Gone With The Wind Museum Savannah Ga

The Twelve Oaks Is Now Open Book Your Dream Room Today

The home that inspired Twelve Oaks in Gone with the Wind is now reopen! We plan to offer historic tours of the mansion and grounds making this the only antebellum home of this size that you can tour in the Atlanta area. Explore Georgia named the Twelve Oaks as one of the top antebellum sites to see in Georgia.

The Tubman Museum Macon Ga

Macon, Georgia is the home of Little Richard, the Macon Cherry Blossom Festival, and the Tubman Museum. The Tubman is the largest museum in the southeast that tells the stories of the African American community. For more than 30 years, the museum has housed artwork and artifacts, telling the rich history of famed African Americans. A 55-foot-long mural is the museums centerpiece, depicting the feats of African Americans over the centuries.

Aunt Pittypats House In Atlanta

Scarlett becomes a widow during the war and is so bored with mourning that she goes to stay with Aunt Pittypat in Atlanta, where she is courted by Rhett Butler.

Love the arched doorway into the room with the piano:

Ashley returns to Atlanta on leave for Christmas.

Note the Christmas tree on the table behind them, lit with real candles:

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Gone With The Wind In Atlanta

Gone with the Wind Museum visits are self-guided unless scheduled ahead for groups of 15 people or more. For a more comprehensive Gone with the Wind experience, look for tours that bundle admission to the museum with other attractions like the Margaret Mitchell House and the location of the original 1939 movie premiere.

Oakland Cemetery Visitors Center & Museum Shop Atlanta Ga

Ever been to an outdoor museum? Theres a first time for everything! Oakland Cemetery, Visitors Center & Museum Shop cannot be left off this list. There is more to this museum than just a cemetery, too. In the 19th century, as a prelude to the national park system, a rural garden movement thrived in the U.S. Garden cemeteries at that time were created as more than a place for the grieving to mourn their lost loved ones, but also as a destination for picnics and carriage rides. Atlantas Oakland Cemetery is more than just a park and botanical garden, as it is also home of impressive art and architecture, including 55 mausoleums, Smithsonian-listed sculptures, Tiffany stained glass windows, and the 1899 Gothic Revival Bell Tower. The Bell Tower is one of the oldest structures in Atlanta still standing in its original location. The 48-acre property includes a Visitors Center and Museum Shop, located in the historic Bell Tower, where visitors can drop in for a tour, flip through a selection of books on cemetery symbolism, peruse locally-crafted jewelry and gifts, and enjoy a selection of Atlanta and Civil War history merchandise. And since we seem to be on a Gone with the Wind theme here, Oakland just happens to be the final resting place of Margaret Mitchell, as well as several state governors, Atlanta mayors, and Civil War generals and soldiers.

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Gone With The Wind Tour

The Gone with the Wind Tour, also in Jonesboro, is a tour of the Gone with the Wind Historic District. In her book, Margaret Mitchell located Scarlett OHaras home, Tara, in Clayton County. So, it is little surprise that the Clayton County Convention & Visitors Bureau tour provides information about Mitchell and her summer visits to her grandparents, the Fitzgeralds, near Jonesboro. Learn inside information about characters in Gone with the Wind and more about the Battle of Jonesboro.

Want to explore more history in Atlanta? Use our Civil War History Itinerary to learn about notable Civil War sites and landmarks and our Civil Rights Itinerary to experience and learn about the people and places that made Atlanta the center of the Civil Rights movement through today.

In Gone With The Wind

In Gone with the Wind, Tara was founded by Irish immigrant Gerald O’Hara after he won 640 acres or one square mile of land from its absentee owner during an all-night poker game. An Irish peasant farmer rather than the merchant his elder brothers wanted him to be, Gerald relished the thought of becoming a planter and gave his mostly wilderness and uncultivated new lands the grandiose name of Tara after the Hill of Tara, once the capital of the High King of ancient Ireland. He borrowed money from his brothers and bankers to buy slaves and turned the farm into a very successful cotton plantation. Gerald realized that the manor house needed a feminine touch and domestic servants. Consulting with his valet, Pork, whom he had won in a card game, he was told, “whut you needs is a wife, and a wife whut has got plen’y of house n*ggers.” So Gerald set off to Savannah to look for a wife meeting this qualification.

