Editor’s note: This article appeared in the August edition of the VTN magazine, Valley Living.
Tucked away on the Chattahoochee is a collection of buildings overlooking the river. While the picturesque spot is now an events venue called The River at Club Blanton, it has a long history of being a different sort of gathering place.
Club Blanton:
According to research done by Chamber’s County archivist, Robin Watson, Chambers County voted to be a dry county in 1937. Lee and Russell counties capitalized on the opening of the New Club Blanton on June 24, 1938.
The club was opened by a W.R. Goggans and was managed by James “Juicy” Wood, and his wife (who was not named) and at another time, Gehue and Etta Hollon, according to an article from the Chambers County newspaper from 1939.
The name perhaps comes from the Blanton Ferry, which would transport soldiers from Fort Benning on the Georgia side, to enjoy the night.
While records are sparse on the part dance hall, part restaurant, mentions of the club in articles and books paint a lively picture. In a chapter on mill villages, from Constructing Image, Identity, and Place, it states that in interviews the club was described as a, “‘beer joint’ a ‘honky tonk,’ and a ‘house of ill repute.’ Club Blanton and other roadhouses catered to farmers and soldiers as well as mill workers.”