City of Suwanee City Map Poster

About City of Suwanee

The city is named after the Suwannee River in Florida. The name "Suwanee" comes from a Muskogee word meaning "Live Oak Tree". In 1818, General William McIntosh purchased along the Chattahoochee River in present-day Gwinnett County near the current location of Duluth. He built a home there on land that was ceded to him by Chief Vann and his people for his service during the Creek War (War of 1812). His son John later moved westward into what is now Forsyth County and established another homestead about six miles south of Cumming, Georgia around 1850. This area became known as Suwanee Junction because it was located at an intersection between two railroads: one running north–south through Gainesville; and one running east–west through Cumming/Dahlonega/Suwanee (then called simply Suwane).