Category Archives: Moultrie GA

Elephant Tombstone, Colquitt County

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Ask anyone in Moultrie about the “elephant” and they’ll gladly direct you to the Pleasant Grove Primitive Baptist Church , where you’ll find the final resting place of William F. Duggan, Sr. (18 January 1899-22 December 1950). Locals contend that this is the most famous landmark in Colquitt County and since it’s thought to be the only life-sized elephant tombstone in the world, the distinction seems appropriate. The life-size sculpture depicts Nancy, a baby elephant owned by Duggan, who had just bought a circus at the time of his death. As a boy, Duggan worked with elephants in various circuses and always favored them. His son had this sculpture commissioned after his death. Athens-based photographer Dagmar Nelson shares a bit more of the history here.

Saturday’s Store, Colquitt County

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Located near Pleasant Grove Primitive Baptist Church, this old store was once “out in the country”; Moultrie’s growth over the years, however, places it just on the edge of town today.  Brian Saturday confirms that it was owned by his great-grandparents V. L. and Junie K. Saturday.

Update: As of mid-2017, this structure has been razed.

Colquitt County Courthouse, 1902, Moultrie

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This Neoclassical Revival landmark was designed by itinerant architect Andrew J. Bryan (1848-1921). It hasn’t always been painted white.

National Register of Historic Places

 

Friedlander’s Department Store, 1936, Moultrie

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At the age of 16, in 1907, Louis Friedlander (1891-1975) came to Colquitt County and began a business of peddling sundries to local farmers, first on foot and later with a mule and wagon. He opened a small store at this location in 1908, known originally as the Bargain Store but soon thereafter changed to Friedlander’s. He built this structure in 1936, even though the community was suffering immensely from the ravages of the Great Depression, and it became one of the most successful retailers in South Georgia. A recent restoration reinforces the importance of this local landmark, a fine example of Art Deco architecture.

Many Moultrie folks have great memories of Friedlander’s. Fay Brock writes: I worked in the office at Friedlander’s from November 1967 until August 1970. I loved my time spent there, I really learned a lot working for this family owned and operated business. The books from all of the stores were kept in this main location. There were about 6 or 7 stores in Georgia and two in Daytona Beach, Florida. They gave me my first real job, and I will be forever grateful that they had enough faith in me to give me the opportunity. Judy Plymel recalls: wow..if this store could talk.. bought so many cool clothes here.. my first prom dress.. when I was a little girl.. my Easter shoes.. Easter dress on occasion.. it was 3 stories.. and the only one in town with an elevator for many years.. such a cool store at the time.. I can add that my hometown of Fitzgerald also had a Friedlander’s store when I was a boy. My great aunt, Gladys Brown, worked there for many years and visiting her was always a treat.

Moultrie Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

 

Pidcock House, Circa 1900, Moultrie

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This was the home of entrepreneur James Nelson Pidcock, Jr (1865-1936). The Pidcocks were involved in numerous pursuits in turn of the century Moultrie, including railroading and banking. If my research is correct, the family were New Jersey natives. In recent years, it was the home of Julian Bridges Florist.

 

Norman Hotel, Circa 1909, Moultrie

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According to the National Register of Historic Places: The lot on which the Norman Hotel was built originally was occupied by the Central Hotel, a two-story wooden structure built in the 1890s. Soon after the turn of the century, the hotel was renamed the Southern Hotel.

Jeremiah B. Norman was a local businessman who had grown wealthy from timber and naval stores in the 1890s.  He then moved to Moultrie from nearby Norman Park and began buying property and buildings in downtown Moultrie. In early 1908, Norman bought the Southern Hotel. Later that year, a fire broke out in the vicinity of the kitchen, and the entire hotel burned down. Norman then built a new three-story red-brick hotel, which he named the Norman Hotel. The new hotel was the second largest in Moultrie and featured steam heat and electric lights.

In terms of architectural style, the Norman Hotel was of simple design with little detailing except for a cornice at the top, small pediments over the two doors, and three ventilation dormers that project from the hotel’s sloping roof.

