The timber boom that led to the settlement of Eastman was facilitated in large part by the opening of the Macon & Brunswick Railroad through the area in 1869. The East Tennessee, Virginia & Georgia Railroad followed, before its absorption by the Southern Railway in 1894. This Victorian depot was built by the Southern Railway circa 1906* and remains one of Eastman’s most important public landmarks.
The depot, while not fully restored, is in good condition.
*- Sources vary as to date of construction. Some state it was built in 1906 and others say 1908.
This fine Queen Anne cottage has been used as an insurance office for many years but retains its beautiful fretwork and overall appearance. Some would call it a “gingerbread” house. It’s one of the nicest surviving Victorian houses in Lumber City. It was possibly designed or built by the Scottish immigrant John Renwick, who was actively building in Lumber City at the time of its construction.
This historic Queen Anne home (circa 1890-1910) is located near historic Mt. Zion Baptist Church and has been in this condition for quite some time. It appears to be in worse condition than when I first documented it five years ago. It may have a connection to the church. Much of the neighborhood in which it is located was once part of, or adjacent to, the South Albany Historic District, which has been de-listed from the National Register of Historic Places. This was traditionally one of the most historic Black neighborhoods in Albany.
This little cottage is the pinnacle of Victorian style. The center gable is often associated with the earlier Gothic Revival, while the fretwork and posts hint at Carpenter Gothic. Architecturally, it’s one of the nicest houses in Sasser.
This is a refined but unusually massed Queen Anne cottage. The three gables on the side and the timber framing on the front gable are the most interesting features.
This is one of several homes in Leslie that have been dated to 1910. As is often the case, I suspect this to be a “recorded” rather than actual date. Though I don’t have more information, and nothing more than an educated guess, I would expect this more likely to date to the late 1800s. It’s a textbook example of the Queen Anne cottage style so popular in Georgia at that time.
Sumter was a small crossroads community in Sumter County, just north of Smithville; it had a post office from 1884-1954. [It may have also been known as Sumter City]. It could just as well have been known as Webb, as the Webb family was in the area by circa 1825 and John Ronaldson Webb (1822-1881) was farming 125 acres east of Muckaloochee Creek by the 1850s. He and Amanda Melvinia Williams Webb had at least thirteen children. They eventually owned and cultivated 900 acres. According to the National Register of Historic Places, Amanda divided the land between her seven living sons in 1900. They all built homes along Highway 19 and farmed them separately.
This is one of the numerous farmhouses built by the Webb brothers. I believe three are extant, including the William A., and Emory C. Webb houses. This eclectic Queen Anne was owned by George Franklin Webb (1861-1936) and Ida Varina Goynes Webb (1875-1956). Together, these resources make up the historic Webb Family Farms.
The houses and historic farmland, along with the adjacent Liberty Primtive Baptist Church, are also significant as surviving structures of the nearly forgotten Sumter community.
I haven’t been able to track down this house, but since it’s in my Sumter County files, I believe it to be located in the Americus Historic District. It’s a great Carpenter Gothic Victorian, with an altered porch. –Thanks to Maureen McKinney for confirming the location.
Americus Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
