I photographed this shotgun house on Georgia Highway 169 in 2012. It was still standing a few years ago.
Shotgun House, Wayne County
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Category Archives: –WAYNE COUNTY GA–
Tobacco Barn, Ritch
Ritch is a community in southwestern Wayne County, centered around the historic Ritch Baptist Church. This is one of several tobacco barns I photographed there in 2010. I think some are gone, but this one may still be standing, minus the canopy roof.
Craftsman Cottage, Jesup
Like most towns, Jesup has a good variety of Craftsman cottages throughout its historic residential district. The form remains popular for its practicality and durability.
Commercial Block, 1920, Jesup
This one of the most architecturally distinct buildings in downtown Jesup, and one of just a few historic commercial blocks that survived the 2014 fire. It’s been home to numerous businesses over the years, but I haven’t been able to determine its original use. The carport canopy would suggest it may have housed an automobile dealership at one time, but this is just a guess. I will update if anyone knows more.
Kicklighter Building, 1890s, Jesup
According to the City of Jesup: “The Kicklighter Building was a commercial building constructed in the early 1890s. It was inherited by the Kicklighter’s daughter, Alma (1874-1963), who married Dr. S(amuel) F. Ellis (1869-1916), a local dentist. Dr. Ellis threw the teeth he had extracted into a hole in the wall. Later on when the building was remodeled, this wall was knocked out and all the teeth fell out on the floor.“
Mathew W. Kicklighter (1846-1929), father of Alma, and early owner and namesake of this commercial block, was a Confederate veteran who served with Clinch’s Cavalry during the Civil War. He was one of seven brothers in the Confederate service. His wife was Annie Strickland Kicklighter (1846-1910).
Native Bee, Sansavilla WMA, Wayne County
I’m far from an expert on insects, so I can only guess as to the identification of this bee. The best I could come up with is Green-eyed Eastern Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica). But beyond that, it gets complicated. I just think it’s a fascinating creature and wanted to share.
Ritch-Carter-Martin House, Odum
I acquired this postcard a few years ago because I was familiar with the house from my travels. It still stands along the highway in Odum. The card was mailed in the 1910s to Brunswick, Georgia; the date is not fully readable, but the sender identified it as the home of the Bloodworth family. Though it’s identified today as the Ritch-Carter-Martin House, it must have been built by Mr. Bloodworth. It appears to have been new when this view was made. I believe Bloodworth was J. M. Bloodworth, one of the first aldermen of Odum.
Note: This replaces and updates a post originally published on 28 March 2013.
Satilla United Methodist Church, Wayne County
This historic church is located in the Empire community, west of Jesup. It’s of a style typical among churches in rural Georgia for nearly 200 years. The pressed tin roof is still protecting it, if taking on a bit of rust. The building looks stable overall. My best guess as to a date would tend toward the early 1910s-1920s.
Morgan Bailey, whose father was a pastor at Satilla in the 1970s, shared the following on Facebook: “From my mother–Only 7 members when we got there (1971?) and 9 when we left. All of the members were quite old, but loved their church. They yearned to have a dinner on the ground, but the church had no bathroom. We solved that problem by hiring someone to build an outhouse. Happy group of people to get to have dinner on the ground. There was an old hand pump for water. They heated the church with fire wood. When one of the sister churches offered to give them an oil/kerosene heater, the old gentleman who always chopped the firewood said. “If you take that heater, you’ll take my job away from me”. So we turned the offer down. On Sundays he would fire up that old wood stove and the wasps would start swarming. Great group of people at that little church!“
I hope it can survive. It does seem to be watched over by neighbors and was well built, probably by men of the church.
Odessa Church of God, Wayne County
The Odessa Church of God is perhaps the last surviving landmark of the Odessa community, east of Jesup. Odessa was on the railroad line that ran to Brunswick/Darien and the settlement must have had ties to the timber and turpentine industries. It had a post office from 1890-1920. The church, obviously long abandoned, is located in the woods beside the Odessa Cemetery. I haven’t been able to establish a connection between the church and the cemetery, but there must be. The earliest burial is circa 1902. The Drawdy family is well-represented in the area. Other than the cemetery and the church, I haven’t been able to find anything else related to the history of Odessa. Thanks to Stephany Kurth for identifying the church via Instagram.
Farewell to the Dairy Ranch: Jesup Landmark Demolished
The Dairy Ranch, a Jesup institution known locally as the “Eat Now” for its famous red-lettered sign, closed in 2017 and has stood abandoned since then. I got a message this afternoon that it was being torn down.
I passed by earlier and it was still there, but the sender of the message shared photos. (I’ll add an updated image later; I’m traveling at the moment).
Dink NeSmith wrote of the landmark in 2018, “…when Homer Johnson opened the Dairy Ranch in 1952, it was an immediate hit. Over the years, the establishment has had four owners…Several generations of teenagers grew up under the Dairy Ranch’s neon glow. The Dairy Queen was a phenomenon, too. Cruising around the DQ on Friday and Saturday nights was a must. But the “Eat Now” had a jukebox inside. You could listen to Elvis and chomp on a foot-long hot dog and a bag of those irresistible French fries.“
The photos above were made in 2018. The ones that follow were made this morning (10 September 2024).
While it’s not quite down yet, it will soon be a memory.
The sign is gone, too. I’m sure it’s being saved for posterity.
