This 31-story International-style tower was arguably the first “modern” skyscraper in Atlanta, although it’s now pushing 70 years old and looks every day of it.
The tower opened in 1961 as the home of The Bank of Georgia and was purported to be the “tallest structure south of Baltimore,”4 surpassed a few years later by Atlanta’s First National Bank,56 built one block away.
It’s telling that the Bank of Georgia had to hire an out-of-town firm, Hedrick & Stanley of Dallas, to design the building — none of Atlanta’s architects at the time had the chops for such a large-scale project.
Top O’ Peachtree Restaurant. Photograph from an undated postcard published by Stein Craftsmen of Atlanta.
For the first 11 years, the 30th floor of The Bank of Georgia tower was occupied by the Top O’ Peachtree restaurant and “lookout lounge”, later described as ‘”the” place to go for dinner or drinks in its beginning.’7
Based on photographs, Top O’ Peachtree was no doubt an ideal rendezvous for married bank executives and their secretaries. Oh, come on, you know it happened.
Wyatt C. Hedrick Company with Willner & Millkey.89Fulton National Bank (1955). Atlanta. Photograph from an undated postcard published by Dexter Press, Inc. of West Nyack, New York.
When the Bank of Georgia tower was sold in 1979, it was described as one of “the two homeliest buildings in town,” along with the nearby Fulton National Bank building (1955),10 which was entirely accurate — then and now.
Designed by Wyatt C. Hedrick Company of Dallas,11 which later became Hedrick & Stanley, the Fulton National Bank building has been renamed 55 Marietta and remains in active use, now serving as a data center. The Bank of Georgia, however, hasn’t fared as well.
Detail of windows on The Bank of Georgia (34 Peachtree)
Later renamed 34 Peachtree, the former Bank of Georgia has passed through a succession of owners and is currently vacant, with missing windows on the upper floors and its street-level retail spaces obscured by brown paper.
A peek through the doors and windows at night reveals the dead escalators in the lobby and dangling ceiling tiles in the office spaces.
In 2017, pieces of the building’s facade fell to Peachtree Street during a bout of high winds, prompting the closure of several streets.12
Looking at the north elevation of The Bank of Georgia (34 Peachtree)
There have been empty promises to convert 34 Peachtree into residential units,13 but that’s just typical Atlanta bullshitting, quite unlikely to transpire, as the cost to renovate such behemoths is overwhelmingly prohibitive.
Office buildings are rapidly becoming a relic of the past, and as more skyscrapers begin to deteriorate, it will be interesting to see what cities like Atlanta do with them, particularly as the United States plunges headfirst into inevitable social and economic decline.
I suspect that in decades to come, many American cities will be filled with vacant, crumbling towers that no one will have the money to demolish or renovate — unsightly monuments from an age of decadence and arrogance best left forgotten.
Looking at The Bank of Georgia (34 Peachtree) from Edgewood Avenue
References
Erwin, George. “Bank Plans 31-Story Building At 5 Points, Costing 10 Million”. The Atlanta Journal, March 1, 1959, p. 1. ↩︎
The Atlanta Journal and The Atlanta Constitution, April 2, 1961, Bank of Georgia Section. ↩︎
“Bank of Georgia To Open Monday”. The Atlanta Journal, March 28, 1961, p. 33. ↩︎
Veale, Frank. “35,000 Expected At Gala Opening Of New Building”. The Atlanta Journal, April 2, 1961, p. 2-F. ↩︎
Crown, John. “40-Story Bank Building to Rise in Atlanta”. The Atlanta Journal, August 11, 1963, p. 1. ↩︎
“Atlanta Reaches for the Sky–More Giants on Way”. The Atlanta Journal, May 17, 1966, p. 12. ↩︎
Henderson, Barry. “Top O’ Peachtree Sale Set”. The Atlanta Constitution, September 23, 1972, p. 8. ↩︎
“Equipment Came From All Over U.S., Materials From All Over The World”. The Atlanta Journal, October 18, 1955, p. 3-F. ↩︎
“It’s the tops” (advertisement). The Atlanta Constitution, October 19, 1955, p. 2-F. ↩︎
Kossoff, Evan. “New Owner Giving 2 Downtown Buildings a Facelift”. The Atlanta Constitution, December 10, 1979, p. 9-D. ↩︎
“Company Completes 26-story Fulton National Bank Building on schedule!” (advertisement). The Atlanta Journal, October 18, 1955, p. 18-F. ↩︎
Judd, Alan. “Georgia: Irma set to arrive today.” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, September 11, 2017, p. A1-A6. ↩︎
Torpy, Bill. “Can office conversions save downtown?” The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, July 31, 2023, p. A9. ↩︎
Bruce & Morgan. Cherokee County Courthouse (1892-1895). Murphy, North Carolina.
The Background
The following article was published in The State Chroniclein 1890, and includes an illustration and description of the Cherokee County Courthouse in Murphy, North Carolina, designed byBruce & Morgan.
A vernacular interpretation of the Romanesque Revival style, the building depicted in the illustration appears to be a competent effort by A.C. Bruce, and an updated version of his plan for the Newton County Courthouse in Covington, Georgia, completed in 1884.
The only questionable elements in the otherwise cohesive composition are the odd pediment and oversized half-round window above the entrance portico. This wasn’t an exceptional design, by any means, but generally well-proportioned and tastefully executed.
Location of Cherokee County Courthouse
The article states that the county’s leaders were unsure whether the courthouse should be built of brick with marble trimmings or “an entire marble face,” a preposterous question for a rural jurisdiction in the Deep South.
Marble was so cost-prohibitive in the late 19th century that even Atlantans couldn’t afford it as a primary building material, much less the inhabitants of a dirt-poor county in the hills of Carolina.
