The Story of Columbus

Columbus was established in 1828 as a planned trading town at the fall line of the Chattahoochee River — the last navigable point before the river tumbled over ancient rock ledges on its way south toward the Gulf of Mexico. The Georgia General Assembly chose this location deliberately: it would strengthen the state's western border with Alabama while harnessing the river's considerable hydropower potential for industry.

The city was laid out in a formal grid pattern, with broad avenues and public squares reflecting the confidence of its founders. Lots were sold at auction, and settlers arrived quickly, drawn by the promise of commerce and river trade. Steamboats could travel upriver from the port of Apalachicola, Florida, making Columbus a critical inland shipping hub.

But the land on which Columbus was built was not empty. It was the ancestral homeland of the Muscogee (Creek) people, who had lived along the Chattahoochee for centuries. The Creek Nation had already been forced to cede much of their territory through a series of coerced treaties. By 1836, the remaining Creek communities east of the Mississippi were forcibly removed during the Trail of Tears — a chapter of American history that is inseparable from the founding of Columbus itself.

When the Civil War began, Columbus's industrial infrastructure made it one of the most strategically important cities in the Confederacy. The mills pivoted from commercial textiles to military production, turning out uniforms, tents, blankets, and other supplies for Confederate soldiers. The Confederate Naval Iron Works, established on the riverbank, built ironclad warships including the CSS Muscogee (later renamed the CSS Jackson).

The city also housed a sword factory, a firearms manufacturer, and numerous smaller workshops producing everything from buttons to cartridge boxes. Columbus was, in many ways, the industrial heartbeat of the Confederate war effort in the Deep South.

This made it a prime target. On April 16, 1865 — a full week after General Robert E. Lee had surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia — Union cavalry under General James H. Wilson attacked Columbus in what is often cited as the last major land battle of the Civil War. Wilson's forces, numbering some 13,000 troops, overwhelmed the city's defenders in a fierce nighttime assault.

The Battle of Columbus was devastating. Union troops burned the naval works, the cotton warehouses, and much of the industrial district. The CSS Jackson, still under construction, was set ablaze at its moorage. The destruction marked the definitive end of Columbus's role as a Confederate manufacturing center — and, symbolically, one of the final acts of the war itself.

In 1918, the U.S. Army established a military installation on the rolling terrain south of Columbus. The post grew rapidly during both World Wars, becoming one of the largest military installations in the world. For decades, it served as the home of the U.S. Army Infantry School and, later, the Maneuver Center of Excellence — the primary training ground for infantry, armor, and cavalry soldiers.

The installation's relationship with Columbus has been symbiotic. Tens of thousands of soldiers and their families have called the region home, and the military's economic impact on the city has been immeasurable. Restaurants, shops, schools, and entire neighborhoods grew up to serve the military community.

The post's name has its own complex history. Originally named after a Confederate general, it was renamed Fort Moore in 2023 as part of a congressionally mandated renaming commission, honoring Lieutenant General Hal Moore and his wife Julia — celebrated figures in the history of American military service. Then, in 2025, the name reverted to Fort Benning under new legislation, this time honoring Corporal Fred G. Benning, a World War I soldier from Georgia who received the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism in combat.

The National Infantry Museum, located just outside the installation's gates, is one of the finest military museums in the country. Its collection spans the entire history of the American infantryman, from the Revolutionary War to the present day, and draws visitors from across the nation. The museum is a must-visit for anyone interested in things to do in Columbus.

Today, Columbus is the third-largest city in Georgia, with a population of approximately 206,922 residents. The city has evolved far beyond its roots as a mill town and military post, though both of those legacies remain woven into its identity.

Columbus is the birthplace and headquarters of Aflac (American Family Life Assurance Company), the Fortune 500 supplemental insurance giant that was founded here in 1955 by the Amos brothers. The company remains one of the city's largest employers and a defining presence in its skyline.

The financial technology sector has also become a major economic driver. TSYS (Total System Services), now part of Global Payments, grew from a small Columbus-based credit card processing operation into one of the world's largest payment technology companies. The fintech ecosystem that developed around TSYS continues to attract talent and investment to the region.

The Uptown Columbus district — the historic core along Broadway — has undergone a significant revitalization in recent years, with new restaurants, apartments, and cultural venues breathing life into buildings that had sat vacant for decades.

Perhaps the most dramatic symbol of Columbus's modern reinvention is the Chattahoochee whitewater course. Opened in 2013, the 2.5-mile course is the world's longest urban whitewater venue, created by removing obsolete dams and restoring the river's natural rapids through the heart of downtown. Kayakers, rafters, and stand-up paddleboarders now navigate Class II–IV rapids just steps from the RiverWalk — a transformation that would have astonished the mill workers who once harnessed that same current to power their looms.

The outdoor recreation opportunities extend well beyond the whitewater course. The Chattahoochee RiverWalk, the Fall Line Trace, and the surrounding network of trails make Columbus one of the most active cities in the Southeast. And the diverse neighborhoods that make up the consolidated city each tell their own chapter of the Columbus story.