Leesburg Stockade

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According to local history, this structure was built as the Lee County Public Works Building, likely in the 1930s or 1940s, and is variously known as the Leesburg Stockade and the Lee County Stockade.The word stockade usually evokes romanticized notions of Western cattle drives. In the Jim Crow South, a stockade was more likely to be a stark place used for the warehousing of Black prisoners, a reminder that the racial order would be maintained. It was an element of an inherently racist ideal driven by White Supremacy and White Christian Nationalists with the approval and participation of most, if not all, of the county’s elected officials.

In July 1963, the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) organized a protest in Americus, marching from Friendship Baptist Church to the segregated Martin Theatre. According to a story on Georgia Public Radio, a group of Black girls joined the line to purchase tickets and were arrested on site. They ranged in age from 12-15. After being briefly held in Dawson, they were transferred to the Leesburg Stockade. Their parents knew nothing of their whereabouts until a janitor got word to them of their incarceration. They came to be known as the Stolen Girls.

Conditions in the stockade were horrible. The girls slept on concrete floors with barely-running water and a non-functioning toilet. Food was brought to them but was often under-cooked or substandard. It’s hard to imagine a society that thought it was acceptable for this to happen to anyone, let alone children. But so it was.

The story of the Leesburg Stolen Girls was widely publicized by SNCC. When photographer Danny Lyon’s images were published in Jet magazine it brought an unwelcome national focus on Lee County and the girls were released in September 1963. They were not charged with any crimes but were billed for their stay in the facility. Dr. Shirley Green-Reese, one of the Stolen Girls, helped lead the initiative to have a Georgia historical marker placed at the site in 2019.

New Hope A. M. E. Church, Circa 1950, Smithville

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New Hope A. M. E. Church is located just down the street from New Hope Methodist Church. The two were built around the same time and have strikingly similar architecture.

The following abridged history is from an entry entitled “New Hope Methodist Church: County’s Oldest Church” in Smithville Georgia: A Glimpse of the Past (1976): “One of the first Methodist Churches in Lee County was organized in 1853, for the slaves. It was some two miles west of the later site of Smithville. First a brush arbor was erected to hold their services in, then they built a small log cabin church and in 1868, this building was destroyed by fire. Leaders of that project were H. M. Mitchell, Sr. and P. J. Griffin. It was…used for school purposes, being the first school for Negroes in this area.


The old building became dilapidated and the membership increased until it was necessary to start the third one in 1923. It was started by Rev. E. A. Clark and was finished by Rev. S. Fields. In September, 1949, that building was also destroyed by fire. The present building was started in 1950.

Cumorah, The Oldest Surviving LDS Church in the Southeast, Lost to Hurricane Helene

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Cumorah Church, photographed in July 2021

I learned yesterday that Cumorah Church, believed to be the oldest surviving Mormon (LDS) structure in the Southeast, was a victim of Hurricane Helene. The abandoned church was already in a poor state of repair but was a landmark to many. Now, it is but a pile of boards and tin. So much history was represented in this building. Those pioneer missionaries came to unfamiliar lands and were met with suspicion and unwelcoming locals but still they persisted and managed to nurture a small community. That this building survived so long was a testament to their original mission and its loss is notable.

Hurricane Helene in Telfair County

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As more evidence of the power of this storm, these images were made in one neighborhood of Lumber City.

Trees of all sizes were downed throughout the region. This structure appears to have been spared.

One can only hope the people in these homes were safe. As I said in the previous post, it was truly heartbreaking to see the damage.

In addition to the modular homes, quite a few historic homes I’ve photographed in the past were damaged. These two double-pen cottages (above and below) are an endangered house type.

This fallen cedar provided shade for this house for the better part of a century.

This saddlebag cottage appears to have escaped serious damage.

Church Street, pictured above, was passable, but wires were down and cars were trapped in driveways.

Hurricane Helene in Ben Hill County

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With so much devastation in the path of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Helene, I wanted to share just a few images of what I saw while driving between Fitzgerald and the coast on Friday. There are far better images by photojournalists who have been on the ground in the effected areas. And the stories are heartbreaking. I was fortunate to get power back about 18 hours after the storm, but went to my parents’ house for a few days to use their WiFi. The devastation I saw in Telfair, Jeff Davis, and some of Appling County was something I never hope to see again in my lifetime.


