Rome, Georgia is located in Floyd County at the junction of three rivers. The Oostanaula joins the Etowah at Rome to form the Coosa River, which flows south through Alabama and then to Mobile Bay. The confluence of these three rivers creates an outdoors paradise for residents and visitors to the area. If you like the outdoors you will like Georgia’s Rome.
One local attraction that stands out is the Rome-Floyd Eco Center. Retired game warden, Ben Winkelman directs this jewel of a center. The center’s website states its objective, “To inspire children and adults to learn about and experience the ecology of Northwest Georgia.”
“Here at the center,” says Winkelman , “we focus on the fish species and wildlife species that exists and call the Coosa River Basin home.”
The center is housed in an old pump station building dating back to the late 1800s. It was steam operated for years before being converted to electricity. It was a part of the Rome water supply system until a new pumping station was built about 20 years ago.
In 2006 local voters, in a special option local sales tax vote, wisely decided to fund the structure as an outdoors education center. By 2012 the old building had been renovated and began its mission as a wildlife education center.
The center is open to the public in the afternoon and offers various programs in the morning to local school systems, garden clubs and other interested groups. We get a lot of field trips,” says Winkelman. “On a typical day we maybe teaching anything from water quality to natural resource management. Topics include wetlands, habit, wildlife identification, and other issues related to our river systems here in Rome.”
Explaining that some of the animals they discuss are on live display, Winkelman describes the center as, “A hands on learning approach to environmental science.”
In addition to school year activities, the center offers summer programs. “We have college kids come in and intern with us in the summer,” said Winkelman. “The center has been a positive thing for the community. Most of the kids, teachers and walk-in visitors really enjoy coming here.”
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