Historic property to be acquired

An Oconee historian announced last night an agreement by a family of landowners to sell more than 50 acres adjoining Oconee Station State Park north of Walhalla. Luther Lyle says the agreement, involving members of the Todd family, came together this year and it’s left now for appraisals to lead to negotiations on a price and for a number of historical and land preservation organizations to raise the money needed. Lyle identified Upstate Forever, Naturaland Trust, and the Museum of the Cherokee in South Carolina as the organizations to raise the purchase money. “Everybody in Oconee County will be excited about this,” Lyle told reporters. A village of Cherokee Indians once stood on the property and the nearby state park contains a building that once served as a frontier outpost. By acquiring the property adjoining the park, Lyle says, an opportunity will be created for hiking trails that’ll offer exercise in a scenic area steeped in history of the county’s beginnings.