About Us

A: The McRitchie-Hollis Museum is open Tuesday-Friday from 10:00am-4:00pm; Saturdays from 10:00am-2pm.

A: We would like to encourage 11am and 2pm tour times for visitors. To make a specific tour request, please call the NCHS offices at 770-251-0207. For groups of 8 or more, we ask that you call in advance to book your tour.

A: Yes. All researchers must call the NCHS offices to schedule a time to come in and conduct research. Please notify staff of your research interests so that we may pull your documents and archives before your appointment.

A: Yes! NCHS holds a small collection of historic house files. NCHS also houses over a century of tax records available for research. Please call the offices at 770-251-0207 to schedule a research time.

A: Both of our spaces are available for rent. Please see our rental page or email our Rental Coordinator at [email protected] for more information.

A: Yes! Equally as, if not more, famous than the Peniston home, which serves as the site of the McRitchie-Hollis Museum, is the magnolia tree that stands outside the front of the house on Jackson Street. Throughout the years, the tree has earned its fair share of nicknames— “the spider tree” being the most commonly-known moniker around town.

A. We aren’t sure! The “spider tree” was likely planted in the 1940s at the same time as its counterpart magnolia tree growing on the museum’s front lawn. As the tree continued to age, the limbs were pruned and the magnolia took a distinctive look as the roots grew out of the ground. No one can really explain why this particular magnolia tree grew this way, as it certainly is not typical, or why the other tree did not grow in a similar fashion. The end result, however, is an iconic Coweta County staple—an artistic and unusual greeting into downtown.