As of this week, the West Georgia Museum of Tallapoosa will have a new addition to its display, one that has been specially made with the city’s sesquicentennial in mind.

When 16-year-old tenth-grader Ethan Brown was given a non-fiction assignment from English teacher Ms. Thompson at Haralson County High School, he said he wasn’t really sure at first what he was going to do for his project. Then he remembered that the city’s 150th anniversary was coming up.

“So I decided to call Ms. [Mary] Tolleson and see what I could come up with,” he said.

What they came up with was an extremely detailed time-line of the entire history of the city of Tallapoosa since its habitation by Native Americans titled “From Possum Snout to Tallapoosa.” However, Brown did not stop at simply outlining Tallapoosa’s history. He also spent three days taking pictures of landmark and historical buildings around the city.

“It was a school project,” Brown said, “but now it’s developed into more of a personal project.”

And last week, Brown showcased his history-project-turned-personal-passion to his classmates at Haralson County High School because he said he hopes other people can learn something from his work.

“I’ve learned a lot about how our town got to where it is today and how much history is in it,” Brown said. “There really is a lot to this town. It may be small, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a lot of things that make it what it is.”

Highlighted features of the city include the historic homes, the Lithia Springs Hotel, manufacturing businesses and League Lowe Memorial Park. Brown said highlighting different buildings and spaces in the city will raise awareness about them amongst residents as well as out-of-town visitors once it is displayed in the museum.

“The veterans park is something very unique to our town, but not a lot of people know it is here,” Brown said, “and they’re so impressed when they visit and see it.”

Museum Curator Mildred McElroy said she was happy to accept Brown’s project on behalf of the museum.

“I’m very happy to accept this and happy to have everyone come down to the museum and see it,” she said. “I’m pleased Ethan’s work will have a larger audience than just this class.”

McElroy says she thinks many people will be able to relate Brown’s project, especially students.

“People will be able to see the history of Tallapoosa and can relate the pictures back to the timeline and what is here [in the city] and it will tie things in.”

Tolleson and Brown both agree that the pictures add a significant element to the project. The largest picture accompanying the timeline is a photo of The Lithia Springs Hotel, which was donated by Ms. Tolleson.

Brown, who attends First United Methodist in Tallapoosa, said his favorite picture is the one of his church taken at sunset because the photo shows not only the beauty of his church, but also the beauty of his town.

“There’s real beauty in our town,” he said, “you just have to stop for a minute and take a look at it.”

Those wishing to view the timeline, may see it on display at the museum Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Ms. Tolleson says she hopes everyone comes out to the museum to see Brown’s project.

“This is a treasure to have,” she said. “Ethan’s worked very hard.”