Mountain City

Towns in Rabun County

Mountain City, Georgia

D. W. Johnson bought 300 acres between Clayton and Rabun Gap in the early 1900s. A retired Tennessee sheriff, he had the general area surveyed, and in 1907 he incorporated a town named Pass Over, since the road on which it was located “passed over” the eastern continental divide. By 1915 the town’s name was changed to Mountain City. Johnson sold lots for homes and businesses and also built the Blue Heights Hotel and the New Rabun Hotel. Both establishments catered to tourists disembarking at the Tallulah Falls Railroad depot in the center of town. Another landmark was the Mountain City Playhouse, known among locals and tourists alike for its square dancing on weekend nights.

Visit our Museum

Want to learn more about Mountain City and the people and events that shaped the history of Rabun County? The Society’s museum is free and open to the public.