Cartersville in Bartow County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
A Bench By The Road
Photographed by Mark Parker, May 10, 2025
1. A Bench by the Road Marker
There is no place you or I can go, to think about or not think about, to summon the presences of, or recollect the absences of slaves; nothing that reminds us of the ones who made the journey and of those who did not make it. There is no suitable memorial or plaque or wreath or wall or park or skyscraper lobby. There's no three-hundred-foot tower. There's no small bench by the road.
- Toni Morrison 1989
The Bench by the Road Project was launched by the Toni Morrison Society in honor of Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison. This Bench is placed to commemorate the role of African-Americans in building the historic W&A Railroad and the Cartersville Train Depot. Starting in the 1840's, enslaved men, women, and children toiled in the construction of the railroad and the depot, and after the Civil War, African-American convict-lease laborers repaired and expanded the tracks. During the Great Migration, these same railroads provided the first steps to freedom for Blacks in Cartersville who were seeking a better way of life in the North and the West. Throughout the South, rail lines and the train depots that facilitated their use are important sites of memory in African American history, as they document the labor of those who were enslaved and the pathways of freedom and return for their descendants.
Cartersville,
this page online
October 10, 2020
Erected 2020.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Railroads & Streetcars.
Location. 34° 9.973′ N, 84° 47.766′ W. Marker is in Cartersville, Georgia, in Bartow County. It can be reached from the intersection of North Public Square and West Cherokee Avenue, on the right when traveling north. The marker is at ground level near a public bench, just east of the public parking lot, near the train tracks. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 21 N Public Square, Cartersville GA 30120, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Georgia’s Mountains. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Been Working on the Railroad (here, next to this marker); Pathways to Freedom: A Story in Every Stitch (within shouting distance of this marker); God Bless America (within shouting distance of this marker); The Heart of the Chase (within shouting distance of this marker); Amos T. Akerman (within shouting distance of this marker); Warren Akin, Sr. (within shouting distance of this marker); Francis S. Bartow (within shouting distance of this marker); Chief Justice Robert Benham (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cartersville.
Photographed by Mark Parker, May 10, 2025
2. A Bench by the Road Marker and Bench by public parking lot
Photographed by Mark Parker, May 10, 2025
3. A Bench by the Road Marker. The Cartersville train depot in the background is across W. Cherokee Ave
Credits. This page was last revised on February 22, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 26, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 180 times since then and 26 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 26, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
