[23] Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the site where Canton would be founded lay in the heart of the original Cherokee Nation.

But following the Georgia Gold Rush in 1829, European-American settlers ignored the Indian problems and began to move into the area north of Carrollton and west of the Chattahoochee River and named it Cherokee.

Many members of the Cherokee Nation moved west in 1829, but the majority stayed until removed by federal troops sent into the area during the summer of 1838.

Today nothing stands to identify its timber structure, but the area is marked by a large piece of green Cherokee marble quarried near Holly Springs.

By autumn of 1838, the federal troops had accomplished their mission, and the Cherokee at Fort Buffington were marched off to join other groups on the infamous "Trail of Tears," a lengthy march in worsening winter weather to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River.

The new settlers chose a site for a permanent county seat and courthouse in 1833, naming it "Etowah".

The name was chosen because a group of citizens had dreams of making the Georgia town a center of the silk industry, which was concentrated in China at the time.

During the American Civil War, Canton, which had a population of about 200, was burned between November 1 and 5, 1864, by the Union Army under the command of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman.

Canton was destroyed by a foraging party of the Ohio 5th Cavalry under the command of Major Thomas T. Heath.

Since then, Canton has grown as the suburbs of Atlanta have expanded northward, and is currently experiencing its period of greatest population growth, which nearly tripled between 2000 and 2010.

The Historic Canton Theatre on Main Street features plays and other special entertainment events throughout the year, injecting new life into the downtown business district.

Streets in the downtown area were recently improved, by the removal of parking spaces, as part of the "Streetscapes" program, bringing brick pavers to sidewalks, lamp posts, lush landscaping and intersection upgrades.

In May 2004, the city held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Heritage Park, the first phase of the Etowah River Greenway.

The city used to hold concerts and movies in Heritage Park throughout the summer free of charge to its residents.

The city, in partnership with the Metro Atlanta YMCA, constructed an $8 million community center on Waleska Street contiguous to Heritage Park.

Although construction was approved for the facility by a local referendum authorizing a "free" community center, the city decided to operate it through the YMCA.

Phase two of the Etowah River Greenway north of Heritage Park consists of recreation fields for softball, baseball, tennis, and soccer.

The technology park includes a satellite campus of Chattahoochee Technical College, which opened in the fall of 2011.

The federal Hickory Log Creek Dam project, north of the city center, was approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Georgia State Route 140 also passes close to the center of the city in a northwest to southeast direction.