AUGUSTA: How RUN DOWN Is The City Where Golf's Biggest Tournament Is Played? What We REALLY Saw

this is the Savannah River those beautiful stately homes on the other side are in South Carolina but me I am standing in Georgia in Augusta Georgia to be exact beautiful Town we've been here a couple days um wow look how still the water is so calm and peaceful it's a Monday oh about 9 30 A.M a little chilly this morning it's in the mid 30s right now it is supposed to get up to 60 today though so I can live with that I am on the edge of Downtown Augusta want to start the video here always like to go Riverside at the beginning of towns with the river because they're just so beautiful and peaceful and boy is this one I mean aside from the dull Roar of the cars in the distance it's really quiet beautiful this is the Riverwalk here in Augusta now I'm gonna go through downtown show you around a little bit it's beautiful I've already driven through it a couple times and uh check out some neighborhoods as usual later on grab the wife hang out a bit but I'll tell you some about Augusta before that happens population of the town is 202 100 a lot bigger than I thought it was I've always thought Augusta was just this little 40 000 population town somewhere a lot bigger in fact it's Metro is six hundred and eleven thousand second largest in the state after the Behemoth that is Atlanta of course they've got a Amphitheater here Riverside I guess so you can see a show maybe or a play it's a pretty good idea isn't it anyway uh some info about Augusta the town was founded in 1736 by General James Edward Oglethorpe named after the princess Augusta of course she was the wife of the Prince of Wales who was to become king but he died so she and her now dead husband's son George three ascended the throne interestingly this is the George that the Declaration of Independence was written to Fort Gordon's nearby major army base by far the biggest employer of the area second biggest employer is Augusta University and in the rest of the top ten is just filled with local ISD and Healthcare local government that kind of thing a few famous people born here actually quite a few right off the top of my head Lawrence Fishburne of course Morpheus in The Matrix movies Hulk Hogan the highly entertaining wrestler Herschel Walker was born here but it didn't grow up here that was already talked about in a previous video um it is also said that our former president our first President George Washington his dog is buried here so yeah that's that's a pretty good claim to fame but anyway I think we all know what Augusta is mainly known for and that is for the Masters professional golf's most prestigious tournament it's the one they all want to win held every year at the Augusta National Golf Club I'm gonna go out there later in the video it'd be cool if I could see the course wouldn't it we shall see anyway I've given you a good look of this area of Augusta let's head into downtown this is a beautiful downtown it feels like a small City downtown even though the numbers say it's not that small it's pretty big and he got a couple of Fairly tall buildings here you can see them right in front but it still feels very much like you're in kind of in a small town the way it's designed of course the trees wow it's just so beautiful I'll tell you a little bit more about the city in terms of numbers the poverty rate's 15.8 that's a tad higher than the U.S average [Music] median age is 38. median home values 182 thousand per capita income's 31 264. median household income is fifty six thousand 515 anyway I'm going to I just want to give you a look with the drive through so I'm going to turn around and go park and take a little bit of a walk pretty snazzy theater downtown Miller Theater still in operation obviously lots of Neon I bet it looks really cool at night there's another shot downtown I'm pretty much in the heart of it right now it's very quiet today I don't want you to think it's always like that like I said I've been through here a couple times and downtown's who's usually packed but today is MLK Day a holiday so a lot of nine to five businesses are closed it's kind of nice though I expected to have to fight the crowds I'm kind of getting it to myself which I really like a lot of beautiful buildings here all right so uh I'm just going to walk this way a little bit see what's down here this is the news building built in 1917. how's the local newspaper as the name suggests beautiful building a lot of beautiful buildings right here I've got an interesting Monument here it's to the Confederate dead I don't know much I'm gonna guess there's probably some controversy that it's here but I'm just going to show it to you there it is our Confederate dead Christine uh-oh we got some excitement fire engine anyway another great theater over here the Imperial go over here and take a quick look at it it's really really and I mean really beautiful yeah I love old theaters they are always among the most interesting buildings in any downtown aren't they then they toss on the neon it's just spectacular that is so cool uh there's something else here I want to see I'm going to show it to you this is the Lamar building built in 1917 or 1918. tallest building in town