Category Archives: –BULLOCH COUNTY GA–

Willow Hill Elementary School, 1954, Bulloch County

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Willow Hill Elementary School, under a clear blue sky with scattered clouds, featuring multiple windows and a paved area in front.

A historic marker placed on 30 August 2014 reads: Willow Hill School was established in 1874 during Reconstruction as one of the first schools for African Americans in Bulloch County.  It was privately supported until being sold to the local Board of Education in 1920. In 1954 the county built a new “equalization” school as part of a statewide strategy to resist federally mandated integration.  These schools addressed blatant geographic and racial disparities in education with new, modern – but still segregated – facilities and improved curricula. Willow Hill was one of five such African-American schools in Bulloch County and consolidated several older rural schools: Bennett Grove, Scarboro Grove, Rehovia, Gays Grove, Free Chapel, and Johnson Grove.  The school closed in 1969 as part of the county’s desegregation plan, and the students and faculty sent elsewhere.  It reopened as an integrated intermediate school in 1971 with new faculty.

 

Cedar Lawn Store, Bulloch County

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Historic Cedar Lawn store in Bulloch County, surrounded by overgrown vegetation and trees. The building features peeling paint and broken windows, showcasing signs of neglect.

I’d like to thank photographer Randall Davis for suggesting this place. Some thought it was located in Emanuel County, since it has a Twin City address, but it’s just over the Bulloch County line on U.S. 80, near Portal. Residential stores like this are few and far between today. It’s always been a common practice in cities for shopkeepers to live “above the store” but was seen less frequently in rural areas.

Update: As of 2017, Bill Lanier notes that the front porch and much of the roof has collapsed.

Pleasant Hill Methodist Church, 1879, Bulloch County

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Front view of a white church building with two doors, surrounded by pine trees and a sandy area.

This congregation dates to 1879. The church was built at a time when many congregations segregated the sexes through architecture. Men entered through one door and women through another.

Pleasant Hill Methodist Church, surrounded by tall pine trees and a barren landscape, partially obscured by green leaves in the foreground.

Thanks to Linda Warman Sims & Brenna J. Moore for suggesting this.

Jaeckel Hotel, 1905, Statesboro

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Front view of Statesboro City Hall, formerly the Jaeckel Hotel, featuring a brick facade, white trim, and American flags on display.

Opened by German immigrant Gustave Jaeckel, this hotel was a showplace in early 20th century Statesboro, hosting celebrities like Henry Ford, William Jennings Bryan and Cornelius Vanderbilt. After closing in the late 1960s, it was acquired by the city of Statesboro in the 1990s and renovated for use as City Hall.

A black and white photograph of Blind Willie McTell playing an acoustic guitar in a room, with a microphone and a dresser visible in the background.
Blind Willie McTell, Photograph by Ruby Lomax, Atlanta, 1940, Courtesy Library of Congress

Blind Willie McTell played here when he lived in Statesboro. The Thomson native and iconic bluesman wrote many blues standards but is best known for his “Statesboro Blues” (famously covered by the Allman Brothers Band).

Vintage sign for Jaeckel Hotel hanging against a clear blue sky.

The beautiful AAA hotel neon was restored in 2012 by the Bulloch County Historical Society and the Jack N. & Addie D. Averitt Foundation.

East Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Preetorius Building, 1910, Statesboro

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Preetorius Building in Statesboro, Georgia, featuring a beige facade with arched windows, a central door painted in pink, and signage indicating available office space for rent.

This structure is next door to the Emma Kelly Theater. It is said to have been built by Hall Preetorius (1893-1948), but he would have only been seventeen years old at the time. Perhaps it was built by his father, William Stevens Preetorius, Sr. (1863-1939).

East Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Emma Kelly Theater, 1936, Statesboro

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Front view of the Emma Kelly Theater with a marquee displaying showtimes. The building features Art Deco elements and is flanked by neighboring structures.

Originally known as the Georgia Theater, this Art Deco landmark is now part of the Averitt Center for the Arts and was renamed in honor of musical icon Emma Kelly, the “Lady of 6,000 Songs”. The late Mrs. Kelly is known to wider audiences for her cameo role in the movie Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, based on John Berendt’s best-selling book of the same name. See schedules here.

East Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

 

Bank of Statesboro Building, 1911

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Front view of the historic Bank of Statesboro building featuring ornate architectural details and a sign that reads 'ART GALLERY'. The entrance is flanked by decorative pillars.

One of the city’s most recognizable icons, the old Bank of Statesboro building is now home to the David H. “Hal” Averitt Center for the Arts. Mr. Averitt was a longtime member of the Statesboro City Council and later served as Mayor. His family’s foundations are actively involved in promoting the arts and history in Bulloch County and have marked and preserved many sites that would otherwise have been forgotten.

A historic building featuring a prominent entrance with the words 'Art Gallery' and 'Bank of Statesboro', adorned with red banners and large windows, set against a clear blue sky.

The curved shape of the building will get your attention, but even more extraordinary to me is the monumental arch which serves as the main entrance.

East Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

 

Mathews Building, 1920, Statesboro

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View of a historic red brick building in Statesboro, Georgia, with a mural on its side, featuring a public parking sign and trees in front.

East Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Commercial Block, Statesboro

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A corner building with a light-colored brick facade and a striped awning, featuring storefront windows displaying the name 'fleurish.' There are street signs indicating 'E. Main' and another street, with landscaped areas and benches in front.

Though I haven’t identified it yet, I would guess this structure dates to the late 19th or early 20th century. Like much of Statesboro’s historic downtown, it has been renovated for modern use.

East Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Blitch Building, Statesboro

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Facade of the historic Blitch Buillding featuring architectural details with a sign for lease, adjacent to a white building with large arched windows, in Statesboro, Georgia.

Directly across North Main Street from the courthouse is the wonderful Blitch Building. Like its neighbor to the immediate south (left) it features fanlights.

North Main Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places