HIDDEN GEM: Cartersville-Bartow

Jun 21

What makes Cartersville-Bartow a great place for faith-based meetings?

Rooted in Christian heritage, Cartersville and Bartow County, Georgia, hold significance within the history of the Christian community. Rose Lawn Museum, located in Cartersville, is the former home of Sam Jones, a late 19th-century evangelist for whom the Ryman Auditorium was built. Today visitors can tour the house while learning more about Sam Jones’ ministry through writings, memorabilia, and photographs. Groups can also enjoy a pre-arranged catered meal in the home’s former carriage house.

Cartersville is also significant in the life of Lottie Moon, the “Mother” of Southern Baptist Missionaries. Working in Cartersville as a teacher, Lottie first heard the call to go to China on a mission trip while listening to a sermon at the Cartersville Baptist Church (known today as the Cartersville First Baptist Church), and it was its members that donated two cents per week into her missionary box. This humble offering from the women in Cartersville catalyzed what is known today as the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions. Today the church is a private residence across the street from the Rose Lawn Museum; guests can also visit a monument dedicated to Lottie Moon at the original Cartersville Baptist Church site.

Queen’s Chapel Methodist Church, located just 10 miles west of Cartersville in Kingston, Georgia, also holds significance in the Christian community of Bartow County and is a profound experience for faith-based groups. Here, Melvinia Shields, a formerly enslaved person and the great-great-great grandmother of former First Lady Michelle Obama is worshipped and buried. Today guests can visit her gravesite, and when pre-arranged, church members will provide talks and group lunches to share Melvinia Shields’ story.

Cartersville and Bartow County’s foundations of faith thrive today in the Historic Churches of Bartow County. This spiritual journey will bring you to the area’s oldest church, to authentic open-air tabernacles, and to a sacred place where generations of families return to tiny cabins for a week-long Camp Meeting (held annually for 190 years in 2023).

What are some of Cartersville-Bartow’s unique and major meeting spaces?

Cartersville and Bartow County offers a variety of meeting and event spaces to meet the needs of meeting planners, whether it is a leadership meeting, church service, retreat, or training. Located at the LakePoint Sports Complex, LakePoint’s Champion Center has over 125,500 sq ft of contiguous space and eight meeting rooms offering the unique ability to accommodate a variety of specific needs, while the Clarence Brown Conference Center has over 44,000 sq ft of flexible indoor and outdoor event space, including a 300-seat symposium and an adjacent Courtyard by Marriott hotel.

Barnsley Resort, located on the west side of Bartow County, is the perfect destination for meeting planners seeking a luxury experience. Amidst enchanting century-old gardens and the 1840s manor house ruins, Barnsley is renowned for its luxurious accommodations, restaurants, golf, spa, special event venues, and sporting activities.

Our most unique event spaces are at our Smithsonian-affiliated, world-class museums. Whether groups choose to enjoy appetizers while Seeing America’s story at Booth Western Art Museum, have dinner amongst dinosaurs and gems at Tellus Science Museum, or network while connecting with the history of the automobile at Savoy, meeting planners will find an Only In Cartersville-Bartow experience to provide their attendees. From conferences to donor retreats, Cartersville-Bartow has custom experiences to exceed meeting planners’ needs!

What are some new or upcoming enhancements to Cartersville-Bartow that would interest event planners?

Hilton Garden Inn Cartersville, the closest hotel to Cartersville’s Historic Downtown, is undergoing a complete interior and exterior renovation valued at $3 million. This will encompass its 4k sf meeting space, updated state-of-the-art AV, each guest room including the addition of family and executive suites, and a new outdoor public space for groups to enjoy. Renovations at the Hilton Garden Inn are expected to be complete by the second quarter of 2024. Pine Acres Retreat, a 210-acre retreat on Lake Allatoona, will soon offer glamping for groups looking to experience nature while still having a few extra comforts. The team at Barnsley Resort is constantly elevating food and beverage programs for groups, including signature bourbon experiences, BR Coppertop Pizza Co. activations, Sea Island Forge fire kettle cooking experiences, and the enhancement of the Barnsley Farm for hand-picked, curated events. The resort is working on expanding the Barnsley Bullseye Challenge to accommodate more guests for the popular archery, axe throwing, and air rifles.