This old cinderblock church, Union Methodist, was built in 1946 if I recall correctly, and is located near the Ben Hill County Landing and the Ocmulgee River. It’s been an inactive congregation for quite some time, and likely won’t be rebuilt. I have an earlier photograph of the church but can’t locate it at this time. As soon as I do, I’ll add it to this post.

Saluting Linemen in the Aftermath of Hurricane Helene

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There are too many people to thank personally for all the work that is being done to clean up in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, but these signs popped up in my parents’ neighborhood in Fitzgerald this week.

Utility workers, first responders, and everyone else who continue to aid in the effort are also appreciated, as are good neighbors and volunteers.

I know these folks are doing their jobs and don’t seek praise, but it doesn’t hurt to take a moment to appreciate their efforts.

I can’t say “thank you” enough for getting us a bi t closer to normal. I know there’s much more work to be done but we will get through this.

Smithville Methodist Church, 1946, Lee County

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The following abridged history is from Smithville, Georgia: A Glimpse Into the Past (1976). “Sometime after the Civil War, a number of Methodist families living in Smithville
community banded together and erected a meeting house near the Sumter and Lee
County line, about one mile Northwest of Smithville. This building was by the side of
the Old Smithville-Dawson Road, near the present site of the colored Primitive Church.
The earliest official record of the Smithville congregation occurs in 1878 when the
South Georgia Annual Conference created the Dawson and Smithville Circuit. Rev. W.
M. Hayes was appointed pastor.

At the beginning of 1881, a new pastoral charge was created with Smithville as
head. The congregation was moved into town and erected a new house of worship on
Whitaker Street. This building set well back into the lot; its architecture was typical of
the day, featuring a spacious porch with wide columns across the front.

In 1912, the prosperous Smithville congregation erected a new building, featuring
a corner tower. Rev. N. H. Olmstead was pastor and was serving his second appointment to the Smithville Circuit. This structure on Whitaker Street was the home of the congregation until the end of World War II. At that time, the building had fallen into ill repair, due to wartime restrictions on materials and labor.

The congregation under the leadership of Rev. J. D. McCord boldly erected a
concrete-block building in a modified Gothic style on Church Street in early 1946. It
was dedicated in October of the same year by Bishop Arthur J. Moore.“

Historic Storefront, Smithville

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This typical turn-of-the-century storefront is located on Muckaloochee Street, near the train tracks. I consulted a history of the community but was unable to identify the structure.

Smithville Rosenwald School, 1928, Lee County

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According to the November 2005 issue of Reflections, a newsletter of the Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network, a school for Black children in Smithville was established in an abandoned house by A. R. Robinson in 1903. The students performed so well that the county school board built a three-room schoolhouse for their use. It was destroyed by fire at some point, and classes were held in the Masonic lodge and local churches.

A new four-teacher school, which taught students through the eighth grade, was built in 1928, with the aid of the Julius Rosenwald Fund. It also included a library and auditorium.

After the Brown v. Board decision in 1955, the Smithville Rosenwald School closed. It was used for a time as an apartment building, according to Smithville, Georgia: A Glimpse Into the Past (1976). It has been abandoned for many years and at this time is in derelict condition. There has been some interest in restoration but I’m unaware of the progress at this time.

Red Spider Lilies, Webster County

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Whether you know them as Spider Lilies or Hurricane Lilies, or any of their myriad other common names, these Asian natives are one of the sure signs of autumn in Georgia. [Linda Adams writes that an elderly friend in Schley County called them “surprise lilies”]. Technically known as Lycoris radiata, they made their way to America soon after the opening of Japan to the western world in 1854. Their intricate beauty and bright color ensured their popularity and they’ve been with us ever since.

I remember my thrill, and even more so my great-grandmother’s delight, when the spider lilies appeared every September, after the first heavy rains of the season.

Today, they often emerge in empty lots, indicating a house once stood on the property. I know how much they meant to my great-grandmother and imagine everyone else who planted them loved them just as much as we did.