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The Old Bicycle Path—which winds from Auburn down Town Creek to the Gin Saw Hole and Moore’s Mill—dates back to approximately 1895.

Many of Auburn’s early leading citizens enjoyed riding their bicycles to the Gin Saw Hole and Wright’s Mill, traveling the picturesque path they created. Among them were names still widely known in town and on campus: Professor C. L. Hare, Dean B. B. Ross, Dean George Petrie and his wife Mary, Shell Toomer, and John J. Wilmore.

The beauty of The Old Bicycle Path lies in its harmony with nature. Evidently the designers of the path were in tune with their natural surroundings and sought to obey the laws of nature rather than alter them.

Today, a traveler along the old path can step back into a time when the only path was a deer trail, or the path of Native Americans. Ironically, the path, which does not seem to have been made by human hands crosses a modern-day, asphalt bicycle trail near the Gin Saw Hole and Wright’s Mill. Its predecessor, The Old Bicycle Path—which pays homage to its natural surroundings--is viewed by some as a work of art, a masterpiece.

Those who honor The Old Bicycle Path seek to preserve it for future generations, and believe it should be on the National Historical Register, with markers from beginning to end. Future generations would then know the history of The Old Bicycle Path and be able to see it for themselves. They would be able to ride their bicycles along its rocky trail, into the past and into the future.

Click here for "Early Swimmers at the Old Gin Saw Hole"

Click here for a map of The Old Bicycle Path

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