At 43, Gerald married the 15-year-old Ellen Robillard, a wealthy Savannah-born girl of French descent, receiving as dowry twenty slaves . His young bride took a very real interest in the management of the plantation, being in some ways a more hands-on manager than her husband. With the injection of her dowry money and the rise of cotton prices, Tara grew to a plantation of more than 1,000 acres and more than 100 slaves by the dawn of the Civil War.

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Livingston Restaurant + Bar

Head to Livingston Restaurant + Bar at the Georgian Terrace Hotel. Found beneath the grand staircase in the hotel where Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable and Margaret Mitchell attended the after-party for the Atlanta premiere of Gone with the Wind, Livingston features a menu of seasonal flavors and hand-crafted cocktails.Address: 659 Peachtree Street, NE, Atlanta, GA 30308

ntrance to the Georgian Terrace Hotel Editorial credit: Conchi Martinez / Shutterstock.com

The Wilkes Family Plantation: Twelve Oaks

The exterior of Twelve Oaks wasnt real. For old movies like this they often used matte paintings.

In the screenshot above, you can see how the images of the carriages rumbling up the drive were added later, creating a ghostly effect.

The long drive and grounds were supposedly inspired by Boone Plantation. You can see a photo of the famous Avenue of Oaks that served as the inspiration for Twelve Oaks avenue in my post about The Notebook.

The did create a real front porch for the scenes where Scarlett and her family were greeted at the door, but the barbecue scenes were shot at Busch Gardens.

Update: Its on the market! See interior photos of the real Twelve Oaks.

The idea of the women going upstairs to take a nap together in the middle of the party seems odd to us now, doesnt it?

And to see all those young slave girls put to work fanning them always kills me:

The men are downstairs having a meeting about the possibility of war:

Scarlett beckons Ashley into the library:

After Ashley refuses to dump Melanie and marry Scarlett instead, Scarlett picks up a vase and throws it.

We all know whos lying on that settee, having heard every word:

After the war, Twelve Oaks is just a shadow of its former self.

Here we get a view of the crumbling staircase that Scarlett comes back to:

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Rhett And Scarletts New House In Atlanta

After the war, Scarlett marries Rhett and they build themselves the biggest, glitziest

mansion possible in Atlanta. From what Ive read, the exterior wasnt real, but another matte painting.

Staircases dont get much more grand than this one.

When they were filming this in the 1930s, the set itself was segregated in the beginning,

which makes Hattie McDaniels Oscar win for playing Mammy even more significant.

She accepted her Oscar in The Ambassador Hotel, which had a No Blacks policy.

According to a poignant article about it in The Hollywood Reporter:

McDaniel then was escorted, not to the Gone With the Wind table where Selznick sat with de Havilland and his two Oscar-nominated leads, Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable but to a small table set against a far wall, where she took a seat with her escort, F.P. Yober, and her white agent, William Meiklejohn.

With the hotels strict no-blacks policy, Selznick had to call in a special favor just to have McDaniel allowed into the building .

The vanity in Scarletts room has crystal light fixtures, swooping draperies and is that a polar bear rug?

They only show Bonnies bedroom briefly, but what a bedroom it is!

Gone With The Wind Museum Tours And Tickets

The Gone with the Wind Museum in Marietta, Georgia, offers a behind-the-scenes look at the epic novel-turned-movie. Though small, the museums rare signature items and memorabilia celebrate the iconic tale and 1939 film. A top piece is the Bengaline silk honeymoon gown worn by Vivien Leigh, who portrayed Scarlett OHara in the film.