it's a beauty to see this uh stone work they're above the entrance it's gorgeous even though we're into the third week of January still got Christmas decorations up somebody's falling down on the job well somebody painted an interesting little mural on the ground here let's see it all flows into drain to River into the Savannah oh that's kind of fun isn't it got a little hole here in the curb where the water goes through I guess and down to the Savannah River it goes which is just about two blocks that way walking distance let's see there's a statue over here I want to show you I'm gonna go there right now this is a statue of James Brown the blues Soul rock legend wasn't born here but he moved here at the age of five and lived here for much of his childhood won his first award as a musical performer here in Augusta it's pretty cool and he's facing a statue over here so I guess I better go take a look at it see what it is another mural painted on the street James Brown hardest working man in Show Business Broad Street Augusta Georgia by the way that's the name of the street don't think I told you that the main drag so to speak yeah Broad Street anyway I'm gonna make my way over here see what the statue is the sun is not really cooperating in terms of Illuminating the statue hopefully you can see it but it is of General James Edward Oglethorpe author of Georgia founder of Augusta there you go and if you look in this direction the river's right there now I'm just one block off broader maybe two blocks off Broad Street straight that way you can see that tallest building there it's on the main drag this is the boyhood home of Woodrow Wilson our 28th president it was built in 1859 on a national register as you can well imagine it's beautiful I don't think he was poor they got something hanging from the roof there though I don't know what that is a beautiful church over here but there's another historic church over here First Presbyterian Church I'm going to take a quick look at it this is the First Presbyterian Church built in 1812. wow that's old well by U.S standards anyway I know some of you in Europe are laughing right now but for here in the U.S this is pretty old do you guys think I can take a look inside [Music] should I give it a whirl sometimes they let us sinners in sometimes they don't I'm guessing this one's locked though yep anyway it's absolutely gorgeous a lot of churches over here uh there's a glimpse of downtown [Music] what else I can find James Brown has a big presence here in the town and deservedly so this is James Brown Arena give you a quick look at it uh James Brown has his own Street here too a major thoroughfare all right I'm in the Laney Walker historic district here in Augusta I had to see this church I could see it from a long distance off coming into town this is the Tabernacle Baptist Church it is a work of art built in 1915 a very historic people who have attended Services here include John D Rockefeller President William Howard Taft Booker T Washington the Reverend the Reverend Charles T Walker yeah he was a legend in his day when he would hold Services here I just want to give you a quick look at it really a beautiful building so there's another look at that church I'm going to check out some uh of the neighborhoods here in the area there's a house that has been abandoned it looks like be with us uh see what's all around here yeah this one's setting empty yeah we got a couple over here uh you can tell these are very old architecture is really interesting uh this one's it's just rotting in the writing where it sits look like another one there now I'm just one block off from where I just was and you can see these homes are absolutely beautiful restored an Immaculate condition I'm guessing maybe in terms of it being a district they are slowly but surely renovating many of the homes these are just breathtakingly beautiful here I'll go on down the street here both sides it's both sides of the road I mean wow look at these they are something and then you know I'll pull out on the street here I'm back out on Laney Walker Boulevard and uh there it is you can see that church I just showed you sit there in a distance uh interesting area let me go a little bit farther out now all right I told you there was a James Brown Boulevard I'm gonna head down it see what's here well as I go down the street see some pretty nice houses here um just uh oh what am I I'm getting to be maybe a mile out of downtown I'm gonna drive into residential here and there goes that cat got one uh anyway oh wow yeah not new houses here it's uh this part of the town has been neglected oh um yeah quite a few abandoned houses here several right here these uh these have just been left to let nature take back that has been empty a long time a toilet on the porch the crime rate in this town is pretty high 6.9 per 1000 that's almost twice higher than the U.S average of 3.8 per 1000. they look like they have been abandoned as well kind of surprised to see this because this town is growing there's no question surprising to see homes just left here to rot but that's exactly what's Happening Here and um and I'll stop here a second if you look on the other side you can see those are new homes but on the other side