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There is something about January that makes me want to tell you about some of the unusual happenings in our gorgeous state. So, this month expect the unexpected as we go through some different kinds of historical happenings. Let’s start with this not so usual monument. We will probably go from coffee to beer before we are done.

In a field on Georgia State Highway 77, 9 miles north of Elberton, there once stood one of the most intriguing mysteries in Georgia. They were called the Georgia Guidestones and they stood from March 22, 1980 to July 7, 2022. However, now, because of a senseless act, it was vandalized by a bombing. The monument was heavily damaged and the debris and granite became a pile of rubble setting up on top of a hill. Later that day, the Guidestones were removed by the local government. It was later announced that the monument will be rebuilt. However, now there is an excellent museum for folks to enjoy, but it’s not the same.

I am told that the monument still causes a response from everyone who sets foot on the site where it once stood. No one who visits ever leaves without having his own personal theory of how it got there and what it all meant. Now, we will do a virtual visit. I will share with you, all of the history that I was able to find and you can draw your own conclusions about the meaning of this monument.

Our Georgia Guidestones appear to be a scaled-down version of the ancient monument in England, called Stonehenge, which is 4000 plus years old. However, there are some very big differences. To start with, Elbert County stone masons, not Druid priests, fashioned this curious display of six granite slabs that were set to make a circle. However, no one knows the real name of the man who had them carved.

Perhaps the best place to start is getting to know a little more about Elberton and what lies beneath it. Here, there is one of the world’s largest deposits of granite. This is one of the hardest stones on earth and it has found its way into monuments and markers in all fifty states and many foreign countries. It is estimated that more than one-third of the tombstones in the United States have been made from granite, quarried in the Elberton area.

The monument business thrived here for over a century. However, a unique request was received in June of 1979. Who would have guessed that this would be the start of one of the most talked about mysteries in Georgia.

It all started when a man, with the admitted alias of Robert C. Christian, walked into the office of the Elberton Finishing Company and spoke to the president of the company, Joe H. Fendley.

Christian said that he had served in World War II and he also described himself as a patriotic American, in every sense of the word. Nothing else was known about him, except what he said: “My name is not Christian. I only use that name because I am a follower of Jesus Christ”.

Christian then began to describe the place where he wanted the monument built: “It would be set up on a hill in ‘the middle of nowhere’, in a rural area, next to a cow pasture, seven miles north of Elberton. However, no one knew who that land belonged to. Also, Christian believed this to be the most perfect place for the monument because the Indians believed this place possessed an extraordinary amount of energy.

Then there was the biggest plus, that this site would be highly visible from the air because of its elevation and because there were no trees in this area to obstruct the view. This was because of a previous agreement with the owner of the land that settled differences between local ranchers over grazing rights.

A final reason was that the mild climate would not be as damaging to the exposed stone as cold temperatures would be. Robert Christian also believed this area would survive any nuclear disaster that would occur.

Now, Christian described his project to Fendley by saying that he was interested in something similar to Stonehenge in England. He then added that he wanted to dedicate it to the preservation of mankind. The idea was that the monument would survive a worldwide nuclear war and it would provide guidance for the dazed survivors. The purpose of the monument will be carved on it. The inscription will state that: “It is to convey ideas across time to other human beings, which will read our ideas when we have gone.”

Christian then took out his pen and started to outline his project: “The Georgia Guidestones, was what Christian called them. They would consist of six slabs, which would have a total weight of 237,746 pounds, and that they would radiate from the center, like spokes on a wheel.

The central stone was to be surrounded by four similar stones. They will be huge, upright slabs, that were 6 feet 6 inches wide, 16 feet 4 inches tall. Each of the four will weigh the same, 42,437 pounds. Engraved on the four main stones in 4-inch letters, would be the Ten Guides.

Then, across the top of the monument, was a smaller, fifth stone. “Its weight will be 24,832 pounds and have engravings that are in the four ‘dead’ languages: classical Greek, Sanskrit, Babylonian Cuneiform and Egyptian Hieroglyphics.

The granite slabs are to be aligned astronomically. By peeking through a narrow slit running through the sixth central slab, it would be possible to see in the sky, the summer and winter solstices, and fall and spring equinoxes. This is so that visitors can trace the above happenings and also other celestial events”.

All of this surprised Fendley very much, especially with Christian knowing the weights and sizes of the stones. Christian asked the cost and Fendley told him it would be difficult to figure this because nothing like this had ever been quarried in Elberton. Fendley began to take notes because he was beginning to have respect for the stranger’s intelligence. He then warned Christian by saying, “I can give you a rough estimate but it will be costly”.

When Christian listened to the estimate, he showed no emotion. Fendley then reassured Christian, that the Elberton quarry had the resources to mine the amount of granite needed for a project of this size. When Fendley had finished, Christian said that the cost sounded fine.

With given the okay, Fendley told Christian about his banker and took him over to the bank to meet with Wyatt C. Martin. Christian told Martin that he represented a small group of loyal Americans, who were his investors and who believed in God, and simply wished to leave a message for future generations. When asked the name of the group, Christian said that they felt that their identity would detract from the monument and its meaning. Therefore, it will forever remain a secret.

