Category Archives: Fitzgerald GA

Evergreen Cemetery Pavilion, 1920s, Fitzgerald

1 Reply

The Victorian aesthetic of the cemetery as a public park was falling out of fashion by the time Evergreen Cemetery was established, but Fitzgerald embraced the ideal, planting trees and shrubs to enhance the landscape. Part of the park concept often included pavilions for public remembrances. Such remembrances were commonplace in the years just after World War I, when this Craftsman-inspired structure was built. At the time, Evergreen was a much smaller cemetery than it is today, and funeral services were sometimes held here, as well.

N. J. Trammell, Sexton of Evergreen Cemetery, at the new pavilion, circa 1924. Albumen print on cabinet card. Note the absence of the louvered sides. Collection of Brian Brown.

I inherited this photograph of the newly built pavilion from the daughter of the man standing beside it. They were distant cousins of mine. Needham John Trammell (1863-1938) was the sexton of Evergreen Cemetery during the 1910s and 1920s and he was charged with its upkeep and the recording of burials. I believe the photograph was made in 1924 (it’s one of several), but will have to locate more paperwork to confirm a specific date. I’ll update when I do.

Sexton’s Monthly Report of Burials in Evergreen Cemetery for the The City of Fitzgerald, 1922. Collection of Brian Brown.

I also have several volumes of his sexton’s monthly reports, covering most of the 1920s. This page indicates there were only two burials in April 1922.

As the preceding vintage photograph illustrates, the pavilion didn’t have the louvered sides when built. They were added for shade, no doubt.

The pavilion continues to be well-maintained and has become a symbol of Evergreen Cemetery over the years.

Old Post Office + Federal Building, 1918, Fitzgerald

Leave a reply

This Colonial Revival post office was always one of my favorite buildings when I was growing up. It was built in 1918 to replace the old granitoid post office that stood a block east on the corner of Central Avenue and Main Street. It was based on plans of James A. Wetmore, Supervising Architect of the Treasury Department. There were variations of Wetmore’s plans, and hundreds of similar or identical structures were built throughout the country. There’s a “twin” to the Fitzgerald post office in Barnesville, and there are likely others in Georgia. When a new post office was built on Main Street [opened in 1966], this structure became known as the Federal Building and still houses federal and county offices.

An aside: Alvin G. Brown (1876-1955) was the face of the post office for many years, an ambassador if you will, serving as a mail carrier from 1909-1941 and known in earlier years for using a horse and canopied mail wagon. His father was an original Fitzgerald colonist from Iowa. Brown also served a brief term as Fitzgerald mayor, if I recall correctly. I know he ran for mayor because somewhere I have a card from the campaign, showing him on his mail wagon.

Swan Postmasters, 1888-1895: Benjamin Drew, 1888-1891; William O. McKeithen, 1891-1892; Missouri A. Ford,1892; Kate Drew, 1892-1893; and David Drew, 1893-1895.

Fitzgerald Postmasters 1895-1978: David Drew, 1895-1897; David E. Peiper, 1897-1900; James William Huggins, 1900-1901; William H. Marston, 1901-1911; Eleanor M. Marston, (Acting Postmaster), 1911; George E. Ricker, 1911-1915; William A. Adams, 1915-1940; James Jarratt Pryor, 1940-1964; Clifford A. Pickens, 1964-1973; Baney R. Adams, 1973-1978; Idaleen C. Callis, 1978; John J. Wiggins, 1978-

Fitzgerald Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Fitzgerald High School Gymnasium, 1950s

2 Replies

This rather plain mid-century gymnasium stands behind the site of the old Fitzgerald High School, whose loss is still a great pain to the community. After World War II, when the high school outgrew its original building, newer structures were added to the campus, including the gymnasium*. It replaced the much older wooden gym at Blue & Gray Park, known far and wide as “The Shell”. Basketball was at peak popularity in Fitzgerald in the 1950s, so this was a regular gathering place not just for students but for the community as a whole. The amateur wrestling circuit made many stops here over the decades, as well.

