Pierce Avenue Waterworks Park
Frank C. Amerson, Jr. Park
This 180 acre park features open fields, an oxbow lake, hardwood forest and
access to the Ocumugee River.
The park officially opened in 2009.
Presently, it is accessible only via city streets
and a canoe landing, but the long term plan is to add a boat ramp and connect
it to the Ocmulgee River Greenway trail.
Trivia
Macon has several waterworks parks, two of them named after
Frank C. Amerson! To avoid confusion, most Maconites refer to the 20th century
waterworks that now offers a variety of outdoor activities as the Pierce
Avenue Waterworks Park, or simply Waterworks Park. They call the 21st century
waterworks Town Creek Reservoir. Town Creek Reservoir qualifies as a park
because it provides public fishing, albeit on a rather limited schedule.
The remaining waterworks parks arise from the
nineteenth century, when Macon was served by several small water systems.
Today, three of these are Coleman Hill, Washington, and Tower Parks. The
latter used to be the home of a 70 foot water tower. To add to the confusion,
Tower Park is sometimes called Anderson Park, scarcely different from the
other Waterworks Parks!
Access
Waterworks Park is at the northern end of Pierce Avenue in Macon. From downtown
Macon, take Riverside Drive west and watch for the Pierce Avenue interchange
with Interstate 75. Don't get on the Interstate. Instead, go underneath the
Interstate bridge, and immediately turn right into a residential
neighborhood. Keep following Pierce Avenue to the park.
The park has limited operating hours and charges a small fee. Plan your
canoe trip carefully to avoid being locked in or locked out!
A map of the park is available at Kevin Haywood's map site.
River access
Upstream, the nearest good river access is Popes
Ferry.
Downstream, the next good river access is Spring Street Park near downtown Macon.
Access to services
Waterworks park is in a residential neighborhood, but many businesses are
nearby on Riverside Drive. Ocmulgee Expeditions offers
canoe rentals and shuttle service, by reservation only.
Coordinates
approximately Latitude 32° 52' 27'' N, Longitude 083° 39' 23'' W
Point of Contact
NewTown Macon, a civic group, owns the park. Operating hours and contact
information are on their Ocmulgee
Heritage Trail web site.
References
none
This page is just a starting point. Once you decide which sites you might
visit, we strongly recommend you contact the owner or manager for the latest information on features, access, and safety.
Return to Middle Georgia Outdoors
David Farrier, farrier@iglou.com
Waterworks Park was last spot checked May 2011.
Last edited 18 July 2011.