Tag Archives: Architecture of Charles Edward Choate

Wrightsville & Tennille Railroad Building, 1903, Tennille

This is my favorite railroad building in Georgia that isn’t a depot. It was designed by Charles E. Choate (1865-1929), a Methodist minister-architect with churches, banks and other structures to his credit in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama; I believe it to be a private residence today.

A history of the Wrightsville & Tennille Railroad Company, from the now-defunct Rail Georgia website: The W&T was chartered in 1883 to build a line from the Central of Georgia at Tennille to Wrightsville, about 17 miles south in Johnson County. Three years later the W&T merged with the newly completed 19-mile Dublin & Wrightsville Railroad, creating a 36-mile line from Tennille to Dublin. In the 1889 edition of The Official Railway List, the W&T reported operating 36 miles of railroad, 3 locomotives, 2 passenger cars, and 5 freight and miscellaneous cars. In 1896, the W&T bought the Dublin-to-Hawkinsville line of the Oconee & Western Railroad and consolidated it into its own operations in 1899. The result was a 75-mile line from Tennille to Hawkinsville. In 1907, the W&T acquired the Dublin & Southwestern Railroad, a 28-mile line between Dublin and Eastman. This would be the last addition to the “Wiggle and Twist,” so called for the many curves along its route. In 1941, both branches of the railroad west of Dublin were abandoned, leaving several communities in Dodge and Laurens counties without rail service. Although it had been owned by the Central of Georgia since 1899, the W&T operated independently for most of its existence. In 1971, it was merged into the parent line and today serves as a branch of Norfolk Southern Railway.

National Register of Historic Places

Ferdinand A. Ricks House, 1905, Reynolds

Though built in 1905, the home of Ferdinand and Frances Ricks was completely renovated in the Georgian style by prominent Atlanta architect Charles E. Choate in the 1920s. Mr. Ricks was a partner in the family business, Ricks Brothers, which owned a general store, seed house, cotton gin, and guano enterprise.

National Register of Historic Places

Carnegie Library, 1915, Fitzgerald

Fitzgerald’s Carnegie Library served the community from 1915 to 1983, when it was replaced by a modern facility a few blocks away. The city recently restored this structure, which is now used as an arts center. C. E. Choate was the architect.

Fitzgerald Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places