Tag Archives: Georgia Tenant Houses

Solomon Hall House, Tattnall County

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An old, dilapidated wooden house with a rusty metal roof, surrounded by tall grass and trees.

I was recently invited by Laura Potts-Wirth to photograph an old sharecropper’s house on her property near Glennville.

An abandoned wooden house with a red metal roof, showing signs of decay and overgrowth, surrounded by tall grass and trees in the background.

Though there are no plans to restore the house, it is an important example of vernacular architecture and I’m honored to have been given access.

An abandoned, dilapidated wooden house with a rusted metal roof, showing signs of wear and neglect, surrounded by overgrown grass and trees.

It is a simple gabled-ell cottage, likely built between the 1910s-1930s.

Abandoned wooden house wall with a dirty window frame, showing cobwebs and peeling paint.

The owner was Solomon R. Hall, Sr., (1902-1988). He and his wife Mollie Bee E. Hall (1905-1970) raised thirteen children and three grandchildren here, while sharecropping on the Old Anderson Place, to which this property was once attached. Records indicate that ownership passed back and forth between Mr. Hall and the Andersons over the years.

An old blue cabinet with a wooden door, standing next to a rustic table in an abandoned building, with overgrown grass visible outside.

Solomon Hall was also a turpentine laborer and would have known the woods and fields around his home as well as anyone else.

Interior view of a weathered wooden door frame with a partially open door and a wooden wall, showcasing rustic materials and textures.

Just across US 301 from the property there was once a community of African-Americans known as Hall Town. The only remaining public landmark of the community is the Old Hall Town Cemetery, which I also documented.

An abandoned interior of a room with wooden walls, a partially open door, a window showing greenery outside, and debris scattered on the floor.

The interior rooms are spare, which was characteristic of this type of housing.

Interior of an abandoned room with wooden floors, a round table, and a window showing trees outside. The walls are brown with peeling paint, and there are dust and leaves scattered on the floor.

I think it is hard for most people to imagine a dozen or more people living in such spaces, but it was much more common than one might realize.

An empty, weathered room with blue wooden walls featuring an old rocking chair and a partially open door, showcasing rustic and worn textures.

Gary Mobley, in a March 2020 oral history interview with Laura Potts-Wirth, noted, “Here, Solomon Hall and his wife, Mrs. Bea (sic)…, raised 13 children, and three grandchildren. They did work for part of the harvest. They hunted the land and also got a portion of the hog meat. The small building in the back of their house was either a smokehouse or a summer kitchen. One of the jobs the Sharecroppers had was keeping the farm rows cleared of weeds and clearing volunteer trees for three feet on either side of the fence rows. Up near the pond, there was another sharecropper’s house, where Choice Coley lived...”

An old, weathered wooden shed with missing planks and a rusted metal roof, surrounded by tall grass and trees under a cloudy sky.

Kelly and Fran Folsom spoke very highly of both Solomon Hall and Choice Coley and recalled to Laura Potts-Wirth: “…Mr.Solomon was really responsible for overseeing the farm, especially as Mr. Anderson was getting older, and also when the Dents owned the farm. Solomon Hall really had a lot to do with supervising and managing the farm, overseeing the work being done, and just being a caretaker of the farm.“

An outdoor rustic privy, or outhouse, with a corrugated metal roof, situated among trees and grass, showing signs of weathering and age.

The survival of the outbuildings adds importance to the property as a representative example of its type. Even the old privy, re-sided, is a reminder of the times.

Close-up of a vibrant red flower with long, slender petals and multiple stamens, surrounded by green grass.

Plantings by Mrs. Hall are still blooming, like this hurricane (or spider) lily.

A vibrant field of lush green plants with pink and yellow flowers under a partly cloudy sky.

There are clumps of another old favorite, lantana, in several spots around the house.

A dilapidated wooden house with a rusted metal roof, surrounded by tall grass and trees in a rural landscape.

Pyramidal Cottage, Bulloch County

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Abandoned wooden house with a rusted corrugated roof, surrounded by tall grass and trees.

This tenant dwelling was located on Harville Road. The photo dates to 2013 and the house may be gone by now.

Saddlebag Tenant Farmhouse, Bulloch County

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An abandoned weathered house with a rusty roof, surrounded by trees and overgrown vegetation in a rural setting.

I made this photograph in 2013 and don’t know the fate of this little saddlebag cottage. It was located near a larger farm, so I presume it was a tenant dwelling.

Hall-and-Parlor Tenant House, Candler County

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An abandoned wooden house with a rusted metal roof, surrounded by dense vegetation and trees.

I photographed this house in July 2012. It’s a typical two-room form, most often used as tenant housing. Since it wasn’t near a farm, it may have been related to turpentining.

Double Shotgun House, Evans County

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Abandoned wooden house surrounded by overgrown vegetation, featuring a rusty roof and double front doors.

I photographed this house in 2013. It was unusual because it was architectural in style. The two side-by-side front doors are a common feature of double shotgun houses. I presume it was a tenant house. I attempted to relocate it in 2022, but it was gone.

Note: This updates and replaces a post originally published as “Pyramidal Roof Tenant House, Evans County”, on 22 February 2013.

Double-Pen Tenant Farmhouse, Tattnall County

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Durrence Farm

In architectural parlance, pen is just another word for room, and when considering the hard lives sharecroppers faced, it seems cruelly appropriate. Some call these utilitarian houses “early duplexes” and in some cases, it’s true that two families lived in them, but more often than not, the term double-pen just means two rooms.

The Georgia Historic Preservation Divisions has this to say about the double-pen cottage: “Double-pen houses consist of two rooms, typically square. As in the single-pen house, the arrangement and location of openings varies, but the most easily recognizable double-pen house has two doors in the main facade. Chimneys or flues may be located at either or both ends. Gabled roofs are the most common by far. Few double-pen houses remain in their original form in Georgia. Most of these were constructed for agricultural or industrial workers between the 1870s and 1930s…”

I believe this tenant house is the last remaining structure on this historic farm property. The Durrence family had a large tobacco operation here at one time. As to the house, it sits on modern tapered cinderblock piers so it has been re-settled, as a means of preservation. It has no impact on the importance of the structure. .

Gabled-Ell Cottage, Tattnall County

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Front elevation

This board-and-batten gabled-ell cottage was a landmark in my travels to Red Earth Farm for many years. It’s now a heap of boards, finished off by Hurricane Helene.

Interior view, looking to the rear wing (ell).

It was likely a tenant home, perhaps connected to the nearby John Pearson House and related to the naval stores industry.

Rear wing (ell), with porch

It was a humble house but must have been loved in its time. I know I will miss seeing it.

Perspective view, showing location of chimney (removed)

Saddlebag Tenant House, Hancock County

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This one-door saddlebag cottage was likely a tenant dwelling. It’s an excellent example of the form.

Both rooms have a simple hearth, a necessity in these uninsulated spaces. A trace of wallpaper remains in this room.

Single-Pen Tenant Farmhouse, Ben Hill County

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This house has always beckoned me to stop and make photographs, and I made these in 2011. It’s a classic single-pen tenant house, complete with “tar paper” to keep cold out of the cracks in winter. The last time I checked, it was still standing, albeit in worse condition. I’ve often encountered a wake of buzzards perched on the roof, and once even scared a bunch from inside the house. In my notes, I call it the Buzzard House.

Shotgun House, Irwin County

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This photo was made in 2010 and like many I’ve shared today, the house is probably gone by now. It’s a classic example of a shotgun house.