Interesting places to explore in Newnan

Most of us drive past the same buildings every day without stopping to ask what's inside. Newnan rewards a slower look. Within a few blocks of the courthouse square sit a library built with Andrew Carnegie's money, a cemetery that dates to the town's first years, a museum house with a mill family's story, and a park that opened only this fall. Here are eight places to put on your list, with how to visit each one.

The Coweta County Courthouse

The domed courthouse at the center of the square was finished in 1904 to a design by the Atlanta architect J. W. Golucke, and the New Georgia Encyclopedia calls it his most ambitious courthouse, with a portico and clock dome that stand, in the encyclopedia's phrase, "at attention." It is built in the neoclassical revival style and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980. The courtroom is still used by the Probate Court during the week. The building is open to visitors by appointment, so call ahead before planning a look inside. Walk around it slowly: the clock dome reads differently from every side of the square.

The Newnan Carnegie Library

Just off the square at 1 LaGrange Street, the Carnegie Library is a small building with a big claim. In 1901 a 17-year-old named Charles L. Thompson wrote to Andrew Carnegie asking for help, and Carnegie sent $10,000, one of the first such grants in Georgia. The library opened in 1904, and the city says it is likely the oldest surviving Carnegie library in the state. Look up at night to see the lighted City of Homes sign on its roof. Inside are a children's reading room, meeting spaces and an art gallery for local exhibits. It is a city library and free to walk into during opening hours.

Oak Hill Cemetery

A few blocks north of downtown on Jefferson Street, Oak Hill Cemetery dates to 1833 and covers about 60 acres with more than 12,000 graves. Newnan was a hospital town during the Civil War, and nearly 270 Confederate soldiers buried here in 1863 and 1864 came from every Confederate state, with only two left unidentified. Two Georgia governors, Ellis Arnall and William Atkinson, are buried here too, along with veterans of the Revolutionary War and of the wars that followed. The cemetery is free to visit, and self-guided tour brochures are available.

The McRitchie-Hollis Museum

On Jackson Street, about a five-minute walk from the square, the Newnan-Coweta History Center tells the story of the city and county inside a 1937 house built for a mill family. Ellis and Mildred Peniston lived here; Mildred's father ran Arnall Mill, and Ellis took over as its president in 1936. The house later served as hospital offices before the city bought it and, in 2013, the historical society turned it into a museum with an endowment from the estate of Edgar B. Hollis Jr. Tours run Tuesday through Saturday, walk-ins are welcome, and some special programs are ticketed. Park behind Clark Street and walk toward the white gazebo in the back garden.

The Charles Wadsworth Auditorium

The city's restored auditorium on Jefferson Street dates to 1938 and seats 624. It is the home stage for the Newnan Cultural Arts Commission's performances, which in 2026 brought a handbell choir and a stand-up comedy night, and it is a ticketed venue, so the way inside is to catch a show. Check the city's cultural arts page for what's coming.

Bicentennial Park

The newest place on this list opened in October 2026 on East Broad Street, two years ahead of Newnan's bicentennial in 2028. Bicentennial Park has walking paths, a pavilion, mural walls and historic markers, plus a trailhead for the LINC, the city's paved greenway. The committee behind it says a second phase will add an archway, more murals and more markers that tell the city's story. It is outdoors and free, and the historic train depot is just down the street.

Art along the LINC

The Friends of the LINC have been adding public art to the greenway. On Greison Trail, a mural now fills the trail tunnel, and at C. Jay Smith Park on Farmer Street a donated sculpture called Vestige stands near the trailhead. Both are free, outdoors and best seen on foot or by bike.

A museum for small explorers

ChildrenConnect, the Newnan Children's Museum, occupies the old Male Academy at Temple Avenue and College Street. The academy once prepared Newnan's young men for college and later served as the historical society's museum; the city's historic districts page notes that the building now serves local children as ChildrenConnect. Today it is a nonprofit with four hands-on rooms built around science, art and play. Admission is charged per child, and adults come in free.

Before or after

Leaf & Bean, on West Court Square, is a convenient place to start a courthouse-and-library walk with a coffee. For a slower stop, Brown Street Bodega, at the corner of Wesley and Brown streets, serves its own locally roasted coffee along with biscuits and sandwiches.

Hours change with the seasons and with special events, so check each place's own page before you set out.