Gris List: Macon, by the numbers

Numbers. We count them. We crunch them. We multiply and divide them. We commit them to memory.

Today’s “Gris List” takes a look at how some numbers in Macon add up:

2.63 — Average rainfall in inches for October, the driest month of the year, according to the U.S. Climate Data website. 

4 — A quartet of unique events to check out in the days and weeks leading up to Halloween:

• “Spirits in October: Saints and Sinners,” Oct. 9-12, 17-19, Riverside Cemetery. 
• “Rose Hill Ramble,” Oct. 18, Rose Hill Cemetery.
• “Haunts and History on the Hill” ghost tours, Oct. 25, 27, 29, Hay House. 
• “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” Oct. 31, Grand Opera House.

5 — The number of different venues that Macon’s City Hall has been utilized for since it was built in 1837 (Confederate hospital, Railroad and Banking building, fireproof cotton warehouse, Georgia State Capitol, local government center).

12 — The number of signature hamburgers on the menu at The Rookery, one of downtown’s oldest and most iconic restaurants (Rookery Burger, Classic City Cheeseburger, Allman Burger, Jerry Reed Burger, Jimmy Carter Burger, James Brown’s Black and Blue Burger, Johnny Jenkins Burger, Big “O” Burger, Ray Charles Burger, Dr. John Burger, Walden Greenback Burger, Little Richard Pennimelt).

13 — The number of exits on I-75 in Macon-Bibb (Bass Road, Riverside Drive — River Crossing, Arkwright Road/Tom Hill Jr. Boulevard, Riverside Drive — southbound at Lee Road, Riverside Drive — northbound at Pierce Avenue, I-16 interchange, Vineville/Hardeman southbound, Forsyth Street northbound, Mercer University Drive, Eisenhower Parkway, Rocky Creek Road/Pio Nono Avenue, Hartley Bridge Road, Sardis Church Road).

17 — The number of historic districts in Macon on the National Register of Historic Places (Bowden Golf Course, Cherokee Brick, Cherokee Heights, East Macon, Fort Hill, Georgia Industrial Home, Ingleside, Macon Historic District, Napier Heights, North Highlands, Ocmulgee National Monument, Pleasant Hill, Railroad Industrial District, Shirley Hills, Tindall Heights, Vineville, Wesleyan College).

21 — The number of public elementary schools in Bibb County (Alexander II Math and Science Magnet School, Bernd, Bruce, Sonny Carter, Burdell-Hunt Magnet School of Communicative Arts, Hartley, Heard, Heritage, Ingram-Pye, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., McKibben Lane, Porter, John R. Lewis, Skyview, Southfield, Springdale, Rosa Taylor, Union, Veterans, Vineville Academy for the Arts, L. H. Williams).

24 — Number of rooms at the Hay House, which bills itself as the Palace of the South and is one of Macon’s leading tourist attractions.

44 — The 44-foot, full-dome Mark Smith Planetarium at Macon’s Museum of Arts & Sciences utilizes the digital technology of the Konica-Minolta Super Media Globe II, which is the brightest and highest resolution single projector available in the U.S.

61 — The number of stained glass windows at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. The windows depict Bible scenes and religious symbols and are made from glass in the Mayer workshops in Munich and Bavaria, Germany.

181 — The number of miles you must travel from the Visit Macon downtown visitor’s center to stick your big toe in the ocean at Tybee Island.

230,000 — The approximate number of bricks used in the construction of the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in downtown Macon. It opened in 1999 and is the largest state sports museum in the country.

5 million — The approximate number of zippers made every day in 1,500 styles and 427 colors at the YKK plant in Macon.