GeorgiaThe Long County Courthouse in Ludowici became the legal engine of one of America's most notorious speed traps. Sitting on the U.S. 301 tourist route to Florida, Ludowici gained national infamy in the 1950s and 1960s for fleecing drivers, most memorably through a rigged traffic light said to be switched from green to red by a hidden observer so a waiting officer could collect on-the-spot fines routed through the local court, part of a machine long dominated by county solicitor Ralph Dawson. The scandal drew such attention that Governor Carl Sanders suspended the county's arrest powers in 1963, and Governor Lester Maddox erected billboards in 1970 warning travelers away. The courthouse itself is a brick Neoclassical Revival building of 1926, designed by architect George Maynard Harrington with a two-story portico of Tuscan columns, built six years after Long County was carved from western Liberty County. Renovated inside in 1974, it remains in active use and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Long County Courthouse (Courthouse)
The stone-and-brick heart of every Georgia county.
Long County Courthouse is a courthouse in Ludowici, Long County. It is one of 30 historic sites cataloged in Long County on Georgia Roam.
The site sits at 31.7078, -81.7414 near Ludowici. The nearest cataloged historic site is Long County Courthouse (historic place), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Long County, Long County Timeline Mural, and Ludowici Well Pavilion.
This record is drawn from the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
The Long County Courthouse in Ludowici became the legal engine of one of America's most notorious speed traps. Sitting on the U.S. 301 tourist route to Florida, Ludowici gained national infamy in the 1950s and 1960s for fleecing drivers, most memorably through a rigged traffic light said to be switched from green to red by a hidden observer so a waiting officer could collect on-the-spot fines routed through the local court, part of a machine long dominated by county solicitor Ralph Dawson. The scandal drew such attention that Governor Carl Sanders suspended the county's arrest powers in 1963, and Governor Lester Maddox erected billboards in 1970 warning travelers away. The courthouse itself is a brick Neoclassical Revival building of 1926, designed by architect George Maynard Harrington with a two-story portico of Tuscan columns, built six years after Long County was carved from western Liberty County. Renovated inside in 1974, it remains in active use and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Sources: en.wikipedia.orggeorgiaencyclopedia.orgoxfordamerican.orgtime.com
“Long County Courthouse” names 2 distinct records in Long County. This page is the courthouse in Ludowici. The others:
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