If you’ve followed this website over the years, you’re likely familiar with the “gabled-ell” form, so named for its overall “L” shape, and an expansion of the central hallway house type. They are among the most common types of old farmhouses remaining in rural Georgia, though they are often found abandoned. They remain because they were built so well and are a testament to the skills of their builders.
These photos was made in 2013 somewhere near the crossroads settlement of McGregor. I’m unsure if the house is still standing.
Brickyard Branch is located on the edge of Ludowici, bordering both sides of US Highway 301. It’s part of the Altamaha River floodplain.
I first thought it was named for the brick and tile yard of the Ludowici Celadon Company which gave the town its name, early in the 20th century, but after discussion with a longtime resident believe there was a brickyard near the creek which was operational before the Celadon Company. It may have been what attracted them to the area.
Branch is another term for swamp [or creek]. A typical Southeast Georgia landscape, reminiscent of the Okefenokee Swamp, it’s characterized by brackish streams, ponds, and prairies.
Though not a publicly accessible area, it can be viewed from the highway right of way in several locations.
No other river in Georgia that I know has floodplains as extensive as the Altamaha, which reach over ten miles from Jesup to Ludowici.
It’s very important for wildlife and native plants, many of which are found in greater numbers here than almost anywhere else.
Most of the area is protected, be it by wildlife management areas or private ownership.
This house is as much a landmark as the nearby grocery store in the Five Points community. It’s a good example of the gabled-wing form, which is often an evolution of a central hallway form. In most cases, it’s presumed that these structures incorporate a formerly detached kitchen via an enclosed hallway. They can be found throughout the state.
There has been a grocery/general store, and at times a restaurant, at the intersection of Georgia Highway 86 and Griffin Ferry Road for many years. The “fifth point” at five points is a dirt road, Findley Cemetery Road. There are countless communities in the state designated by geographical identifiers and though most are only known locally, they’re important landmarks.
I photographed this circa 1930s-1940s service station, which is located near the post office in Lyons, in 2011. I believe the property has been cleaned up a bit since then and the station has been renovated, or at least repainted.
I made these photographs in 2019, a few months before this structure was razed. For most of my life, it was known as C. M. Copeland’s workshop and studio. I believe it was originally a neighborhood grocery store but I can’t confirm that at this time.
C. M. Copeland, Fitzgerald, 1977 [detail]. Library of Congress. Public domain.
C. M. Copeland (15 July 1916-4 February 2000) was a brilliant wood carver, best known for his sculptures of wildlife made with cypress knees. He was often referred to as “The Happy Wood Carver”. He was also a banjo picker and folk singer, who had a radio show on local radio station WBHB with Wimpy Fowler, The Wimpy and Jigs Show.
C. M. Copeland Treasures in Wood, Fitzgerald, 1977. Library of Congress. Public domain.
He was documented by folklorists for the South Georgia Folklife Project in 1977, both for his picking and his carving.
Wimpy Fowler and C. M. Copeland, Fitzgerald, 1977. Library of Congress. Public domain.
At the time of the South Georgia Folklife Project photographs, his shop was a few blocks down the road from this location. This structure was adjacent to his home and I believe he moved his operations here sometime after 1977 for the sake of convenience.
The Old Field Cemetery is a rural cemetery located a few miles from Fitzgerald which has fascinated me since I first photographed it in 2009. It contains a mixture of commercial and vernacular memorials, with several significant vernacular memorials, including the unusual Benton Family cross [pictured above]. Old Field Cemetery predates the establishment of Fitzgerald; the earliest identified burial [1861] is that of Archabald McInnis (4 July 1816-7 July 1861) with several other burials dating to the 1880s. At least one pioneer family of the Old Soldiers Colony of Fitzgerald, the Hallett Rathburn family, is also associated with the cemetery.
An interesting comment on the entry for Flora Ann Dixon McCall on Find a Grave fills in an important fact about potentially missing gravestones: Rumor has it (as recounted by Josie Mims McCall) that many McCall’s [sic] were buried in the Old Field Cemetery, however, a local man vandalized the cemetery and many of the grave stones were destroyed as he “cleaned” up the cemetery. He was upset that no one in the town of Fitzgerald helped him clean up the cemetery, after he placed an ad in the local paper to encourage all families to lend a hand, so he demolished most of it with a tractor during his “clean up.”
Vernacular Memorials of Old Field Cemetery
Cylindrical Memorial No. 1, Decedent Unknown
There are three cylindrical headstones in Old Field Cemetery. It’s an unusual form of grave marking that I’ve not encountered elsewhere .
Cylindrical Memorial No. 2, Decedent Unknown
All are made of poured concrete and two examples are ornamented by round stones placed on the ground beside them.
Cylindrical Memorial No. 3, Decedent Unknown
I don’t think these stones have any particular religious meaning but rather a practical one. I don’t believe they ever contained the names of the decedents and their identities may be lost to history.
Wooden Grave Marker, Decedent Unknown
Wooden markers were commonly used to mark graves in the past, especially in rural cemeteries. Wood is among the most vulnerable of all the materials used to mark graves and countless examples have been lost to the elements over time.
Benton Memorial, detail
The top left horizontal section of the Benton Memorial cross is actually signed by the maker, Jessie Morris. Morris may be responsible for several of the vernacular memorials in Old Field Cemetery. Signed vernacular stones are very rare.
Benton Memorial, detail
The top right horizontal section of the cross [see first photo in this article for an overall view] contains the words God Bless You All.
I cannot read the names of the Bentons buried here and have no idea if there’s a connection, but my father remembers two or three Benton brothers who lived in the general area in the 1950s. He recalls that they were bachelors and lived in a large old house on the Jacksonville Highway [U.S. 319] and were among the first people he knew of in Ben Hill County to grow and sell strawberries.
The original memorial marking the final resting place of Brinkley Bishop was surrounded by four cedar trees that have since been removed.
Brinkley Bishop (1811-1899), detail
It was replaced by a modern vernacular stone by his grandchildren.
There are quite a few simple vernacular memorials throughout the cemetery, like the two Hasty stones pictured above.
Baby Morris (birth and death dates unknown)
The headstone for Baby Morris features a butterfly and vine design. It possibly dates to the late 1930s, when considering the design of the Baby Beck memorial which is located nearby.
Baby Morris (June 1938)
I believe the two baby memorials may be the work of Jessie Morris, who made the cross for the Benton family.
Frank Cook (29 September 1870-4 April 1928)
The memorial for Frank Cook is a hybrid form commonly found in rural cemeteries. The headstone was poured into a mold and the lettering and shaking hands designs are created with stencils.
Commercial Memorials of Old Field Cemetery
John Sullivan (1842-?)
The headstone for Frank Sullivan notes that he was a Marine. It is in the government-issued style known as “Civil War” or “Recessed, or Sunken, Shield” and was in widespread use from the 1880s until at least the 1910s.
Alex M. McInnis (10 May 1881-31 July 1883)
The headstones for two of the six children of Daniel A. (15 December 1855-26 May 1906) and Elizabeth Tucker McInnis (14 February 1859-12 July 1934) are very common examples of one of the most popular commercial motifs of the Victorian era.
Mattie Thetis McInnis (4 July 1889-4 December 1893), detail
The lamb represents the Lord and also symbolizes innocence, hence its presence on numerous infant and toddler graves throughout the United States.
Mattie Thetis McInnis (4 July 1889-4 December 1893)
Infant and childhood deaths were common before the advent of modern medicine.
