Athens, Clarke County, Georgia, officially Athens-Clarke County as of 1991, figures prominently in our family tree with the Spratlins arriving in Clarke County before 1880 and residing in Athens in 1900. The 1900 US Census lists John Henry Spratlin and family residing on Mitchell Street in Athens Ward 1.
The textile industry was king at the time with 9 cotton mills in operation. “Athens became known as the Manchester of the South after the city in England known for its mills.” [2] Although, we also see Athens already calls itself the Classic City of the South by then.
John Henry Spratlin (1846-1924) is 3rd great-grandfather of MKS in the Spratlin branch.
References:
[1] Athens, Georgia—City Directory, Vol. VIII (Asheville, NC: Piedmont Directory Co., The Miller Press, 1926) (advertisement).
[2] Wikipedia, “Athens, Georgia.”