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Columbus is a hidden gem just 75 miles southwest of Atlanta that boasts a unique blend of small-town charm and big-city fun without the big-city traffic. With its rich history, vibrant arts scene and abundance of outdoor recreational activities, Columbus is the perfect destination to host your next sporting event while providing tons of fun things to do in your off time.

Today, The Columbus Museum welcomed its 2,000,000th visitor since the museum began tracking attendance following the museum’s 1989 renovation. The museum welcomed John Harkey and his son, Ephraim, around 11:00 a.m. Tuesday morning. Harkey told the museum he and his son were trying to time their entrance perfectly to be the special visitors.

Here’s the short version of the story of Columbus: It’s a former mill town that is home to corporate heavy hitters, institutions of higher education and a U.S. Army base that dates back to 1918. But the longer, unabridged version is more interesting, closer to a New York Times bestseller that tells a tale of revival, renewal and rebirth. As in old times, the waters of the Chattahoochee River are driving economic prosperity, and the cheers of baseball fans can once more be heard at the historic Golden Park, which has been renovated and renamed Synovus Park.

It has been Amy Sherald’s fate to be known for one painting only. Her portrait of Michelle Obama, commissioned in 2018 by the National Portrait Gallery, brought the artist overnight fame. Ignoring the conventions of academic portraiture, a genre associated with pale men standing in front of burgundy drapes, Sherald liberated America’s first lady from the fusty, cigar-brown rooms of the past. Obama, dressed in a sleeveless gown, leans forward in her chair, channeling Rodin’s “Thinker.” The background, a featureless expanse of powder blue, suggests fresh air.

More than two million people are expected to travel through Columbus in 2025, leaving millions more dollars behind at area businesses.

With summer almost here and on this National Tourism Week, VisitColumbus leaders are stressing the importance of southern hospitality and its economic impact on the Chattahoochee Valley.

Listen to this exclusive interview between John Clark of Georgia Focus and Director Marianne Richter, as they dive into the details of the recently renovated Columbus Museum!

Chattahoochee Connections’ Bob Jeswald caught up with Kristen Hudson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, at the Columbus Museum to discuss the current exhibition, American Made: Painting and Sculpture from the DeMell Jacobsen Collection.

Spanning 250 years of American art, this collection includes masterworks of portraiture, landscape, and still life that have previously been featured at prestigious institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Over 100 works by renowned American artists such as Benjamin West, Thomas Cole, Mary Cassatt, Robert Henri, and Charles Alston are on view.

This exhibit is free and open to the public through July 6th.

Alma Thomas wasn’t just an artist—she was a disruptor, a radical force in a world that continuously denied Black women a seat at the table. While the art world prided itself on its “modern” ideals, it often refused to acknowledge the talents of Black women like Thomas—talents that redefined the very essence of art itself. Her work was not merely about color; it was a declaration of power, a fight against systemic exclusion, and a testament to the possibilities of Black futures.

“American Made: Paintings and Sculpture from the DeMell Jacobsen Collection” is now open at the Columbus Museum in Columbus, Georgia. The exhibition includes more than 100 works b y American artists. The show opened March 8 and is open through July 6, 2025. It was organized by The Mint Museum and includes paintings and sculptures spanning the two centuries. Learn more about the show here from the museum’s Jonathan Frederick Walz, director of curatorial affairs and curator of American art, and Kristen Hudson, director of marketing and public relations. For museum hours and more go to comuga.org.