Gone with the Wind Museum

The Gone with the Wind Museum in Marietta, Georgia, offers a behind-the-scenes look at the epic novel-turned-movie. Though small, the museums rare signature items and memorabilia celebrate the iconic tale and 1939 film. A top piece is the Bengaline silk honeymoon gown worn by Vivien Leigh, who portrayed Scarlett OHara in the film.

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Center For Puppetry Museum Atlanta Ga

Kermit the Frog and Jim Henson cut the ribbon to open Atlantas Center for Puppetry Arts in 1978, so its not surprising that one of the museums most popular permanent exhibits is based on Henson and his work. The Global Collection, which highlights puppetry traditions from different cultures around the globe, includes puppetry art from Asia, Africa, Europe, and the U.S. The center also features special rotating exhibits each year.

Biographical Background And Publication

Born in 1900 in Atlanta, was a Southerner and writer throughout her life. She grew up hearing stories about the American Civil War and the Reconstruction from her Irish-American grandmother, Annie Fitzgerald Stephens, who had endured its suffering while living on the family plantation, Rural Home. Her forceful and intellectual mother, Maybelle Stephens Mitchell, was a suffragist who fought for the rights of women to vote.

As a young woman, Mitchell found love with an army lieutenant. He was killed in World War I, and she would carry his memory for the remainder of her life. After studying at Smith College for a year during which time her mother died from the 1918 pandemic flu, Mitchell returned to Atlanta. She married, but her husband was an abusive bootlegger. Mitchell took a job writing feature articles for the Atlanta Journal at a time when Atlanta debutantes of her class did not work. After divorcing her first husband, she married again to a man who shared her interest in writing and literature. He had been the best man at her first wedding.

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Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Kennesaw

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park is a nearly 3,000-acre battlefield that was the site of a battle during the Atlanta Campaign. Today you can hike the trails throughout the park or even up the mountain, which has views of downtown Atlanta. The visitors center has information on the battlefields significance in the Civil War.

Follow In The Footsteps Of The Pulitzer

Stops on your DTour will include:

• The Margaret Mitchell House – the apartment where the Pulitzer-Prize winning author lived and wrote Gone With The Wind. Currently, we are visiting the Gone With the Wind Museum in Marietta with an extensive collection of memorabilia from the book and film until the Margaret Mitchell House reopens

• The Georgian Terrace – the historic hotel where the film’s premiere party was held in 1939

• Inman Park – site of the Battle of Atlanta, featured prominently in the novel. The neighborhood now contains some of Atlanta’s grandest Victorian homes

• Oakland Cemetery – the garden cemetery is the final resting place for thousands of Civil War soldiers as well as Margaret Mitchell and her family

• Peachtree Street – visit the location on Atlanta’s major thoroughfare where Margaret Mitchell met her untimely death

• Ansley Park – tour the historic, tree-lined neighborhood where Margaret Mitchell was born

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Stately Oaks Plantation Jonesboro

Stately Oaks Plantation is a Greek Revival plantation and grounds that are great examples of the Antebellum homes that inspired Mitchell. The historic community includes the main house, a one-room schoolhouse, a country store, and a cookhouse.

The home has been furnished with period-accurate pieces. Owner Rebecca McCord, like Scarlett, had to protect her home against Union soldiers during the Civil War.

Looking for a place to stay during your visit? The Georgian Terrace Hotel in Atlanta hosted the 1939 Gone with the Wind Gala with stars Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable, and author Margaret Mitchell. It continues to host celebrities to this day.

PIN IT

Special thanks to the Road to Tara Museum and the Marietta Gone with the Wind Museum for their hosting me at their respective museums. Image header courtesy of the Gone with the Wind Trail.

