Mount Wilkinson
Encyclopedia
Mount Wilkinson, commonly called Vinings Mountain, is a low mountain
immediately north-northwest of and directly overlook
ing downtown
Vinings
, in southeast Cobb County
, Georgia
, USA
. Although it rises significantly from the surrounding terrain
, it is actually at or slightly below the average elevation
for the region, as it is in the Chattahoochee River
valley
.
It is said that in 1864, U.S. Army
General
William T. Sherman
got his first look at the church spires of Atlanta
from the summit
of Signal Mountain, a.k.a. Mount Wilkinson.
The mountain, left only partly forested, is now topped with high-rise office towers, part of the Cumberland/Galleria edge city
of metro Atlanta
. Among these buildings lies a small, private cemetery in which Hardy Pace (1785–1864), a founder of Vinings and operator of Pace's Ferry
, is buried. Mount Wilkinson Parkway is one of the roads in the area.
A newspaper article of the day read as follows: "Never was a mountain more highly honored in its name than the newly christened "Mount Mell Wilkinson" purchased for the Bert Adams Boy Scout camp, which it adjoined. Formerly known as Signal Mountain, it is the highest point between Kennesaw Mountain and Stone Mountain. It is renamed in honor of Atlanta's "grand old man" of Scouting, Mell B. Wilkinson.
The Atlanta Rotary Club contributed one half of the $5,000.00 cost price of the mountain and the other half was quickly made up by smaller gifts from friends of Mr. Wilkinson. In fact, when the gifts were all in there was $600 extra, to be used to purchase more land at the camp.
Mr. Wilkinson has long been one of the outstanding national figures in the affairs of the Boy Scouts. He was the first president of the Atlanta Council and since then has held high office in the national organization."
The camp also included land that was sold to build the present day Cumberland Mall and surrounding office complexes and apartments. Streets in the immediate vicinity are still named for the camp and the mountain.
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
immediately north-northwest of and directly overlook
Overlook
A scenic overlook, or just an overlook, observation point, lookout or viewing point, is a high place where people can gather to view scenery , and to photograph it. Scenic overlooks are typically created alongside mountain roads, often as a simple turnouts where motorists can pull over onto...
ing downtown
Downtown
Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's core or central business district ....
Vinings
Vinings, Georgia
Vinings is a census-designated place and an unincorporated town in Cobb County, Georgia, just across the Chattahoochee River from Atlanta. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 9,734. It is located between the affluent West Paces Ferry section of Buckhead in northwest Atlanta,...
, in southeast Cobb County
Cobb County, Georgia
Cobb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta, which is located in the center of the county. The county was named for Thomas Willis Cobb, who in the early 19th century was a United States representative and senator from Georgia...
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Although it rises significantly from the surrounding terrain
Terrain
Terrain, or land relief, is the vertical and horizontal dimension of land surface. When relief is described underwater, the term bathymetry is used...
, it is actually at or slightly below the average elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
for the region, as it is in the Chattahoochee River
Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River flows through or along the borders of the U.S. states of Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers and emptying into Apalachicola Bay in the Gulf of...
valley
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
.
It is said that in 1864, U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
William T. Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...
got his first look at the church spires of Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
from the summit
Summit (topography)
In topography, a summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a local maximum in elevation...
of Signal Mountain, a.k.a. Mount Wilkinson.
The mountain, left only partly forested, is now topped with high-rise office towers, part of the Cumberland/Galleria edge city
Edge city
"Edge city" is an American term for a concentration of business, shopping, and entertainment outside a traditional urban area in what had recently been a residential suburb or semi-rural community...
of metro Atlanta
Metro Atlanta
The Atlanta metropolitan area or metro Atlanta, officially designated by the US Census Bureau as the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the ninth-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States...
. Among these buildings lies a small, private cemetery in which Hardy Pace (1785–1864), a founder of Vinings and operator of Pace's Ferry
Pace's Ferry
Through much of the 19th century, Pace's Ferry was an important ferry across the Chattahoochee River near Atlanta. Started in the early 1830s near Peachtree Creek, it was run by Hardy Pace, one of the city's founders...
, is buried. Mount Wilkinson Parkway is one of the roads in the area.
Namesake
Mount Wilkinson was named "Mount Mell Wilkinson", in honor of Mell B. Wilkinson. It is located at what once was the Bert Adams Scout Camp.A newspaper article of the day read as follows: "Never was a mountain more highly honored in its name than the newly christened "Mount Mell Wilkinson" purchased for the Bert Adams Boy Scout camp, which it adjoined. Formerly known as Signal Mountain, it is the highest point between Kennesaw Mountain and Stone Mountain. It is renamed in honor of Atlanta's "grand old man" of Scouting, Mell B. Wilkinson.
The Atlanta Rotary Club contributed one half of the $5,000.00 cost price of the mountain and the other half was quickly made up by smaller gifts from friends of Mr. Wilkinson. In fact, when the gifts were all in there was $600 extra, to be used to purchase more land at the camp.
Mr. Wilkinson has long been one of the outstanding national figures in the affairs of the Boy Scouts. He was the first president of the Atlanta Council and since then has held high office in the national organization."
The camp also included land that was sold to build the present day Cumberland Mall and surrounding office complexes and apartments. Streets in the immediate vicinity are still named for the camp and the mountain.