In 1915, Moultrie’s postmaster rented a section of the Norman Hotel’s first floor for use as a post office. The hotel continued to house Moultrie’s post office until a new Federal Building was completed in 1919. After the post office moved out, the front corner area of the hotel was remodeled to serve as a restaurant.

The Norman Hotel apparently did well. For one thing, it was the closest hotel to the passenger train depot, located five blocks away. At the time, most businessmen and salesmen traveled by rail, and by 1920 Moultrie was served by 14 passenger trains daily. So, the Norman Hotel’s proximity to the train depot was important. Evidence of hotels’ success can be seen that by 1920, it had a sample room on the first floor for traveling salesmen to display their wares. Also, a smaller building adjacent to the hotel that housed a barbershop now served as a hotel annex.

In the 1950s and ‘60s, the Norman Hotel suffered the fate of most small town hotels across America. The declining use of passenger trains and the rising popularity of motels forced the Norman Hotel to close in the 1960s. Since then, the ground floor of the building has been used for various purposes, including a coffee shop, boutique, and other stores. The original pediments above the doors no longer remain. Also, the brick exterior outside the first floor has been covered with light-colored masonry facing. Currently, the rooms on the second and third floor are vacant.

Many thanks to Joanna Cook for pointing me in the right direction.

Moultrie Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

J. L. Ladson House, Moultrie

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Janet Hodges Tucker writes: This house was built by J.L Ladson. Every brick was handmade, and had Mr. Ladson’s initials on each. All of the steps and window sills are North Georgia graniite, mined specifically for this house. Every room, except the kitchen and a luggage room upstairs has a fireplace, made of North Georgia marble – again, mined for this house. The house was built from the basement up, with all the interior walls being solid brick. I lived here from 1950 -1985.

Town Terrace Motel, Moultrie

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The Mid-Century Modern sign would indicate the Town Terrace likely opened in the 1950s or early 1960s.

Bennett’s Grocery, Moultrie

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Apparently, the last business located here was Randy’s Auto Mart, but Bonnie Murphy Eusner writes, via our Facebook page: This store was operated by Mr. Hall Bennett in the 50s and 60s. He was a hunting friend of my Dads. I thought,as a child, this was a huge store. My parents sometimes shopped there and Mr Bennett also had a butcher shop in the back. Children may have called him Mr. Hall in the southern tradition of speaking to an adult using their first name as a matter of respect. But his name was Hall Bennett. He had a son named Jerry Bennett. They lived further out toward the present by-pass on the same road that the store was on. My family has a picture of some of the local deer hunters of the early 50s surrounding a piebald deer killed in Ludowici GA. Mr Hall Bennett was among them. They were all dressed so smartly. No smiles Sort of looked like a posse. Picture is treasured. Mr Bennett was a big man and a really nice gentleman.

Judy Plymel remembered it by Mr. Bennett’s first name and also shared her memories: This used to be Hall’s Grocery, back in the day. Rich Oil used to be across from it. I use to go down here, get my grandma 3Thistle Snuff, peppermint pillows and a small bottle Coke, all for a quarter. This was back in the 60’s. They had oiled floors and a meat counter in the back. you could get your own cookies out of the canisters up front and Mr. Hall would let me go behind the counter and get my candy; it wasn’t wrapped but laid out fresh in the display.

 

Hotel Colquitt, 1928, Moultrie

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Mary Willis Cantrell recalls: The first time I ever went inside the Colquitt Hotel was the Annual Staff banquet in 1953 or 54. The splendor of the lobby, that high ceiling and all the marble and brass… it looked like the inside of an MGM movie set!  In the early 2000s, a mixed-use renovation of this structure was done, which compromised some of the interior architectural details but allowed the landmark to remain vital to the downtown historic district.  It was renamed the Colquitt Tower at that time.

I’ve been unable to confirm the identity of the architect, but the building originally feature a recessed balcony and a Victorian-style turret at the left front. In photos I’ve seen, it seemed very out of place.

Moultrie Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places