The final John Wisdom Wagon Train and Billy Puryear Ride is slated for this Saturday. The 2019 event will mark 40 years of revisiting the historic ride by John Wisdom. It will be highlighted by a parade in downtown Rome.
Locals are invited to attend the parade down Broad Street, which is scheduled to begin between 3 pm and 3:30 pm, according to Kristi Kent, the Director of Communications for the Georgia’s Rome Office of Tourism, who adds that if you remember the celebration of Heritage Holidays ‘back in the day,’ you will want to attend the parade.
The parade will be followed by a cowboy dance and concert to feature Scott Thompson and Friends at the Coosa Valley Fairgrounds.
Wagon Train participants will follow the 16-mile course which revisits part of the historic ride of John Wisdom, known as “Georgia’s Paul Revere”, to warn Romans of an impending attack by Union forces in May 1863, says Kent.
For more information about the John Wisdom Wagon Train and Billy Puryear Ride, visit www.romegeorgia.org. An account of the story of John Wisdom is also featured on the website.