next street over this is what you see homes that are empty just uh honestly these are just falling apart where they sit it's more abandoned homes yeah these are just sitting here empty I mean totally disintegrating look at this one that is just simply falling apart these should be torn down and they're just sitting here that's crazy wow pretty nice houses up here though you've got this roundabout here that's clearly new was nice Landscaping uh I'll just circle around it you can see houses that are just falling apart all around it I'm curious why they wouldn't clear these houses out I mean look at this one right here fascinating that this has just been left here huh uh you know you go down the street a little farther you got another one there's a set here disintegrating in the ground where it sits a couple of them here and then you'll go yeah you'll go a block over from here and see real nice houses kind of fascinating I guess it's a work in progress I don't know I don't know what else you would call it well I've gotten pretty close to the Augusta National Golf Club and uh the neighborhoods have gotten much more opulent shall we say yeah I'm just showing you some more neighborhoods near the golf club pretty sweet huh that's a big house kind of looks like The Beverly Hillbillies house it's just they're just everywhere here beautiful homes pretty impressive I don't know if you can see that I'm nearing the entrance of the Augusta National Golf Club look at that big water tank I think we know why takes a lot of water to keep a golf club looking or a golf course looking good anyway this is the entrance and uh doesn't look like I'm gonna be allowed to go in there to see it it's uh blocked off regular people are not allowed I guess to go see the Augusta National Golf Club boom boom well that's it that's the best I can give you guys that's where the Masters was played well I'm back in downtown with the wifey in tow yeah just see uh like seeing all these little small shops in downtowns barber shop designer apparel let's just uh it's what you like to see it's a really healthy downtown I got some vines on that building though need to cut those down they will destroy it here I'm gonna go back here you better not follow me might be a boogeyman back here hun scaredy cat I'm not scaredy cat I'm the one see I like to look at all this kind of art see that it's like art somebody's made it artsy back here right here currently that graffiti is not ugly well that is yeah you're right that is ugly see look at all these Vines here those are murals that's graffiti that's a big difference those are murals and that is graffiti okay I agree with that wow then check out this picture huh what's that mean what's that mean do you think because I don't know he has a cousin who's a policeman who smokes a cigar that's probably a doobie you don't think that's a doobie oh you're right I don't think anybody says I call him doobies because I'm a I'm a child of the 70s we are actually on James Brown Boulevard right now here in the downtown wifey's checking out this huge mural huh tips maybe nice mural though here dedicated to James Brown r b Hall of Fame he's in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame too he was an early inductee into that over 100 singles 50 albums 1963 Topps charged 66 weeks this one right here is cool it is cool yeah I like that wouldn't mind having that as a this is a painting you know like a painting and a frame in the in the house that we will have someday we don't have right now in our very yeah someday we'll have a place to live at home besides a hotel but we're in no hurry it's pretty cool right now we have lots of different places to live and we don't have to clean it ourselves yeah house cleaning that's not something we have to worry about a few people here today even though it is a holiday murals in the back oh draft Society Tap Room it's not open they need to open now look at this place Dr unks dude it's drunks don't you see the dot did you see the period drunks it's Dr unk's drunks have you had your shot today yeah you're shy you're shot that you drink no you're shot in your arm they're only open Friday and Saturday yeah drugs not Dr Oaks and I got another now this building looks storefront looks empty but you can tell this is real old look at this what happened to that awning yeah the awning is falling apart coins buy and sell camera I mean this is like from the 60s I was gonna say 70s you know maybe the 70s the camera yeah this is pretty cool it's like it's gotten a way of like back when there used to be like TV repair shops you know right you don't need to repair TVs now just go buy a new one they're so cheap do you remember when they used to have shoe repair shops oh my gosh I've only seen some old school ones in Philly back in the day yeah now this beautiful building is the Augusta Cotton Exchange when did it say this was built 1886. let me step back it's gorgeous and it's for sale the available sign right there wow what a building yeah that is that is beautiful most of these bricks have a gusta on them they're right they do Augusta Augusta all the ones that are discolored have a customer huh every time we pass the ones that are this color these These Bricks most of them say Augustine