Biohazard Cleanup Near River Rock Nelson, GA

Nelson is a small city that straddles the line between Pickens and Cherokee counties in north Georgia, within the Atlanta metropolitan area; its original town center sits in Pickens County, and its limits have expanded southward so that more of the city now lies in Cherokee County.

The city is named for John Nelson, an early landowner, farmer, and rifle maker.

The Georgia General Assembly incorporated Nelson as a town in 1891.

Nelson sits on substantial deposits of marble, and the construction of a railway through the area in 1883 made the development of large-scale marble quarries possible.

The quality of Nelson's marble became so well regarded that it has been favored for use in federal monuments.

The Marble Museum, located inside Nelson City Hall, displays examples of fine local marble and traces the history of marble mining in Pickens County, which drew immigrant stonecutters from Italy and Scotland.

The 2020 census counted 1,145 residents in Nelson, living in 429 households within the city's roughly 1.5 square miles.

In April 2013, Nelson's city council unanimously approved a 'Family Protection Ordinance' declaring that every head of household must own a gun and ammunition for the city's emergency management — a largely symbolic measure with exemptions and no penalty that drew national attention.

Because the city spans two counties, Nelson's children are split between two school systems: the Pickens County side is zoned to Pickens High School, while the Cherokee County side is zoned to Creekview High School.

The Georgia Northeastern Railroad still serves downtown Nelson, and Canton Road — the old route of Georgia State Route 5 — forms the town's main street.