Columbus has a large number of historic schools still standing, many of which serve various purposes. The Secondary Industrial School, in the Waverly Terrace neighborhood, was one of the first co-ed institutions in the nation to combine academics and vocational training. When it opened in 1906, it offered millinery, dressmaking, and business training for girls, and carpentry, pattern-making, machinist and business training, as well as cotton mill work. The school’s name changed to Columbus Industrial High School in 1912, and became Columbus Junior High School in 1939.
The monumental structure was one of the final works of J. W. Golucke, an architect primarily known for his courthouse designs.
The Cedars was built for Col. John Banks (1797-1870) in 1837. It got its name from the cedar trees which lined the long driveway that led to the house from the old Wynnton Road. The floor plan consisted of eight rooms with a hall running the length of the house. A dirt-floored basement, entered from the outside, was used as the slave quarters. The main house was built of handmade deep rose colored bricks covered with stucco. This was marked off in large rectangles to resemble blocks of stone. The four Ionic columns on the front portico are stuccoed brick. The roofline was changed in 1885, elevating a much flatter original configuration.
A prominent attorney, John Banks was a native of Elbert County and a pioneer settler of Columbus. His obituary in the 24 September 1870 edition of the Atlanta Constitution noted: “For a while he was a grocery merchant in Augusta, the firm name being Banks & Baird. He has resided near Columbus over thirty-five years, and was engaged in various business in this city – grocery, banking, manufacturing, besides farming extensively – and accumulated a large property, much of which escaped the casualties of war.”
According to the nomination form of this property to the National Register of Historic Places, Banks was involved in the Indian Wars and first visited Columbus at the behest of Governor Troup to accompany General LaFayette on his trip from Milledgeville to Alabama. He was a founder of the Planters and Mechanics Bank of Columbus and a co-owner, with John E. Dawson, of the Howard Cotton Mill. He and his wife Sarah A. Watkins Banks (1803-1881) had 12 children. Four of their sons died in Confederate service.
Wildwood Court was the first multi-family apartment complex built in Columbus, begun in 1926 and completed in 1927. Nearly a century later, it is still in use. The garden-style apartments consist of two buildings, arranged in a U-shape around a central court. Several other complexes followed in the district, many of which are also still in use.
Hillcrest-Wildwood Circle Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
I haven’t been able to locate the name of the builder or the architect, but this English Vernacular Revival Cottage is representative of the early-20th-centural revivals common in the stylish Wildwood Circle subdivision. Many of the homes were the work of prominent local architects, including T. Firth Lockwood.
Hillcrest-Wildwood Circle Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
This Neoclassical Revival mansion is located next door to the John R. Dawson House and is presently home to a law firm. I have had trouble locating a history. One survey dates it to circa 1900 but it is more commonly dated on tax forms to 1913. Also, it is identified by address in a Columbus State University archive as the Feimster Mansion, though addresses have changed and since the Feimsters were also later owners of the Dawson House, this could be outdated information. I will update when I know more.
Wynn’s Hill-Overlook-Oak Circle Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
One of the more modest houses in the High Uptown Historic District, the Hawkes House is nonetheless a fine example of 19th-century architecture. The nomination for the National Register includes two dates for the house. The 1880 date presumably indicates a remodel to the present appearance, including the mansard roof, dormers, and porch. Presumably, it originated as a simpler form. Like others in the district, the Hawkes House was moved a short distance to save it from demolition.
High Uptown Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
This exquisite Italianate townhouse was built for James A. Rankin (1806-1880), a Scottish immigrant who found success as a planter by enslaving at least 30 men, women, and children. He was also the owner of the Rankin Hotel in Columbus. Construction commenced before the Civil War but wasn’t completed until after the end of the conflict. Lawrence Wimberley Wall was the architect. An 1898 newspaper article proclaimed the Rankin House the finest in Columbus and valued it at $18,500, a fortune at the time.
It is now home to a museum and the Historic Columbus Foundation. Restoration was done by local architect Edward W. Neal.
High Uptown Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
This Richardsonian Romanesque-inspired home was built for Henry Lindsay Woodruff (1851-1921), next door to his brother Ernest Woodruff’s former home. It is one of two homes in the High Uptown Historic District associated with Mr. Woodruff. Henry was a prominent businessman in his own right, serving as the president and general manager of Empire Mills for thirty-three years. One of his sons, George Cecil “Kid” Woodruff, Sr. (1888-1968), was the coach for the University of Georgia football team from 1923-1927 and was considered instrumental in bringing the program to national prominence.
High Uptown Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Construction of the Hinesville Shaw Rosenwald School, as it was originally known, began in 1930 and was completed in 1931, fulfilling the goal of the Rosenwald Fund to provide state-of-the-art schools to black children in the segregated Jim Crow South who otherwise would not have had access to quality education. The Trustees of the Hinesville Colored Schools (Alonzo Simpson, J. H. Gause, and Robert Duggan) helped secure the local funding required to match the gift of the Rosenwald Fund.
The Rosenwald School was originally a comprehensive facility housing grades 1-11. I’m unsure when it became an elementary school, but the addition of a wing to the original Rosenwald structure, and a later separate building, were likely constructed during the era of Equalization Schools (1950s). It has long been known as the Hineshaw School/Hineshaw Elementary School. Neighborhood resident and businesswoman Rebecca Hargrove Shipman sold property adjacent to the school for the nominal fee of $1 to ensure street access to the campus. Two of those streets bear her name today, Rebecca Street and Shipman Avenue. Trustee J. H. Gause was also honored with a street bearing his name.
The campus remained in use in one form or another until the early 2000s but has been abandoned for many years. Neglect and storm damage have endangered the building and immediate stabilization is needed. It has recently been announced that Hinesville Downtown Development Authority is planning to restore the Rosenwald School.
Savannah First African Baptist Church was organized in 1773 and built this historic chapel in 1859. It is one of the oldest Black congregations in North America.
The following history, shared from their website, notes: “First African Baptist Church (FABC) was organized in 1773 under the leadership of Reverend George Leile. The 1773 organization date for the church makes it clear that FABC is older than the United States (1776). In May of 1775 Rev. Leile was ordained as the pastor and December of 1777 the church was officially constituted as a body of organized believers. Four converts Rev. Andrew Bryan, his wife, Hannah Bryan, Kate Hogg, and Hagar Simpson would form a part of the nucleus of First African Baptist Church’s early membership.”
“In 1782, rather than risk reenslavement, Pastor Leile left with the British when Savannah was evacuated and migrated to Jamaica. He became the first American missionary, 30 years before Adoniram Judson left for Burma. He was also the first Baptist missionary in Jamaica.”
“Under the leadership of the 3rd Pastor Reverend Andrew C. Marshall, the congregation obtained the property where the present sanctuary stands. Reverend Marshall also organized the first black Sunday School in North America and changed the name of the church from “First Colored Baptist” to “First African Baptist”. The sanctuary was completed in 1859 under the direction of the 4th Pastor, Reverend William J. Campbell.”
“March Haynes, a deacon of the church, enlisted in the Civil War on the Union side and did valiant service. He was active in helping captive Africans to escape to the Union side, where they enjoyed freedom. Deacon Haynes was an unsung hero of the movement of freedom known popularly as the “Underground Railroad”.”
“First African Baptist Church has been a place of leadership and service since its inception. Reverend Emmanuel King Love, 6th Pastor, led the movement to establish Savannah State University, formerly known as Georgia State Industrial College for Colored Youth. Rev. Love also played a big role in the establishment of Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA; Paine College in Augusta, GA.”
