Fulton County · Metro Atlanta
Roswell City Guide
Search the Roswell guide
2 entries in the Roswell guide, indexed at build time.
Search all of GeorgiaThe river city on the Chattahoochee with the mill-village old town.
Roswell is a city in north Fulton County, set on the Chattahoochee near the city's northern edge. The historic mill village, the river parks, and a long residential buildup define it. Founded in the 1830s as a mill town, it grew around a preserved historic district, a restaurant row on Canton Street, and a long stretch of riverfront parkland that is part of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.
The story of Roswell
History of Roswell
Roswell was the creation of Roswell King, a New England-born entrepreneur who saw water power in Vickery Creek in the 1830s. He and his sons built a textile mill complex, incorporated in 1839 as the Roswell Manufacturing Company, and the town that grew around it took his name. The mills were built and run on enslaved labor, a fact the town's history now acknowledges plainly.
The town incorporated in 1854, then in Cobb County; it was annexed into Fulton in 1932. The mill village houses, the old mill buildings, and the river crossing anchored the community through the industrial century.
Roswell today is the river city of north Fulton: the preserved mill village, the Chattahoochee parks, and a long residential buildup around the historic core.
Living in Roswell
Roswell balances a preserved historic district with one of the metro's fullest suburbs: the county schools, the riverfront parks, and the Alpharetta and Perimeter job belts frame daily life. The old mills and the antebellum houses anchor the character. It is established, prosperous, and river-fronted.
What locals love
- · Roswell's own corner of the metro: the neighborhood runs at its own pace.
- · County parks, pools, and greenways a short drive from home.
- · Being inside the job grid without living in the middle of it.
Festival · Roswell City Hall grounds
When is the Roswell Arts Festival?
The Roswell Arts Festival is a juried fine-arts festival that supports the City of Roswell's Recreation, Parks, Historic and Cultural Affairs Department. It is held the third Saturday and Sunday of September from 10 AM to 5 PM on the grounds of Roswell City Hall at 38 Hill Street, it is free to the public, and it features more than 75 artists, live entertainment, children's activities, and food trucks. Since its start it has raised more than $1.7 million for Roswell parks and recreation programs.
The 60th annual festival ran September 19-20, 2026, and has already passed. The 2027 dates have not been published yet; the festival's standing schedule is the third weekend of September, and the official site is the place to watch for the announcement.
The official festival siteHistoric downtown
The mill town that kept its old town
The Roswell Historic District has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1974, and most of what a first visit is looking for sits within a few walkable blocks: the old mill buildings, the antebellum houses, and the restaurant row on Canton Street.
Roswell is named for Roswell King, the coastal Georgia businessman who founded the mill town in the late 1830s. The Roswell Manufacturing Company grew into one of north Georgia's largest cotton mills; Union troops burned the mills in July 1864, and the mill building that stands today dates from 1882, now commercial space near the creek.
Centennial and Canton Streets hold the downtown core. Canton Street is the restaurant row, with kitchens and bars in restored historic buildings, and the old mill ruins and waterfall on Vickery Creek sit a short walk away in Old Mill Park.
Bulloch Hall
180 Bulloch Avenue
A Greek Revival mansion completed in 1839. The childhood home of Mittie Bulloch, who married Theodore Roosevelt Sr. there in 1853; they became the parents of President Theodore Roosevelt.
Barrington Hall
535 Barrington Drive
Built around 1842 for Barrington King, the founder's son, on the town's highest point looking over the mill. Cited by the Roswell CVB as one of the finest Greek Revival homes in the country.
Smith Plantation
935 Alpharetta Street
Built around 1845 for the Smith family, who moved from the Georgia coast in 1838. The three house museums are city-owned and admission has been free since 2023.
Hours for the house museums and the mill building change with the season and the event calendar, so confirm on the City of Roswell historic house museum page before you go.
On the river
The Chattahoochee at Roswell's back door
Roswell sits on the Chattahoochee, and the river side of the city is its outdoor centerpiece. The Roswell Riverwalk trail threads the riverfront parks, canoe and kayak launches put in at several points, and National Park Service land runs along the creek and the river within the city limits.
Roswell River Landing
245 Azalea Drive
The city event facility with an observation deck over the Chattahoochee and a canoe and kayak launch on the river.
Official pageDon White Memorial Park
925 Riverside Road
A two-level riverfront park with canoe and kayak launch, fishing docks, sand volleyball, and the Roswell Riverwalk trail. Named for a former Roswell mayor.
