James_September-October_2026_web - Flipbook - Page 60
BARNSLEY RUINS AND GARDENS
Barnsley Resort
Godfrey Barnsley immigrated
to Savannah at age 18 in the early
1800s with little money and no real
education. But he became a cotton
broker when cotton was king and
brokering was fruitful. He met his
wife, the daughter of a wealthy
shipbuilder, and married at age
25. They would eventually build a
sprawling plantation in the 1840s in
the then-tiny village of Adairsville.
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Unfortunately, Barnsley had the
poor luck of choosing a site right
in the path of Union Gen. William
Tecumseh Sherman some 20 years
later as he and his army marched
from Chattanooga to Atlanta. What
could not be stolen was destroyed,
but the house escaped the fire that
so often accompanied Sherman’s
invaders. That part would be taken
care of by a tornado in 1906 that
destroyed the house.
JAMES SEPTE M B E R/O C TO BE R 2 0 2 6
After nearly 100 years and a
fall into disrepair, Prince Hubertus
Fugger discovered Barnsley Resort
in the late 1980s when looking for
a potential land investment. It was
a local North Georgia resident and
Barnsley Family Historian Clent
Coker who convinced him to not
only rescue the property, but to
restore it to even greater prestige.
Prince Fugger embarked on an
ambitious restoration that honored
Godfrey Barnsley’s original vision
while breathing new life into the
estate. The grounds and gardens
were meticulously revived with
more than 200 varieties of roses
and arbors that complemented the
natural beauty of the landscape. So
Barnsley Resort opened to the public in 1999, fulfilling the dream of an
awe-inspiring estate nestled in the
foothills of North Georgia where
classic English elegance meets
Southern charm.