Unsurprisingly, the finished courthouse was primarily built with pressed brick, while the foundation and steps were composed of marble.1 The initial cost of the project was reported as $21,5002 by one source and $22,5753 by another, but other reports estimated it at $40,000.456
It’s difficult to find a definitive date for the building’s completion, but the cornerstone was laid in July 1891,7 and most sources state it was finished in 1892, which would be a reasonable timeframe.
Despite this article’s claim that the courthouse would “stand the storm of ages”, the building was destroyed by fire on December 13, 1895,8 less than four years after its completion, although the outer walls were left intact.9
In early 1896, Bruce & Morgan were hired as architects for the building’s replacement,10 and it appears they essentially replicated the previous design.
The rebuilt courthouse was also destroyed by fire on January 16, 1926,1112and replaced with an entirely new structure.1314
So much for it being “a monument for centuries to come.”
Murphy’s New Court House.
The State Chronicle is glad to be able to present to its readers to day a picture of the new Court House which the Commissioners and Magistrates of Cherokee county have decided to erect at Murphy. It will be a handsome building and an ornament to the town and county, as well as its best advertisement. It is to have a face and trimmings of marble quarried from the Cherokee county quarries. Marble of almost every shade of color is found in Cherokee, and the Western North Carolina Railroad runs in such close proximity to the marble as to enable parties to load it directly from the quarries into the cars. A marble Court House will advertise this marble better than an hundred agents and an hundred newspapers. The Commissioners and Magistrates have not exactly determined whether it shall have an entire marble face, and have advertised for bids with the marble face and only with marble trimming. But they have decided to build it, and it is a decision in which the entire State is interested. It shows that we are going forward. As the Murphy Bulletin well and truly put it: “The Court House will stand the storm of ages and retain its original beauty and magnificence.” The Commissioners and Magistrates have acted wisely, and the Chronicle rejoices that a spirit of faith in the glorious future of their county has been present with them. This marble Court House will be a monument for centuries to come of the wisdom of the men now living in Cherokee.15
“Cherokee County Court House Swept By Disastrous Fire for Second Time In History, Damage Believed $100,000.” The Sunday Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina), January 17, 1926, p. 20. ↩︎
“Cherokee Courthouse Is Destroyed By Fire”. The Charlotte News (Charlotte, North Carolina), January 16, 1926, p. 1. ↩︎
“Cherokee County Court House Swept By Disastrous Fire for Second Time In History, Damage Believed $100,000.” The Sunday Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina), January 17, 1926, p. 20. ↩︎
“Start Plans For Cherokee Courthouse”. The Asheville Times (Asheville, North Carolina), January 22, 1926, p. 18. ↩︎
“New Courthouse Will Be Built In Cherokee County”. Salisbury Evening Post (Salisbury, North Carolina), January 28, 1926, p. 6. ↩︎
From left to right: Muse’s Department Storesign, The Bank of Georgia/34 Peachtree (1961), Citizens & Southern National Bank (1901), English-American Building (1898). Fairlie-Poplar, Atlanta.
Joseph Amisano of Toombs, Amisano & Wells with J.W. Robinson and Associates, Inc. Robert W. Woodruff Library (1982). Atlanta University Center.1234Looking at the Robert W. Woodruff Library from the southeastSouth elevation of the Robert W. Woodruff LibraryWindows on the south elevation of the Robert W. Woodruff LibrarySkylight on the east facade of the Robert W. Woodruff LibraryLooking at the Robert W. Woodruff Library from the northeastNorth elevation of the Robert W. Woodruff Library
References
Dees, Learned and Hunt, Eunice S. “New AUC Library To Open in Jan.” The Atlanta Voice, November 14, 1981, p. 1B. ↩︎
Salyer, Sharon J. “Library Dedication Is Friday At AUC”. The Atlanta Constitution, April 22, 1982, p. 17-A. ↩︎
Barnes, Beverly. “Woodruff Library Is Dedicated”. The Atlanta Journal-The Atlanta Constitution Weekend, April 24, 1982, p. 14-A. ↩︎
Powell, Kay. “Joe Amisano, admired architect”. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 21, 2008, p. B6. ↩︎
C. Walter Smith. PublicComfort Building at Oakland Cemetery (1899). Atlanta.
The Public Comfort Building in Oakland Cemetery is the only surviving work in Atlanta known to have been designed byC. Walter Smith (1865-1910), an architect who worked for at least seven years as a draughtsman and assistant for G.L. Norrman before embarking on a fairly unremarkable solo career.
Built on a small hill in the western portion of the 48-acre cemetery, this 2-story structure includes a full basement and totals2,800 square feet.1 The exterior is faced in stucco-covered brick2and rusticated granite trimmings, and marble flooring3 is used on the front porch and in the basement.
Modeled after “the old Norman and English castellated churches,”4 the building’s design can be broadly defined as Romanesque, and its focal point is a 50-foot-high crenellated bell tower,5 heavily inspired by similar designs from G.L. Norrman.
Today, Oakland Cemetery refers to the entire structure as the “Bell Tower”.
C. Walter Smith. Public Comfort Building at Oakland Cemetery (1899). Atlanta.6
An illustration from 1899 (pictured above) reveals the building’s original design: a one-story porch topped by battlements originally flanked the south facade, and a porte-cochère to accommodate wagons was attached to the east side.
Curiously, the final design was reversed, with the porte-cochère moved to the west side of the structure, likely one of “a few slight changes” announced before construction began.7
Roman arches on the porch and bell tower, and Gothic-stylearched windows on the second floor completed the appearance of a small, storybook castle — again, Smith borrowed significantly from Norrman for the aesthetic.
South facade of the Public Comfort Building
In its original conception, the building was one of Smith’s better designs. