The longtime president of the Gilmer County Historical Society and manager of Ellijay’s Tabor House Museum has retired from those posts.
Several historical society members, museum volunteers and friends wished Leslie Thomas a happy retirement last week at the Spring Street museum, which is inside the oldest standing home in downtown Ellijay. Commission Chairman Charlie Paris presented Thomas an award of appreciation for her dedicated service and leadership.
After Leslie and her husband, Rod, moved here from Woodstock almost 25 years ago, a keen interest in history led her to become involved with the local historical and genealogical societies.
“Leslie and Rod had a passion to preserve the history of Gilmer County. What we’re in right now is kind of a result of that passion,” said Doug Piette, the historical society’s new president.
“Rod, Leslie and many others helped renovate the (Tabor) House and put all the stuff in here. We owe it to them and their leadership. After Rod’s death, Leslie carried on that leadership and that burden herself. I think Rod would be very proud of the museum’s success and proud of all (Leslie’s) other accomplishments.”
Thomas began her almost 17-year tenure as historical society president in 2007. That same year, the historical society found a new home in the Tabor House, which is next door to the courthouse. Named for various members of the Tabor family who once lived there, the 1800s-era Victorian house is owned by the county.
“(The historical society) had no place to have any meetings or anything, and we used to work with the genealogy society. The commissioners at that time called us in to one of their meetings and said, ‘Would you take the Tabor House?’ Me and my smart aleck mouth said, ‘Where do you want me to take it?’ and they all laughed,” Thomas remembered. “They told us we had to put $75,000 into it, and there was just no way (we could do that). But we found out it could be in volunteer hours.”
Society members and volunteers started working to bring the old house up, and the idea to start a museum focused on different aspects of Gilmer County history soon took shape.
“We knew there was enough space to have meetings and whatnot. We kept (working on) things, but we really didn’t expect it to be a museum,” Thomas said.
“(Soon after) we started working on this, people started showing up outside the house with things, so we started taking the stuff in and figuring out where to put it all. Everything has been rearranged (over time), and new things have been added. Every time you get new volunteers, which we always need more of, they’re always great at figuring out some other ways to help people enjoy it.”
Many in the community, including the museum’s volunteer staff, have relied on Thomas’ dependability as a source of local history, particularly the Native American history of this area.
“Most people don’t understand that this used to be the Cherokee Nation,” she said.
That particular interest led Thomas to also serve on both the National and Georgia Trail of Tears Association (TOTA) boards. Both are focused on identifying, protecting and preserving the trail’s historic resources and promoting awareness of the trail, which stretches from the Appalachian Mountains to Oklahoma. She has two years left on her current term as Georgia TOTA president and three more years on her term with the the National TOTA.
Thomas said she’s so proud to have been involved with Ellijay’s volunteer-staffed museum — the only facility of its kind in the county — since the beginning. Having a museum here has allowed the historical society to display many interesting items loaned or donated by the public, which would not have been seen by so many otherwise.
“It’s just a vast array of information, and it all belongs here in Gilmer County. That’s what we’re trying to convey to the people who move here,” Thomas said. “We’ve had a lot of new visitors who’ve decided they want to see what this is all about.“
Thomas, who now lives in Chatsworth, said her health played a big role in deciding to step down from the positions.
“This has been my heart for so long, but it’s just like anything else. You get to a point to where you’ve had enough,” she said.
Piette and his wife, Judy, will be managing the museum from here on out, Thomas noted.
“They both have the heart and a driving force for it,” she said.