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GLOvaldosta georgia
"valdosta"
valdosta was incorporated in 1860 and is the county seat of lowndes county georgia. valdosta was named after governor george troop's estate Val d' osta. valdosta's main crop was long staple cotton until a boll weevil infestation in 1905. after that valdosta's farmers turned to tobacco, peanuts, and forestry. one of valdosta's most memorial events was in 1902 when an elephant named gypsy escaped from a traveling circus and rampaged through the town for several hours before it was killed. valdosta is home to valdosta state university. valdosta was a setting for the novel and movie "fried green tomatoes". one of valdosta's most famous residents was john henry "doc" holliday of O.K. corral fame.
most people pass by valdosta on I-75 on their way to and from florida. valdosta has a nice historic district and is worth a short detour from I-75 to visit this interesting southern town.
"doc holliday"
one of valdosta's most famous residents was the gambler, gunfighter, and dentist john henry "doc" holliday. holliday was born in griffin ga in 1851 and moved to valdosta in 1866. holliday attended the valdosta institute and moved to philadelphia to earn a degree in dental surgery. holliday contracted tuberculosis and for health reasons moved to the southwestern u.s. in 1873 he opened a dental office in dallas texas. holliday began gambling and found that it was a more profitable than the practice of dentistry. later he moved to dodge city kansas where he met wyatt earp. they became good friends and they both moved on to tombstone arizona. in tombstone they were involved in the legendary gun fight at the O.K. corral. doc holliday was one of the most colorful figures in the frontier southwest.
a good book about this interesting character is "doc hoilday", matt braun. pub: st. martins press.
