car Corral: Our bi-annual, three-day automotive event, with 70,000 square feet of inside space and over 4,000 outside spaces, is an automobile lover’s dream with parts, tools, literature, equipment, antique and performance parts, crafts/collectibles, not to mention the thousands of automobiles of many makes and models ranging in various stages of restoration. Also, don’t miss getting a good buy at the auto auction or purchase one from the many vendors. Call (888) 686-2102 or visit www.moultrieswapmeet.com for more information.
Number ONE Agricultural County in Georgia! Agribusiness is the industry through which Colquitt County got its start and remains the foundation of the community’s economy. Approximately 900 farms produce approximately $160 million in cash crops annually, making Colquitt County the most diverse agricultural county east of the Mississippi River. Most agriculturally diverse County east of the great Mississippi. Agribusiness is the industry through which Colquitt County got its start and remains the foundation of the community’s economy. Approximately 900 farms produce about $480 million in cash crops annually, making Colquitt County the most diverse agricultural county east of the Mississippi River. Top producing crops include cotton, tobacco, peanuts, and various produce. For more information on agriculture in Colquitt County, please contact the Extension Service at (229) 891-7455.
Spence Field: In 1941, before the United States was actively engaged in World War II, a new Army Air Force base was carved from some 1,600 acres of tobacco and cotton fields a few miles southeast of Moultrie, Georgia. It was named Spence Air Base after World War I hero Lt. Thomas Lewis Spence of Thomasville, Georgia. When the attack on Pearl Harbor came on December 7, 1941, a small military detachment of 27 officers and 39 enlisted men staffed Spence Air Base. The base grew rapidly into an advanced single-engine training base that functioned throughout the war. Spence was reactivated in 1951 during the Korean conflict due to the increased need for well-trained military pilots. The first United States Air Force (USAF) class, Class 52-C, reported for training in May 1951. The 1951-1961 decade saw over a million hours flown, with over 2.5 million take offs and landings and over 6,400 flight students successfully completing their training courses. In addition to the male and female flight trainees from the United States, 34 other countries were represented among the student trainees. It was indeed a decade of accomplishment for all involved. Today, three of the wartime hangars are still in existence at Spence Field. Other buildings built by during the war also remain. Spence Field is a host to many large events, including the Calico Arts & Crafts Show, Automotive Swapmeet, and the Sunbelt Ag Expo, the world’s largest farm show with over 1,000 exhibitors. Since many of the visitors fly to the show, Spence’s old tower is manned during the event to control air traffic. Sunbelt Expo maintains a year-round administration center at Spence. www.spenceairbase.com
Doerun Pitcherplant Bog: This natural area has both intact longleaf/wiregrass uplands and acres upon acres of pitcherplants! Located on the Gulf Coastal Plain of southwest Georgia in Colquitt County between Doerun and Moultrie, Doerun Pitcherplant Bog Natural Area contains 651 acres along the Ochlockonee River. For more information, visit www.georgiawildlife.com/doerun-pitcherplant-bog-wma.