United States, Georgia, 32.75042, -83.50018Lupold, John S., 1942-2004-03-30Encyclopedia article about the city of Columbus, Georgia. The lure of making money from cotton and the waterpower of the Chattahoochee River shaped the Muscogee County seat of Columbus for more than a century after the Georgia legislature created the city in 1828. Located at the head of river navigation, Columbus first boomed as a cotton-trading center. Entrepreneurs quickly harnessed the river's power, and Columbus became one of the South's earliest--and remained one of its largest--mill towns. The creation of neighboring Camp Benning (later Fort Benning) in 1918 added another dimension to the city. By the 1960s Columbus began shedding the image of a mill and military town, as its business and civic leaders diversified the economy, modernized its government, and launched a series of cultural initiatives. By 2000, as the city rediscovered its picturesque river, private and public funding revitalized the original downtown into a premier venue and educational center for the fine and performing arts.text/htmlengForms part of the New Georgia Encyclopedia.http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/Forms part of the New Georgia Encyclopedia.Columbus (Ga.)Cities and towns--GeorgiaColumbusText