The Lore of Lake Lanier: Exploring the Impacts of Racial Violence in Shaping Collective Memory Through the Lens of Urban Folklore

North of the city Atlanta lies Forsyth County, GA, home of the popular recreational spot Lake Lanier. While for its visitors, this area is the ideal location for recreation, fishing, boating, and vacationing, many Black residents are wary of this lake due to its dark, racist past. In the early 20th century, a violent racial expulsion drove out the Black population of Forsyth almost entirely, the effects of which are still felt today. Lore and mythology about the area has spread over time and space disseminating across various communities the idea that the lake is “cursed” or “haunted”. The popularization of such stories has led to Lake Lanier being a hot topic of conversation throughout modern media, from academic scholarship and literature to television and film. Through a series of semi-structured interviews with Black and white Georgia residents with varying connections to Forsyth, this study investigates the impacts of the 1912 expulsion on shaping the lore and collective memory of Forsyth and Lake Lanier. By delving into this event’s impact on different Black and white communities' perception of and relationship to this area, this project strives to illuminate a larger conversation on the lasting effects of racial violence on communities and physical space. Content Warning: This paper includes discussion of intense racial violence and sexual assault