The Tour
Thomas University began in 1950 on the grounds of Birdwood, a 1932 winter estate built for W. Cameron Forbes, and this Forbes Campus was its home for 75 years. This walk visits the estate's landmark Forbes Building, the Ben Grace Historic Quad and Balfour Chapel, the publicly open Thomasville Genealogical Library, and Smith-Bonvillian Hall. Note: the university is relocating to a new Woodlands Campus, but these historic buildings still stand and the genealogical library remains open to visitors.
Thomas University Campus Tour is a self-guided walking tour of Thomasville, built around its campus side.
The walk covers 5 stops over about 0.5 miles and roughly 40 minutes, entirely at your own pace. Each stop's story unlocks on your phone the moment you arrive — GPS-triggered, hands-free, no guide and no tour group to keep up with.
What you'll see
This short walk visits the place where Thomas University was born: Birdwood, the winter estate that W. Cameron Forbes built in 1932. Forbes was a Massachusetts businessman and diplomat, and a grandson of Ralph Waldo Emerson. The centerpiece is his Georgian Revival mansion, now called the Forbes Building. It is the kind of house wealthy Northerners built during Thomasville's years as a winter resort, and it became a classroom building for the small junior college chartered here in 1950.
Around it is the Ben Grace Historic Quad, with Balfour Chapel, first known as Birdwood Chapel, which was moved onto the grounds in the college's early years. You'll also see Smith-Bonvillian Hall, a later academic building designed to echo the old mansion's lines. One building still draws visitors every week: the Thomasville Genealogical Library, a free public research library with deep South Georgia family records.
In fall 2026 the university moved its students to a new Woodlands Campus across town, so this walk is now a history tour of the original grounds, not a look at today's student life. The loop is about half a mile and easy on foot. Plan around the genealogical library's hours (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) if you want to go inside, and respect any posted access rules. The Georgia Roam app tells each building's story as you arrive.
Georgia
