Cherokee ground · 1834 · The apples
Ellijay History
Ellijay's story runs from the Cherokee village and trade center that gave it a name, through a railroad-era county seat, to the apple industry that made it the state's apple capital.
The name comes down from the Cherokee word Elatseyi, generally translated as "new ground" or "green place," and the city's own history notes the exact origin is not certain.
The founding
The Cherokee town that became the county seat
The site was a Cherokee village and trade center where the Ellijay and Cartecay rivers meet, a natural meeting place long before any county existed. Gilmer County was created in 1832 from Cherokee County territory, and Ellijay was designated the county seat in 1834, incorporated on December 29 of that year.
The railroad arrived in the early 1900s, and the depot the L&N built in 1912 still stands downtown on the riverside, where it now houses a local business. The rails carried timber, apples, and the county's trade; passenger service is long gone.
The apples
How a bug made the county the apple capital
The boll weevil ended cotton's hold on the county in the 1920s, and the fields went to apple trees. The cool mountain climate, the elevation, and the well-drained hillsides suited the fruit, and Gilmer County became the heart of Georgia's commercial apple industry.
The Georgia Apple Festival has run since 1971, and today the county's orchards, farm markets, and pick-your-own fields along Highway 52 East are the state's best-known apple country. The story of a Cherokee place name that became the apple capital is the whole Ellijay identity in one line.
The full picture
Where the deep history lives
The apple story is best experienced on the Ellijay Apple Country drive guide and the B.J. Reece day trip, and the county's own historical markers and the downtown walking routes tell the rest. The Ellijay guide ties everything together.
An editorial guide, not a listings site. Updated September 13, 2026. Real-estate guidance on this page is provided by Rob Dietrich, REALTOR® with eXp Realty, LLC.