John Ashton Hester Exhibit Hall
Displays Unique to Oconee County!
Oconee History Museum displays hundreds of artifacts that tell the story of Oconee County and its people. Visitors learn how Oconee’s physical and cultural landscape has changed over the past 250+ years through exhibits featuring the history of Native Americans, immigration, railroads, New Deal programs, textile mills, agriculture and much more. Bring your kids and enjoy the Louise Russell Alexander Children’s Corner. Want to see your family represented in the museum? Submit a photo for the Oconee Ancestor’s Gallery.
Always on Display
Chattooga Canoe
Oconee History Museum is fortunate to house unique Native American artifacts including our showcase piece the “Chattooga Canoe”. This 32 1/2 ft. dugout canoe has been carbon dated to the late 1700s. In 2004 a recreational boater discovered the canoe along the bank of the Chattooga River in Oconee County. A team of volunteers carried it from the river and placed it on a custom-built cradle for to transport to our facility. For many years the museum performed a lengthy preservation treatment on the Chattooga Canoe. Preservation is now complete and visitors can see the canoe inside the exhibit area. This artifact is truly a remarkable piece of Oconee history!
Keowee Canoe
A second dugout canoe known as the “Keowee Canoe” was rescued from the Keowee River in 2008. Like the Chattooga Canoe, the Keowee Canoe also underwent an extensive preservation process, which is now complete.
Oconee Ancestor's Gallery
The Oconee Ancestor’s Gallery stretches around the exhibit hall mezzanine and features images of many of our Oconee ancestors and families. For $25 an image may be submitted to the gallery using the Ancestors Gallery form below. Submissions must be at least 50 years old. All images will be scanned and returned to you.
Louise Russell Alexanders Children's Corner
The Louise Russell Alexander Children’s Corner is a great place for kids to interact with Oconee’s history. This camping-themed space includes a library of children’s books relating to US history and Southern Appalachian heritage.