I see interesting William Bartram trail traced 1773 and 1777. Wayne bartran visits Augusta 1773 for Indian seeded lands treaty 1775 said Augusta would become the Metropolis of Georgia what do you think of that you think it's become the Metropolis of Georgia Atlanta might disagree with that the Metropolis yes check out this uh beautiful looks like a railroad bridge over here crossing the river uh the Savannah River it I was here earlier and it was perfectly still it's it still is this river is just so calm and that's South Carolina over there hon look at the beautiful houses over there wow that's worse yeah this is where some of the rich folks South Carolina Live right over there that's pretty amazing isn't it what do you think huh definitely I wouldn't mind having a house over there I wouldn't mind having a house over there either look they all you can come right down on the river they all got little walkways down they're on boats boats with their boats must be nice huh yep got an interesting placard here in Memorial two Whitney Eli Whitney for the invention of the American cotton gin says when was it when was it erected can you can you read that is that Latin it's a it's a thousand five hundred fifteen hundred how many C's four C's 1900 and three is it three years now I think there's another one in the I think there's a one in the middle it's either 1903 or 1902. I thought that was just rubbed off yeah I think it's nice yeah it looks like 1903 that'd be from the bottom yeah I'm glad you were able to decipher that because I couldn't you don't remember that from school from school no I don't remember that I remember very little from school laughs I didn't pay attention to school as well as I should have that's for sure all right we're going to have a very late lunch or very early dinner however you want to call it we're going to a local place called beamies at the river beanies is somebody's name I don't know it's it's Seafood Dawn we're both in the mood for seafood so inside we're gonna set at the bar looks like a uh homie place kind of beachy feeling well we got our drinks you're having uh Jack and water your usual I'm gonna have a local beer from right here in Augusta Savannah River wolf dog wit beer because I always want to try the local beers got a beach Vibe huh yeah what do you think yeah the bar the decorations just a little bar cute little bar yeah definitely beachy look to ourself right now that's because it's like two something in the afternoon it's three o'clock Beware of the attack 252. that's three o'clock toe jam Tojo well we've been here since 2 45. okay all right we ordered fried pickles as an appetizer Ranch do you like them better as chips or do you like better Spears it doesn't matter to me I like them both ways I usually prefer the spears then take a bite is it good no chewy is it hot it's why do you got to bite the whole thing right you need to pop it in my mouth yep yeah I'm gonna try it with the ranch no I don't do it I know yep all right we're getting salads before our dinner and uh they're pretty big huh they're pretty big since they're supposed to be a little like a side item you know yeah yeah pretty big salad we got to get some greens in us wait I got a question for you what you said the only way to eat these pickle chips is to pop it in your mouth one yes I want to see you pop this one in your mouth all at once that one's too big come on you can do it it's too big but I'll do the others what are you gonna do with that one then I'm not gonna eat that one well my food is here and damn that's a lot of food that's a lot of fried food I feel bad for your heart yeah okay thank you you're welcome yeah fried catfish and shrimp and french fries yours looks puny compared to mine because mine's black and it doesn't have all that that crazy breading and stuff and yellow rice okay yeah well we're gonna find out if this is good well I got myself a t-shirt while I'm here beanies at the river what do you guys think Augusta Augusta Georgia it is cute isn't it cute yeah cool so you got another Jack Daniels benefiting the economy in Tennessee even though we're in Georgia Gotta Love Tennessee I'm having yet another one of these local Savannah River beers a brown ale I've only took a sip and it is awesome food's excellent too it looks like you haven't touched yours or is that because I have eaten there's just yeah there's just so much of it I've already made a dent how's your scallops the scallops are awesome my shrimp are awesome look like what's his name that gets uh does these angry cooking shows Emerald no bam no Hell's Kitchen guy oh oh yeah he would be happy with those scallops Gordon Ramsay all right you'd have to ask Gordon I don't know if he'd be happy or not but I think he's pretty good okay that was really good that was really good late lunch huh yeah early dinner what'd you drop I didn't I accidentally like yeah anyway that's the end of this video we are heading across the Savannah River into Carolina the drive of course so uh next yes next few videos will be from there so be looking for those

Channel: Joe & Nic's Road Trip

Views: 213,534

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Id: aKMQG6XputI

Length: 35min 15sec (2115 seconds)

Published: Tue Jan 24 2023