The Union County Historical Society’s Friday Night Mountain Music series brings local mountain and bluegrass musicians into the old courthouse at the center of the Blairsville square. The 2026 season opened May 1, and the Society’s 2026 concert schedule runs through December 18.
The rest of the 2026 schedule
| Date | Performer |
|---|---|
| Fri, Oct 16 | Hickory Stands |
| Fri, Oct 23 | Billy Kelley |
| Fri, Oct 30 | Skillet Lickers |
| Fri, Dec 4 | Roy Perren |
| Fri, Dec 11 | North Georgia Chamber |
| Fri, Dec 18 | John Cochran and the Cowhands |
The schedule lists no November concerts. It also leaves out two things you’ll want to know: what time the music starts and whether there’s a charge. Call the Historical Society at (706) 745-5493 before you plan dinner around a show.
How this year’s season ran
The 2026 series played Fridays from May 1 through the end of October, skipping July 3, August 21 and September 25, and added one Saturday show on September 5 with the Mars Hill Porch Pickers. After a November break it returns for three December Fridays. We haven’t seen a 2027 schedule yet; the Society posts its schedule as a PDF on unioncountyhistory.org.
The building
The Old Union County Courthouse was built in 1899. The Historical Society credits courthouse architect J.W. Golucke, while the National Park Service’s National Register record lists the firm Golucke & Stewart. The Romanesque building was listed on the National Register on September 18, 1980.
It nearly didn’t survive. After years of neglect, the courthouse was condemned in the 1970s, and the Historical Society saved it from demolition. The Society has restored and maintained it since. Today it is the Society’s museum, with local history exhibits that include a military museum and a dollhouse collection, and the restored courtroom hosts the concerts and lectures.
Visiting in daylight
The museum at 3 Town Square is free, and a small donation for upkeep is appreciated. From January through April it’s open Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. From May through December it adds Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Society also runs the Mountain Life Museum, one block south of the square at 25 Veterans Memorial Drive, with the 1906 Grapel Mock House and the 1861 Payne Cabin. The grounds are free to walk; building tours are $5 per person (12 and under free) Thursday through Saturday, May through December.
The 1899 courthouse came more than 60 years after the county and town were founded. Union County was created on December 3, 1832, from Cherokee County territory at the time of Georgia’s 1832 Land Lottery, and Blairsville was incorporated on December 26, 1835, according to the county and the city.
A short walk away, Blairsville City Hall at 62 Blue Ridge Street is the old Union County Jail, built in 1934. It was listed on the National Register on September 13, 1985 (NPS record), and the city’s history page still calls it the old jail.
The Society’s real website is unioncountyhistory.org. A look-alike domain with “historicalsociety” in its name is unrelated, so type the address carefully.
Other downtown evenings this season
- Family Glow Night, Saturday, Oct 31, 6:30–9 p.m. Free, per the Blairsville Downtown Development Authority, with glow-in-the-dark putt-putt, light-up cornhole, games and a DJ; food trucks are extra. A daytime pumpkin hunt runs 10 a.m.–4 p.m. the same day.
- Santa’s Workshop, Friday, Dec 4, 3–8 p.m. at the Old Courthouse, on the Historical Society’s events list, the same night as the Roy Perren concert. The Society’s Christmas Parade follows on Saturday, Dec 5; its start time hasn’t been published.
- Downtown Holiday Night Market, Dec 11, 4–8:30 p.m. The DDA’s first, with live Christmas music, late shopping, craft vendors, kids’ activities and food trucks, and free to attend. Dec 11 comes from the text of the DDA event page; its header shows Dec 12, so check the DDA site closer to the date. If Dec 11 holds, it lines up with the North Georgia Chamber concert.
For dinner before a show, see our downtown restaurant list. The full calendar is on events, and a walking guide to the square is on our downtown square page.
Questions people ask
When are the Old Courthouse concerts in Blairsville?
The Historical Society's 2026 schedule lists Friday concerts on October 16, 23 and 30, then December 4, 11 and 18, with no November dates. Start times aren't on the schedule, so call the Union County Historical Society at (706) 745-5493.
Source: Union County Historical Society – 2026 Concerts Old Courthouse
Is the Old Courthouse Museum free?
Yes. Admission is free and a small donation for upkeep is appreciated. The museum is open Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and from May through December also on Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Source: Union County Historical Society
Who designed the old Union County Courthouse?
Sources differ slightly. The Union County Historical Society credits courthouse architect J.W. Golucke, while the National Park Service's National Register record lists the firm Golucke & Stewart. The building dates from 1899 and joined the National Register in 1980.
Source: NPS NPGallery – Old Union County Courthouse (NRIS 80001249)
What is the Union County Historical Society's website?
It's unioncountyhistory.org. A look-alike domain with 'historicalsociety' in its name is unrelated and should be avoided. The Society's phone is (706) 745-5493, and its mailing address is P.O. Box 35, Blairsville, GA 30514.
Source: Union County Historical Society
Written by the Downtown Blairsville Editorial Team. AI tools help us draft; people check every fact before it publishes.
Dates, hours and fees change. For anything official, the city has the final word: City of Blairsville official site