At first, Martin refused to act as an intermediary unless he knew the stranger’s real name. This would enable Martin to investigate the man, both personally and financially. Christian agreed but only after swearing Martin to secrecy. Martin, who handled all the bank deposits for Christian, took the secret of his real identity to the grave with him. Not revealing Christian’s identity was so serious for Martin, that he personally censored all communication from Christian to Fendley. He also made it a point of even concealing this stranger’s true identity from his own secretary.

Upon completion of the monument, Martin shredded all records and letters, eliminating any trace of the investors. Now, no one will ever know who paid for the monument that was constructed out in the far reaches of the Georgia countryside. Martin’s only statement was, that he never expects to see or hear from Christian again. The man, who called himself Christian, left and it was some time before Fendley and Martin would hear from him again.

Later, when both Martin and Fendley were asked by the local press to described Robert C. Christian, they both agreed: “He was well dressed, in his forties and appeared to be well traveled and very intelligent”.

Then one day, Christian reappeared with a wooden model of the monument. Martin notified Fendley that the funds were in an account and work could begin. Special craftsmen and crews were employed for the project. Expert sandblaster, Charlie Clamp, was chosen to etch more than four thousand characters into the blue gray stone. Charlie Clamp’s son Ron, recalls helping with the stencil application, hauling sand and helping to clean up. He said that Joe Fendley was very closed mouth. If someone required him to keep a secret about the monument, he surely wound do it.

Christian told Fendley that, what he called the Georgia Guidestones, would be for the conservation of the world and usher in a new age of reason. The message that would be inscribed on the stones was to all mankind and is neither nationalistic nor political.

On each of the four large upright slabs, the guides were engraved into the stone, with a different language on each side. These were: English, Spanish, Swahili, Hindi, Hebrew, Arabi, traditional Chinese, and Russian. These languages were chosen because they represented most of humanity, except for Hebrew, which was chosen because of its connections to Judaism and Christianity. Thus, the stones should appeal to all. The quarrying, cutting and etchings on the stones and putting them in their proper places took nearly a year.

A time capsule was supposedly also placed at the base of the Guidestones. However, there was no date of when the capsule was buried or when it would be opened. Also, when the monument was destroyed and the pieces were being cleared out, the workmen dug down about 8 to 10 feet in where the capsule was supposed to have been buried but found nothing.

Strange events accompanied every phase of the construction. Charlie Clamp sandblasted 4,000 characters into the granite and even through his sound proof gear, he heard voices and strange music. Men laying the foundation also detected eerie music and often became dizzy.

Idealistic maxims in English, Russia, Hebrew, Arabic, Hindu, Spanish, Chinese, Sanskrit and Swahili were carved into the stones which reads: These are meant to be a sort of Ten Commandments or guiding thoughts carved in these stones.

Many years have passed and the individuals still remain unknown. Christian had so carefully preserved his identity, that it is doubtful it will ever be known, as well as the origin of the Guidestones themselves. For some, it is a temptation to attribute these folks either to a superior being or to beings from another world.

Here is what is carved on the Georgia Guidestones:

#1 Maintain humanity under 500 million in perpetual balance with nature.

#2 Guide reproduction wisely, improving fitness and diversity.

#3 Unite humanity with a living new language.

#4 Rule passion, faith, tradition and all things with tempered reason.

#5 Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.

#6 Let all nations rule internally, resolving external disputes in a world court.

#7 Avoid petty laws and useless officials.

#8 Balance personal rights with social duties.

#9 Prize truth, beauty, love, seeking harmony with the infinite.

#10 Be not a cancer on the earth, Leave room for Nature-Leave room for Nature.

The mysterious stones, which weighed all together 119 tons, were unveiled on March 7, 1980. Some folks were  wondering if it is a coincidence, that on September 12^th of the same year, a round brightly illuminated object was reported to be hovering in the air, near the monument. The object was described as being about twenty feet wide and having green lights around it. There were also widespread sighting of this object over an area of several counties.

At the unveiling ceremony, United States Representative D. Douglas Barnard Jr. of Augusta, the representative of Georgia’s Tenth Congressional District, pulled off the sheet of black plastic covering the monument. Barnard told the gathering that the Ten Guides inscribed on the monument, in various languages, warn that the United States must preserve her resources because society and government are limited.

A couple of years after it was built, in September of 1982, a UFO with a bright light that was twenty feet in diameter, was seen hovering near the Georgia Guidestones. Since their erection, Christians, Druids, Native Americans and assorted other groups have gathered at the site for ceremonies.

According to legend, visitors who point toward the stones, one palm up the other down, will receive a psychic message about the monument.

It was said that when you park your car there and get out, you will get a faint feeling, the sky will be clear only above the stones and bats circle them at night.

Of course, Georgians are known for their ability to rise above destruction and carry on. We have done this a lot in our past. Therefore, when the local residents vowed to resurrect this piece of history, that was so senselessly taken from them, I believe that they will.