The Willink cottage is one of many early Savannah landmarks that have been moved to the vicinity of East St. Julian Street. Henry Frederick Willink, Jr. (1825-1906; some sources list birth date as 1825), was the son of a prominent German immigrant, Henry Frederick Willink (1785-1873). After time spent at the Chatham Academy, the younger Willink apprenticed at his father’s shipyard before moving to New York to improve his skills. Willink returned to Savannah in 1851 to start his own shipyard. [His home, originally located near Oglethorpe Avenue at the intersection of Price and Perry Streets, is said to have been built in 1845, but since he didn’t return to Savannah until 1851, there is some debate about the date].
By the outset of the Civil War, his business, Willink & Miller, was in full swing garnering commissions to build the gunboat Macon, as well as the ironclads Savannah and Milledgeville. After the war, he did quite well with other shipbuilding projects, as well as a wrecking business and a marine railway on Hutchinson Island. From at least 1864 to 1877-79, Willink served as a Savannah alderman, but it is unclear if he served consecutive terms The Confederate veteran is buried in Laurel Grove North Cemetery.
Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark
Confederate veteran Samuel Monroe Davidson built this house. He served in the 31st Regiment Georgia Volunteer Infantry (Mountain Tigers) and was wounded at Cold Harbor in 1862. Upon his medical discharge at Macon, he settled in Greenville and built this house around 1870. He was a city councilman and was instrumental in bringing the railroad to Greenville. The Mabon family were later owners.
Greenville Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Confederate Major and state senator George Peavy built this Gothic Revival house around 1870. He and his wife were well-known hosts of social functions and it was a center of activity in Greenville for many years. Later owners were the McLaughlin and Flynn families.
Greenville Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Now a fully restored public event space, the John King (J. K.) Roop House is a great example of community involvement in restoration. The following history and much more information can be found at their website.
The first Roop to live in the southwestern area of Carroll County was Martin Roop, the father of John King (J.K.) Roop whom we consider to be the founding father of Roopville. Martin grew up, met and married Mary Elizabeth King (1839), while they were still living in Union County, SC. In the 1850’s they moved to the area where Roopville now stands. Martin and Elizabeth had 11 children.
J.K. was the oldest son of Martin and Elizabeth Roop. In 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate Army serving in both Company D of the First Regiment of Georgia Infantry and in Phillips Legion Calvary. He married Eliza Moore in 1872. To this union were born 5 children. J.K. became the owner of over 2000 acres of land, much of which he donated to enhance the growth of the area. He built several stores, a mill, a blacksmith shop and homes which he would sell to new people coming into the area. J.K. was a charter member of Roopville Baptist Church, Worshipful Master of Goshen Lodge 71, in 1880 and he served on the Carroll County Board of Education.
Duncan Curry, Jr., son of a state representative and senator and one of the earliest settlers of this section of Georgia, established a plantation in 1842 on property that had included an important early stagecoach stop. As the plantation expanded to eventually cover several thousand acres, the family lived in a log house next to the old stagecoach house. The present house was built in the mid-1850s. It also served as a de facto neighborhood school.
In addition to their farming and entrepreneurial activities, Duncan, with his brother Calvin, built the first Presbyterian church in this section around this time. At the outset of the Civil War, Curry rallied a group of local men for the cause. They became Company F, Fiftieth Georgia Regiment, under Curry’s command. Injured in Maryland, Curry returned to the plantation and helped secure supplies for the local effort. His son, Perry, was killed in the war.
As best I can determine from limited sources, this was the home of Dr. William Benjamin Johnson Hardman (23 November 1822-21 August 1904), the father of Governor Lamartine Hardman, who was also a physician. The elder Dr. Hardman was one of the most prominent and best-known citizens of Harmony Grove (changed to Commerce in 1909). Dr. Hardman served in Deadwyler’s Company, 4th Georgia Cavalry.
Adam Underhill writes: I believe this was the residence of my great-great-grandfather, Cannie Swain Meadows, a Confederate veteran. I believe he is correct in his assertion. According to the listing on Find A Grave, where this circa 1910 postcard was originally shared by Olivia Williamson Braddy, Meadows (8 March 1843-15 August 1923) was a Corporal with Company H, 49th Georgia Infantry. He owned a dry goods store and hotel, as well as Tiger Springs, a recreational attraction on Tiger Creek. Cannie, as he was known, had 13 children, all but one of whom lived to adulthood; several lived well into their nineties.
Public Domain Image, shared by Olivia Williamson Braddy via Find A Grave
Robert H. Dixon, a state senator and state representative, owned this land from 1827-1857 and built the main house, seen above, circa 1840. The property was sold to Daniel G. Owen (1830-1892) in 1858, and was held by his heirs until 1967. Owen was a Confederate soldier, taken prisoner by the Union, who came back to a different plantation after the war. He was a model farmer. Instead of dwelling on the loss of his slaves, he went about making the property work with one-third the labor of plantations of similar size. [Please note that this is private property. I’m grateful to the property owner for permission to photograph the grounds].
His waterworks, built in 1886, was considered his greatest modernization and received much attention in the press. The water tower is the tall feature covered with vegetation.
Numerous outbuildings survive on the property.
I cannot identify each outbuilding, but each had its own specific function. Descriptions and a much more detailed chronology of the property can be found on the National Register nomination form.
Jim Luckey, the present owner of the property, writes: Mary Elisabeth Hargis Luckey, great niece of Collier Vines Mills along with her husband James Milton Luckey jr. Purchased The Elms from Ed and Cheryl Smith in 2005 bringing the property back into the family. Since the time we purchased the mule barn was razed as it was too far gone to restore. However the stacked stone foundation was left in place. We replaced the roof in 2013 and found the underlying heart pine boards to be in perfect condition. In addition crickets were made and installed behind each chimney and flashed with industrial powder coated metal to divert water and all gutter-downspouts and underground drains installed.
One point which needs correction is the structure being called a guest house [I made a guess that this was a guest house] was indeed either the overseer’s cottage or the cook’s cottage. We think most likely the cooks as the overseer would have been on higher ground and the cook closer to the main house. The Elms is our favorite place and we love being the caretakers of this beautiful piece of history. We are delighted to see the interest this article has created. Any questions we would be pleased to answer contact Luckeyjim@gmail.com
Elaine Kilpatrick Tyler, a former resident, writes: My family and I lived at this farm in the 1950s. We moved there from Talbotton, Georgia. I was in the 11th grade at Talbot County High School in Talbotton. I cherished this farm place with so much history. My childhood dreams of having a horse came true and I ended up with 3 horses. My brothers refinished the floors at the guest house. The lady that owned the place at that time lived in Macon, Ga. (I think) . Anyway I loved all the history of this place, the jail under the house, the milk cellar, the cemetery, and so much more. I hope I can go there and see the place this spring. I see some changes in the front at the entrance…there used to be a very large muscadine arbor to the left of the as you went onto the porch.
This exquisite Queen Anne cottage was built by Capt. Newton P. Carreker (1830-1918), who was among the last surviving Confederate veterans of Talbot County. It’s usually to referred to locally as the “Liberty Bell House” for the cutout in the center gable.
