Sparta Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Craftsman Bungalow, Sparta
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Category Archives: –HANCOCK COUNTY GA–
Lane-Walker House, Circa 1825, Sparta
This house has been expanded at least twice in its nearly two centuries in Sparta. It is best known as the home of Julia Frances Dickson, the enslaved woman who gave birth to Amanda America Dickson, the wealthiest black woman in 19th century Georgia.
Sparta Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Sparta Flower Shoppe, 1940s
Sistie Hudson notes that Jewel Stewart opened the Sparta Flower Shoppe here in the 1940s and it served that purpose until closing upon Ginger Yarbrough’s retirement in August 2018. It’s a great structure.
Sparta Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Holsey Memorial C. M. E. Church, 1924, Sparta
This historic church was built in 1924 in memory of Bishop Lucius Henry Holsey, D. D (3 July 1842-3 August 1920). Bishop Holsey was the son of his enslaver, a white man named James Holsey. During his youth, he taught himself to read, which under the racial laws of the time was a crime. He was baptized in the Methodist Church. After emancipation, he became the Bishop of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church. An enlightened man who saw education as the best hope for his people, he founded Paine College in Augusta in 1883. At the time of his death in Atlanta in 1920, Holsey was one of the most influential African-Americans in the South.
Reverend W. A. Kelley was pastor at the time. Trustees of the church were: A. D. Latimer; J. W. N. Clay; G. B. Taylor; H. L. Wynn; B. Ford; Thomas Dixon; O. L. Cain; Wilbor Clay; M. Birch; and A. H. Gilbert. R. E. White was the architect. Compass Lodge No. 160, A. F. & A. M. laid the cornerstone on 7 September 1925.
Not Spot, Sparta
In the late 1950s, this was a convenience store owned by David Dyer, who later served as the county school superintendent.
Georgia Railroad Depot, Circa 1881, Sparta
The Georgia Railroad depot at Sparta has been in derelict condition for many years, but the roof has recently been replaced and I believe further renovations are on the drawing board.
It is very similar to other depots of the Georgia Railroad.
Sparta Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Saddlebag Tenant Farmhouse, Hancock County
Gabled-Ell Farmhouse, Hancock County
Convenience Store, Devereux
My use of the term “ghost town” for Devereux implies its historic area. As you might expect, there’s a Dollar General here now so it’s still a populated area.
General Store, Devereux
Devereux was planned as a suburb of Sparta though it never materialized in the way its planners had hoped. This was likely the main business in town, located across from the railroad tracks. Sandra Clarke writes: Devereux used to be a pretty thriving small village. There was a very large store, two meat markets, a bank, and two more stores past the large store with the one you pictured, the last and probably the smallest. When I was growing up my daddy, Ivy Coleman worked in the large store with his cousin, Joe Coleman, and Mr. Bill Armour. It was called J. M. Moate Co. and Mr. Moate I never knew, but his wife I did know. She lived to be 104 and lived in the two-story house at the triangle intersection before you get to where the stores used to be. There was also a large stone building across the street near the railroad tracks that was a warehouse for cotton maybe. It was not in use while I was growing up and was torn down about 15 years ago. There was also a post office, depot, and cotton gin. Trains used to stop in Devereux and there was a large settlement of houses on past the store you pictured where railroad folks lived.