I began high school in the 8th grade and well remember Coach Gibbs’s p.e. classes meeting here, playing dodge ball and other intramural sports. I also remember the wooden bleachers that could be pushed in accordion fashion to the walls. The building seemed ancient and derelict to me then, but it was so well-built that it’s still around. I’m unsure of its present use but am hopeful it is protected.

*- I haven’t tracked down a specific date for construction of the gymnasium, but my best guess is between 1949-1958. My father graduated in 1959 and recalls attending basketball games at the old shell and in the new gym. I’ll update when I learn more.

Virginia Apartments, 1950, Fitzgerald

1 Reply

Built in 1950, the Virginia Apartments are a Colonial Revival multi-unit complex made up of two identical buildings, located side by side. Many of the original elements survive in the apartments, but doors, shutters and windows have been replaced. This was the first place my parents lived after they got married in 1967. My mother said that many newlyweds lived here at the time.

The apartments were owned by John Henry “Jack” Mayes, Jr., (1914-1989), the son of British immigrant “Captain Jack” Mayes (1881-1960), who ran the Fitzgerald Cotton Mills. Jack, Jr.’s brother, Garbert (1906-1954), who was also involved in the mills, was the father of author Frances Mayes.

Westwood Shops, Circa 1906, Fitzgerald

Leave a reply

This is the last surviving of several massive industrial shop buildings which served the Atlanta, Birmingham & Atlantic and its successors in its Fitzgerald hub. Their presence speaks not only to the vast expansion of the railroad industry at the turn of the century, but as well to the rapid growth of Fitzgerald, scarcely 10 years old when this heavy industry brought large-scale employment to the town.

Larry Goolsby, who has done more research on the history of the Atlanta, Birmingham & Atlantic and its successor than anyone I know, wrote in his excellent history Atlanta, Birmingham & Coast, ACL & SCL Historical Society, Valrico, Florida, 2000: “The Atlanta, Birmingham & Atlantic was…busy…during 1906. Construction was proceeding on a large yard and permanent shop complex at Fitzgerald, including a 75×300-foot machine shop with and 85-ton traveling crane, blacksmith and boiler shops, engine house, coach shop, planing mill, foundry, and a power house among other buildings. These facilities, called Shops at first and renamed Westwood in 1922, would replace AB&A’s small shops at Brunswick and Waycross as the system’s major site for rebuilding, repairs, and painting. They also superseded the wooden shop buildings originally built at Fitzgerald. The scope of the undertaking could be gauged by Master Mechanic J. E. Cameron’s concern over housing for the new shops’ employees: “In 60 days from now we will bring in the neighborhood of 300 men and their families, and not a house for their accommodation.“

A majority of the railroad laborers were African-Americans, and houses were soon constructed in Westwood, an historically African-American community about a mile from the Fitzgerald yard. I had always presumed that Westwood existed because of the railroad, and it certainly grew with their presence, but at least one church in the village predates the railroad’s presence by nearly 30 years.

Over the years, the existing Westwood shop buildings began to deteriorate as the railroad transferred their operations elsewhere. A couple of the buildings, nearly identical to the one pictured here, were still standing as recently as 15-20 years ago. In the years since they were abandoned by the railroad, they have been used by various businesses.

Gottlieb-Castleberry Farm, Circa 1920s, Fitzgerald

3 Replies
Gottlieb House, rear view

Martin Gottlieb (1892-1968) was a Hungarian Jewish immigrant who came to Fitzgerald in 1918. He was a merchant and tailor and an active member of the Hebrew Commercial Alliance throughout his time in Fitzgerald. He is best remembered for leaving the city a large bequest that was to be used to purchase Christmas gifts for needy children. The fund survives to this day. He also served as president of the Fitzgerald Baseball Club, the Pioneers, which were a professional farm team. The property documented here was originally Gottlieb’s farm, located just outside Fitzgerald, but now within the city limits.

