About .5 miles east on this road stood Old Ebenezer, the first settlement of the Salzburgers in Georgia. They chose this location and named it Ebenezer, meaning the stone of help. General Oglethorpe laid out their town, and they soon built homes and some public buildings. The settlers remained here for two years despite many hardships, including the difficulty of navigating the stream on which the town stood. In February, 1736, the Salzburgers, then 200 in number, requested and received permission to abandon the site and move to a more desirable location, now known as New Ebenezer.