Booth Western Art Museum Cartersville Ga

One of the best western art museums can be found down south in Cartersville, Georgia. The Booth Western Art Museum features an assortment of artwork that can be viewed at your leisure or as part of an hour-long guided tour of the permanent exhibit area that takes place daily at 1:30 p.m. The permanent collection features more than 100 works of art including paintings and sculptures. The collection is divided into four themed areas, each showcasing art specific to an artistic topic or historic time period. Families should enjoy the interactive play space of the Sagebrush Ranch area, which offers hands-on art and western-themed activities.

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Atlanta History Center Atlanta

The Atlanta History Center has one of the best exhibits on the Civil War anywhere in the nation, with over 1,500 artifacts. They tell the history of Atlanta and the region throughout the last two centuries.

The grounds include the history center, the Swan House, the Centennial Olympic Games Museum, and the Smith Family Farm, pictured. General admission tickets can get you into all of the grounds as well as the Margaret Mitchell House.

The Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum is the largest of only three in the United States and depicts the Battle of Atlanta. It is 42 feet tall and 358 feet in circumference. It was previously located in Grant Park, but now has its own building in the history center. A Rhett Butler figure is even included in the diorama.

The William Bremen Jewish Heritage Museum Atlanta Ga

The Bremen Museum has some pretty amazing and impactful exhibits, both permanent and visiting. The Absence of Humanity: The Holocaust Years, 1933-1945 is the museums focal exhibit. Displaying Atlantas Jewish cultural, artistic and resonate history, The Bremen also includes a considerable library and archives, and is home to The Weinberg Center for Holocaust Education. One of the unique things about The Bremen is its online exhibit. If you cant make it to Atlanta in person, just go online to visit from the comfort of your favorite chair.

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Southern Belles & Whistles Tour

After youre finished with the Road to Tara Museum, take a relaxing ride through Jonesboro to see author Margaret Mitchells historic Clayton County with the Southern Belles & Whistles Tour. Mitchell spent her childhood summers in and around Jonesboro with her grandparents and listened to their stories of the Civil War and the Reconstruction, helping to inspire her future novel. The bus tour of the area has several stops with ties to Mitchell and Gone With the Wind, one of which includes a stop at the Warren House and the Rhett Butler and Scarlett Drives intersection. The Southern Belles & Whistles Tour runs Monday – Saturday at 11:00am and begins at the Road to Tara Museum.

Road To Tara Museum Jonesboro

Set in a historic train depot, Jonesboros Road To Tara Museum has also benefited greatly from private donations from Herb Bridges. The museum starts with information on the Civil War and specifically the battles waged in the small town.

From there, you can see clips of the film, replicas of costumes and translations of the book. For an extra $13.95, I recommend taking the Gone with the Wind bus tour that leaves from the museum daily. The guide tells stories of the real people that inspired Mitchells classic.

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Things To Know Before You Go

• The museum is an absolute must for Gone with the Wind fans as well as those with an interest in antebellum Georgia history. Its not the best choice for children, who may find it uninteresting.

• Plan to spend roughly an hour visiting the museum.

• Student and senior discounts are available.

• The museum doesnt have food services but there are restaurants within walking distance.

Facts About The Marietta Gone With The Wind Museum:

• The Museum was founded in 1993.
• It is located at the intersection of Highway 41 and I75, just north of Atlanta near Kennesaw State University.
• A bronze sculpture on display outside depicts a scene from Gone with the Wind, when Rhett Butler goes to Tara to retrieve Scarlett O’Hara’s belongings before she leaves for her honeymoon.
• There are 16 permanent exhibits inside as well as rotating temporary ones that showcase different aspects of Georgian culture such as textiles or theater costumes associated with Southern films like “Gone With The Wind” and others. In addition there are several special events held throughout the year, including an annual commemoration ceremony for Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest on July 13th.
• The Museum is also home to the only authenticated copy of Margaret Mitchell’s original typed manuscript for Gone with the Wind.
• There are two theaters in which visitors can watch film clips and documentaries about Georgia, as well as a reference library and gift shop on site.

• Strand Theatre
• The Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art
• The Marietta Museum of History
• The William Root House Museum and Garden
• The Big Chicken

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