Shop barn

Gottlieb eventually went into business with Ed Castleberry (1909-2003), and their Gottlieb and Castleberry Men’s Shop, located next to the Garbutt-Donovan Building on East Pine Street, outfitted generations of men in Fitzgerald. I remember visiting the small store as a youth as it was the place to order Boy and Cub Scout uniforms.

Garage

Eventually, Ed Castleberry purchased or inherited the farm from Mr. Gottlieb. Though more a “gentleman’s farm” than a commercial enterprise, pecan trees were cultivated and harvested on the property from year to year.

Volkswagen Beetle in the garage

Ed and Minnie Castleberry’s (1915-2006) son, John Ed Castleberry (1945-2023) continued to live here until his death.

Barn

The property will likely be sold for commercial use, so I was glad to have the opportunity to photograph it.

Castleberry House

Montford Point Marine C. C. Hall: A Lifetime of Service & Leadership

4 Replies
Mr. C. C. Hall at Fitzgerald’s 2024 Veterans Day Remembrance. Photo Courtesy and © William E. Brown

Charles Cargile “C. C.” Hall was born in Madison, Georgia in 1925. He was drafted in 1943 and enlisted with the Marines at Camp Montford Point in Jacksonville, North Carolina, among the first African-Americans to serve in the Corps. His World War II service included stints at Guam and Hawaii and he was honorably discharged in 1946. After the war, he received a degree from Savannah State and went on to receive a Masters Degree from Columbia University in New York.

He came to Fitzgerald to teach at Monitor High School after completing his education, and he never left. Working a side job at Riggs Funeral Home to supplement his teaching salary, he eventually became a partner. When Mr. Riggs died in 1959, Hall became the sole owner and renamed it Hall’s Funeral Home. The business remains successful today, though at 99 years old Mr. Hall isn’t involved in day to day operations. Throughout the years, he has also been actively involved in civil rights issues.

In 2012 Mr. Hall and other surviving Montford Point Marines received the Congressional Gold Medal from President Obama. He has been a respected businessman in Fitzgerald for over 65 years and has received numerous honors for his service. Part of Monitor Drive was even renamed C. C. Hall Honorary Drive in tribute.

Thanks to my father for getting this photograph.

Merry Christmas from Vanishing Georgia

10 Replies
Central United Methodist Church, Fitzgerald

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. The older I’ve gotten, the more I understand that holidays aren’t about gifts but about the togetherness of family and memories of our traditions at this time. One of my traditions is riding around my hometown with my mother on Christmas Eve and looking at all the Christmas lights in the parks, in peoples’ yards, and listening to holiday music on the radio. This was my church when I was growing up, and it looked particularly nice last night as we made our annual drive. I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Stay safe.

Georgia’s First Record for the Lazuli Bunting

9 Replies

Those of you who know me personally know that I’m a bird nerd of sorts, and have been since childhood. When my father called me on 8 April 2018 and reported an unusual blue bird hanging around his backyard, I made a trip over to Fitzgerald to investigate it myself. From his description, we both thought it might be a Lazuli Bunting but that was easy to dismiss since it’s a western species, never before recorded in Georgia. Sure enough, it was a beautiful Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena). The bird likely followed a storm system that moved across the middle of the country and wound up in South Georgia. It only hung around a couple of days, but it was a gift to see it.

Last week, I finally got confirmation from Jim Flynn of the Checklist and Records Committee of the Georgia Ornithological Society that the sighting was officially confirmed. He wrote: I wanted to let you know that we finally completed a round of bird records that included your Lazuli Bunting report. I am happy to say that it was unanimously accepted. This is the first fully documented record for Georgia. After all of these years of record keeping, going back to colonial times, it’s tough to get a new state record!

Joy Temple, 1910, Fitzgerald

3 Replies

I believe this was one of Fitzgerald’s earliest African-American churches, but I haven’t been able to locate the name of the original congregation. The structure has been altered since I made this photograph in 2010, but it remains one of the city’s most architecturally significant vernacular churches. The steeple is unusual.