BlockFrom the record
One of 16 National Register listings published here for Elbert County · listed in 2016 · category: District.
Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service
Bowman Commercial Historic District
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.
The listing
- Address. Public Square on GA 17, Bowman, 30624
- When was it listed? April 2016
- Category. district
- Census division. Bowman
- National Register reference number. 16000128 - assigned by the National Park Service when the property was listed.
Fires near this property
212 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 212 fires within 5 miles of Bowman Commercial Historic District between 1992 and 2020, burning about 420 acres in total. 6 started naturally. 16 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 120 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 38 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 16 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 10 |
| Smoking | 8 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7 |
| Natural | 6 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 4 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 3 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 2002 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2003-ELBERT-016 |
| 5 September 2002 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2003-HART-007 |
| 4 September 2005 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | not named |
| 26 September 2005 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | not named |
| 24 September 2010 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2011-ELBERT-007 |
| 23 September 2010 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2011-HART-006 |
| 17 September 2019 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2020ELBERT003 |
| 14 September 2011 | Smoking | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2012-ELBERT-007 |
Mines and quarries near this property
8 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Bowman Commercial Historic District: 5 past producers, 3 prospects. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Gold, Mica, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Kyanite. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coneross River Mine | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Norman Sillimanite Prospect | Kyanite | Prospect | ||
| Adams Mine | Mica | Prospect | ||
| Dewey Rose Prospect | Mica | Prospect | ||
| Brown Mine (Kings Mount Gold Mine) | Gold | Past Producer | Vein | |
| Brown Property | Gold | Past Producer | Stream Placer | |
| Ginn Placer | Gold | Past Producer | Stream Placer | |
| Ginn Placer | Gold | Past Producer | Stream Placer |
Storms near this property
29 since 1997Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Bowman, the town this property stands in, in 29 storm reports between 1997 and 2025: 17 thunderstorm wind, 6 hail, 3 tornado, 2 flood. The reports record 12 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2003 | Tornado (F2) | Bowman | 12 hurt, $200,000 | This tornado moved from Madison County into northwest Elbert County and intensified, destroying or severely damaging several houses and mobile homes. A parked car was also flipped before the tornado lifted. |
| October 2021 | Flash Flood | Bowman | $250,000 | County comms and stream gauges reported significant flash flooding developed along multiple streams in northern Elbert County. Four to seven inches fell across the area in around a 24-hour period, but the bulk of that fell with a cluster of slow-moving thunderstorms during the morning of the 7th. Multiple roads were damaged from flood water, including Dusty Rd (from Butler Creek), where a vehicle was driven into high water and three occupants required rescue, Allen White Rd (from Deep Creek), Blue Hole Rd (from Little Dove Creek), Gin Bridge Rd, and Green Acres Rd (from a tributary of Pickens Creek). Additionally, a stream gauge on Beaverdam Creek north of Elberton indicated major flooding and a record stream level for the gauge (data from this gauge dates back to the late 1980s.) Multiple roads along the stream were damaged in Dewy Rose and vicinity, including Brickyard Rd, Horse Farm Rd, and Winns Mill Rd, while major damage occurred to a vacant building. |
| October 2021 | Flood | Bowman | $20,000 | Although heavy rainfall ended across Elbert County by late morning, high water conditions persisted on multiple streams throughout the 7th and into the 8th, especially Beaverdam Creek. Numerous roads remained flooded and/or closed due to damage throughout this time. |
| February 2001 | Tornado (F0) | Bowman | $20,000 | no account filed |
| August 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | $20,000 | no account filed |
| October 2009 | Flood | Bowman | $5,000 | After 3 to 4 inches of rain fell over a widespread area in about a twelve-hour period, flooding developed along Wahachee Creek, affecting portions of Edison Rd and Dr. George Ward Rd. Both roads were closed. Also, Beaverdam Creek overflowed its banks in the northern part of the county, flooding Horse Farm Rd and Brickyard Rd and flooding a restaurant on Brewers Bridge Rd. Kurt Anderson Rd was also closed for a while. |
| March 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Utility company reported trees blown down on power lines in the Bowman area. Public reported several trees down in Elberton and vicinity. |
| August 2023 | Tornado (EF0) | Bowman | - | NWS storm survey found a tornado that began in Franklin County and crossed through western Hart County, moved into Elbert County just west of Highway 17 before lifting. Damage was limited to uprooted trees and snapped tree limbs. |
| June 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Emergency mngr reported widespread trees and power lines blown down throughout the county. |
| July 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | County comms reported at least three trees blown down in the Bowman area. |
| March 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Multiple large trees were blown down, a barn was destroyed, and there was minor damage to the roof of a house from Deep Creek Rd, 2.5 miles south southwest of Bowman, northeast along Stanley Maxwell Rd. The most significant damage was reported near the Stanley Maxwell and Rehoboth Rd intersection. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Numerous trees were blown down across the county, mainly across the northern and western sections. |
| August 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | A tree was blown down on highway 172 near Bowman and a large limb blown down across highway 17 between Bowman and Dewy Rose. |
| July 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | A couple trees were blown down on power lines in the Bowman area. |
| August 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Multiple power lines were blown down in and around Bowman. Also, a large tree fell on a home on Winston Dr and another large tree was blown over on Church St. |
| January 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Several trees blown down. |
| August 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | A couple trees blown down in the Bowman area. |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Large tree blown down into a road, causing a multi-car accident. |
| June 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Some trees were blown down. |
| November 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Trees blown down on highway 17 and on Sycamore Rd. |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | Sheriff's department reported trees and power lines down, causing a long-term power outage within the city limits. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| December 2005 | Hail | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Hail | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| April 1998 | Hail | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Hail | Bowman | - | no account filed |
| April 1997 | Hail | Bowman | - | no account filed |
Map coverage status
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
Listed places nearby
1 within 8 milesOther National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building at 6 and 7 Public Square | under 500 feet | 2009 |
Sources for this property
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 16000128 in Record Group 79. |
| Elbert County | All 16 listed properties in this county. |
Provenance
- Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
- Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
- How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
- Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
- Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
- Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.