Gable Front House, Queensland
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Category Archives: –BEN HILL COUNTY GA–
Historic Queensland Schools, Ben Hill County
The first known school in Queensland was built at a time when many churches and benevolent societies demanded and funded improvements for African-American students in the South. The first school [pictured above] was originally known as the Queensland Negro Industrial Training School and was later Queensland Elementary and Queensland High. The original structure was replaced by a modern facility in the late 1940s or early 1950s and all structures were razed by the early 2000s.
The historical marker, placed by Ben Hill County, is titled: Queensland Negro Industrial Training School to Queensland Elementary and High School. It reads: In July 1913, applicants furnished 10 acres of land and $800.00 cash to build the Queensland Negro Industrial Training School on this site. The Ben Hill County Board of Education matched the funds, work began, and the school and grounds were dedicated on October 2, 1913. The Rosenwald Fund continued to support the school by financing building projects as needed for growth.
The first principal, J. Clifton Smith, a graduate of Brown College and Tuskegee Institute, promised the patrons that with their cooperation he would teach their children and themselves better use of the land and better modes of living. First term commencement exercises were held May 2-May 5, 1914. School enrollment for the first term totaled nearly 300 students representing seven counties; with 107 boys in the corn club and 76 girls in the canning club. The school was one of the first three in Georgia designated as Training Schools for excellent vocational training in labor professions. The school expanded academic offerings and prepared graduates to pursue professional careers as lawyers, doctors and educators as well as farmers and laborers.
In 1918, the school was supported by the county board of education, the Slater Fund and a Negro Baptist Association, mainly for the purpose of training teachers for the Negro schools. The original school included a two-story building with five large classrooms, a dormitory and teachers’ home. The faculty consisted of the principal and four assistants with an average enrollment of over 200 students. At that time, including Queensland, there were fourteen Negro schools in Ben Hill County. The rest were one- teacher schools located in church buildings with very little equipment.
The world is a better place because of the dedication of patrons, educators, administrators and the thousands of students who were educated on these grounds located “Deep into the heart of Southeast Georgia.” The Christian Fellowship Tabernacle Church, which now owns and occupies this site, continues the legacy of preparing people to make a positive difference in this world.
Old Dixie Highway, Queensland
The Dixie Highway was conceived in 1915 by a group of governors and business leaders seeking to increase tourism in their states. As assembly lines made cars and trucks more affordable to the masses, improved roads were a necessity. Historically, Georgia’s were notoriously bad. As late as 1915, paved streets were rare in the state and no paved highways existed.
It’s not an exaggeration to say that this was the first viable ‘interstate’ highway in Georgia and local leaders lobbied aggressively to have the route come through their communities. Its presence in Ben Hill County was likely a result of the influence of local newspaperman Isidor Gelders. He was a member of the board of the Dixie Highway Association.
Scattered original sections like those pictured here still remain, but they’re increasingly rare.
Edd Evans House, Fitzgerald
South Main Street-South Lee Street Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Dr. W. D. Willcox House, Fitzgerald
Dianne Willcox Weems notes that her father purchased this home from the Ewing family, but I’m unsure of the identity of the original owners at this time.
South Main Street-South Lee Street Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Abandoned Church, Ben Hill County
The architecture leads me to believe this was a church, especially the presence of two front doors.
Surplus Store, Fitzgerald
Railroad Mural, Fitzgerald
Railroads were integral to the settlement of Fitzgerald in the late 1890s and for much of its history have been one of its main economic components. The city commissioned Dylan Ross to create this colorful mural. You may recall Dylan as the artist behind the brilliant Andy Griffith Show mural in Broxton.
Mill Worker’s Houses, Fitzgerald
These are among the last of the mill worker’s houses in the Fitzgerald Cotton Mills that haven’t been covered with vinyl siding.
The utilitarian structures were provided to employees of the mill and many families remained in them after the mill closed.
Bond-Morris House, Circa 1908, Fitzgerald
This house and the Bond-Carroll House about twelve miles from town are said to have been built by brothers. I imagine it had other occupants after the Bonds but it’s best known today as the longtime residence of Don & Norma Morris. It is slightly more formal than the country house.