Seneca Unveils Plans and Logos for 150th Anniversary Celebration
City of Seneca officials unveiled plans at their regularly scheduled city council meeting Tuesday night for Seneca’s year-long celebration of the 150th anniversary of it’s founding, along with new sesquicentennial logos, which will be used during 2023 by the city to honor the rich local history as a railroad town strategically located at the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Seneca was founded in 1873, during the Reconstruction era, as the railroad town “Seneca City”, named for the Seneca River and a historic Cherokee town known as Isunigu.
Seneca City was developed at the intersection of the Blue Ridge Railroad and the newly built Atlanta and Charlotte Air Line Railroad. Both lines are now part of the Norfolk Southern Railway.
A. W. Thompson and J. J. Norton, who were locating engineers for the Air Line Railroad, purchased the land from Col. Brown of Anderson, South Carolina, also in the large Pickens District.
A stake marking the center of town was driven into the ground at the intersection of the railroad tracks and the current Townville Street. The land was divided into lots for one-half mile from the stake. An auction was held on August 14, 1873.
The town was given a charter by the state legislature on March 14, 1874. In 1908, the name was changed to the shorter Seneca.
2023 will be celebrated as the official 150th anniversary with a year full of events beginning in January.
Some planned so far include a Mayoral Proclamation; Restaurant Week with 150th Theme; Black History Luncheon; Race for the Green with special 150th medals and attire; Jazz on the Alley & Cruizin’ on Main; Picnic in the Park; Juneteenth; Special 150th edition of the city’s July 4th Celebration; Founders Day Party Downtown; Halloween on the Green; Veterans Day and culminating with Seneca’s Christmas Celebration with special parade theme and other events honoring the city’s roots. Sesquicentennial-themed merchandise is planned, as well.