Category Archives: –JENKINS COUNTY GA–

Herndon Mercantile Company, Store #1, Circa 1890s, Jenkins County

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This extraordinary general store/warehouse is located near the railroad tracks in Herndon and suggests the nearly forgotten settlement was a much busier place at one time. It’s a massive structure and retains its wooden window shutters. Jones Lindgren writes: This store was The Herndon Mercantile Company, Store #1 owned by Robert C. Jones, a local farmer. He also owned stores at nearby Birdsville Plantation and next to the Ogeechee River. The store was probably built in the late 19th century and it operated until some time around WWII. It is still owned by descendants of Robert C. Jones.

Warehouse, Scarboro

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This photograph was made in 2013, so I’m unsure if this structure is still standing. It was located on the right side of the boat ramp as it descends to the Ogeechee River. It has the appearance of a storage barn or warehouse, but its proximity to the water is interesting. Perhaps it was a pump house. I hope to learn more.

Gabled-Ell Tenant Farmhouse, Herndon

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Our friend Jones Lindgren notes: This house is located on The Herndon Farm in Jenkins County and was occupied by workers on the farm. There were several similar houses in the immediate vicinity comprising “the Quarters”. Seeing them today and imagining the hard lives of the families who lived there is very sobering. While there was a genuine layer of benevolence, and a strong sense of community between the workers and the owner, it is stark reminder of the injustice of those times and attitudes.

Tenant Farmhouse, Jenkins County

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This is a great example of this utilitarian form. It likely dates to the early 20th century.

Hawe’s Grocery, 1893, Perkins

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I’m unsure if this was always known as Hawe’s Grocery; it was likely a general store when built in 1893.

Chance House, Perkins

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I thought this may have been a schoolhouse, but Katie Cates writes: To my knowledge,this was never a schoolhouse. This (The Chance House) used to have a huge front porch spanning front of house and was just old wood color, til the town painted all buildings red, some years back. This was my Mama’s home and all her siblings, all born and lived there til old enough to get out on there on. After then, when I was 2, Granddaddy Neely Chance died and Grandmama Alma lived there alone for most of my childhood. Granddaddy had a store that was right across train tracks from Hawes store…and a Cotton Gin that was straight across road from Hawes store til he died. Then years later, both were torn down. The roof of this old house, was taken by tornadoes, twice. I spent most weekends with her there. Then when I was 12-13, we moved Grandmama to Sardis…where she lived til she passed. The Post Office used to sit straight across tracks, between Cotton Gin and train tracks…most all my life, til some years ago, it was moved across to where it is now.

Central of Georgia Railway Depot, Perkins

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This is a rear/side view of the depot. It has one of the most unusual configurations I’ve seen and may have been modified in some way over time. I am unsure as to the date it was constructed.

Fair Haven United Methodist Church, 1846, Jenkins County

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Francis Jones brought his family from North Carolina to this section of Georgia before the Revolutionary War and the family has maintained land and been involved in its social and religious development ever since. His four great-grandsons, Henry, William, Joseph, and James, were responsible for the construction of Fair Haven, which stands today as one of the great architectural treasures of rural Georgia.

Herndon Farm, Jenkins County

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Jones Lindgren writes: The Herndon Farm was owned by Robert C. Jones and now by his descendants. The name “Herndon Farm” was geographic, not related to the ownership. I believe the name Herndon was originally assigned to the community by the Central of Georgia Railway. The mainline from Savannah to Atlanta passed through Herndon. To my knowledge there has never been a family named Herndon who lived here. The town had a railroad station with four trains a day, a post office, a Methodist Church (Almira) which burned in the 1940’s/50’s, a gin, and several homes. Today, there is no remaining commercial activity in Herndon, just a general community designation with many farms.