First known as Sandtown, this quaint Southern town was settled in 1819 by Rufus Broome and his wife Nancy Pitts, along with her brothers, Nestor and John W Pitts. As early as 1839, the name Newborn appears in documents. This is thought to be one of the oldest settlements in Newton County along with the Mt Pleasant (Brick Store) Community. With the coming of the railroad, this became a busy town with hotels, stores, a theater, bank, depot and many fine schools. You can almost feel the “ghosts” of Newborn!
I would like to share my personal ghost experiences from Newborn, which occurred at the Old Newborn Schoolhouse. The school served the town until 1950 as an elementary School. Now the building belongs to the Newborn Heritage and Trust, who rents out the building for events and “singings” such as “The Newborn Dixie Jubilee.” The building also hosts “The Horny Head Fishing Tournament” and festival, and Civil War reenactments.
In 2008, my husband and I were part of a newly formed church, meeting in this old schoolhouse on Sunday Mornings. On many Sunday mornings during the preaching, the sounds of children laughing and playing could be heard coming from the kitchen area. Other times you could hear the old glass front doors being opened and closed; however when we looked, the doors were closed tight! My husband even heard his name being called when he was alone in the room. Many others witnessed the sounds as well. This historically eerie place is surely one you will want to visit! 
Such history for a little Georgia town! Stop by the Town Hall, located in this building and pick up a copy of the book “Newborn, GA – Characters, Places and Tales”, a 500-page book, filled with old photos and stories like this of historic Newborn. Come visit the friendly, charming historic town of Newborn, filled with history and shadows of yesterday.
A Note From Our Guest Blogger –
“My name is Trish Robertson Johnson. I became interested in local history while researching my family tree. From searching through old census records, I began to find towns, villages and communities that no longer exist all across the South. My first exploration was finding the “ghost town” of Scull Shoals in Greene County, doing the research, finding local folklore about the town, and then I was hooked! I began researching, exploring, finding disappearing history all around us on every little back road across Georgia. All we have to do is go out and look! I began the Facebook Page, Heart Of Dixie-Memories, Legends and Ghosts of our Southern Past. I’m currently in the process of publishing my photos and writing a book on local history, in between exploring and searching for more local memories to share with all of you!”