Official pageGarrard Landing
8000 Holcomb Bridge Road
A canoe and raft launch with an NPS-maintained ramp, on the Roswell side of the river.
Official pageChattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Vickery Creek Unit
Riverside Road access
National Park Service trails along Vickery Creek through the old mill grounds, open sunrise to sunset, with the historic mill waterfall along the route.
Official pageRiverside Park
575 Riverside Road
A riverfront park with a splash pad and amphitheater. The city lists it as temporarily closed while it is renovated under the River Parks Master Plan, so check the city page before you plan a visit.
Official pageRiver levels, closures, and launch conditions change with the season. Confirm the day you plan to paddle or wade, and never enter the water above the fall line after heavy rain.
Where to eat
Real tables on and around Canton Street
Canton Street is the restaurant row, and it is where downtown Roswell eats at night. These are real, open kitchens with their own websites; the list stays short and verified rather than long and guessed.
Table & Main
1028 Canton Street
Seasonal Southern cooking on the restaurant row, open since 2011 in a restored storefront.
Visit the restaurantOsteria Mattone
1095 Canton Street
The Italian kitchen on the row, with a wood-fired oven and a long wine list.
Visit the restaurantLittle Alley Steak
955 Canton Street
The steakhouse room on Canton Street, in the heart of downtown Roswell.
Visit the restaurant1920 Tavern
948 Canton Street
A tavern in a restored historic building, a downtown Roswell mainstay.
Visit the restaurantMac McGee
936 Canton Street
A neighborhood pub on the row, pouring in one of the district's oldest corners.
Visit the restaurantLe Bistro at Roswell Provisions
955 Canton Street
A bistro attached to the provisions market on Canton Street.
Visit the restaurantHours change with the season, so check each restaurant's own page before you go. The full verified regional directory lives on the businesses page .
Parks & outdoors
The city's green side
The City of Roswell runs the parks below, each one verified against its official facility page. Trails are the through-line: Roswell's parks together hold miles of walking, running, and mountain-bike trail.
Roswell Area Park
10495 Woodstock Road
The city's largest park: roughly five miles of trails, a lake with catch-and-release fishing, ball fields, tennis courts, playgrounds, and a seasonal pool.
Official pageHembree Park
850 Hembree Road
Ball fields, a 1.2-mile gravel trail loop, and a small primitive campground with tent pads.
Official pageLeita Thompson Memorial Park
1200 Woodstock Road
More than two miles of wooded trails, an off-leash dog park, and a fishing pond. Named for Leita Thompson, an early Georgia banking executive who owned the land.
Official pageOld Mill Park
95 Mill Street
The mill ruins, the Roswell Mill waterfall, and Vickery Creek trails, with a covered bridge across the creek. Water access at the waterfall is suspended; the falls are viewing only.
Official pageHoliday highlight · Roswell, metro Atlanta
Atlanta Dance Theatre's The Nutcracker
Saturday, December 12, 2026 The Roswell Cultural Arts Center, 950 Forrest Street, Roswell
Practical notes about Roswell
The questions a move here starts with
Schools
Roswell public schools are part of Fulton County Schools, the countywide district. Attendance follows the address, and the exact boundary decides the school for a given lot, so verify the attendance area for the address before you buy or rent. The schools and family guide covers the boundary rule.
Getting around
A car is the honest answer for most of Roswell. GA 400 runs a few miles west of the city and connects downtown Atlanta with Alpharetta and points north; MARTA rail does not reach Roswell, and the North Springs station is the closest Red Line park-and-ride, served by MARTA bus routes from Roswell.
Jobs & healthcare
Work in and around Roswell tracks the North Fulton economy: technology, healthcare, and the Alpharetta and Perimeter job belts. Hospital care is at Wellstar North Fulton Hospital in Roswell.
New residents
Start with the city: Roswell handles water, sewer, and most local services, while the county runs taxes and courts. Confirm the providers at the address, and let the school boundary settle any address you are close on.
This is an editorial guide, not a listings site. Updated October 25, 2026. Real-estate guidance on this page is provided by Rob Dietrich, REALTOR® with eXp Realty, LLC.
Other city guides
Every covered city runs its own guide: orientation, real picks, parks, and the rhythm of a week. The full A to Z list, with the coverage map, lives on the cities page.