Tag Archives: Georgia Libraries

Candler Hall, 1897, Oxford

Leave a reply

Emory College president Warren Candler, concerned about fire vulnerability on the Oxford campus, began lobbying for the construction of a dedicated library building after a fire consumed the old recitation hall in 1891. At the time, the library was housed on the third floor of Seney Hall and this was cause for concern. A committee was formed in 1897, their efforts culminated in the construction of Candler Hall. The architect, Samuel Manning Patton (1857-1897), who had designed several prominent buildings in Chattanooga, sadly died in a fire in one of them the same year Candler Hall was completed. Clad in Tennessee limestone with a foundation of local gneiss, the Stripped Neoclassical building stands in contrast to other buildings on the quad, with a more “modern” feel. It served as the library until 1970 when it was replaced by the truly modern Hoke O’Kelley Memorial Library across the quad. Candler Hall is now home to Campus Life offices and the college bookstore.

Oxford Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Historic Storefronts, Culloden

1 Reply

Culloden, the oldest settlement in this area of Georgia, was once a bustling town, where the railroad brought in supplies from Atlanta and other larger cities, and where the economy was mostly centered around cotton until the 1920s. Agriculture remains a large employer to this day.

It’s similar to myriad other small towns across the state in the fact that after the waning of cotton’s prominence, people left in search of non-agricultural jobs, and the buildings that made up the commercial center were eventually abandoned. Most were general stores or offices.

One thing different about Culloden, though, is the fact that they decided to construct a building in the old style in 2005 that houses the city hall, library and emergency services. It’s a nice nod to local history and incorporates old bricks, perhaps recycled from an earlier structure near this site.

The building on the right was the old Bank of Culloden, erected in 1897.

Culloden Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Post Office + Public Library, 1914, Tifton

1 Reply

Opened in 1914, this handsome Renaissance Revival structure first served as a post office but has been home for many years to the Tifton-Tift County Public Library. It was designed [or its design overseen by] Oscar Wenderoth, who served as the director of the Office of the Supervising Architect of the United States Treasury Department from 1912-1915. It might be best known for its iconic gargoyle flagpole holders.

Tifton Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Old Library, Willacoochee

1 Reply

This log building once served as the Willacoochee library. It has most recently been used as a thrift shop by the United Methodist Church.

S. B. Price Free Library, 1899 & 1934, Macon

Leave a reply

In the late 19th century free public libraries were a relatively new concept but Macon Mayor S. B. “Daisy” Price wanted to open such a facility that would be free to all (white) citizens of his growing community. The library formally opened on 7 January 1900 and was named for Mayor Price, who had died on 22 November 1899. The structure’s entrance originally faced Orange Street and featured a turret but a renovation and needed update by the Civil Works Administration re-oriented the library and moved the entrance to 1st Street.

Macon Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Savannah Public Library, 1916

3 Replies

The Carnegie Colored Library was built for Savannah’s African-American community on East Henry Street between 1913-1915 and another Carnegie grant aided the construction of this structure, the Savannah Public Library on Bull Street in 1916. This Neoclassical landmark was designed by Hyman Wallace Witcover, the architect responsible for Savannah’s iconic City Hall and other prominent landmarks. Text on the structure reads: This eternal court is open to you with its society wide as the world-the chosen and the mighty of every place and time. Make books thy comrades. The library was among the earliest public institutions in Georgia to be desegregated, opening its doors to all citizens in 1963.

Savannah Victorian Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

The Scout House, 1928, Fort Gaines

6 Replies

Under the leadership of Methodist minister Emmett Emerson Gardner, the local Boy Scout troop cut, notched, and scraped the logs and erected this cabin for use as their lodge.

Originally consisting of two rooms, the cabin was later remodeled for use as the first library in Fort Gaines.

It’s located adjacent to the Toll House.

Carnegie Library, 1915, Eatonton

Leave a reply

This still serves as Eatonton’s public library.

Eatonton Historic District, National Register of Historic Places

Harlem Library

Leave a reply

This is one of the quaintest little public libraries in Georgia. I imagine it must have been a residence at one time.

Hartwell Bank Building, Hartwell

Leave a reply

Known today as the Carter Law Office, for its present owner, this is the most iconic commercial structure in Hartwell. [I use the original name for historical purposes]. It was home, for many years, to Homer Herdon’s Drug Store, a popular gathering place from the 1930s to the 1960s. The second floor once housed the Hartwell Library, as well. I have been unable to confirm a date of construction, but the Richardsonian Romanesque style, in which it’s constructed, was popular from the late 1880s to the turn of the 20th century.

Hartwell Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places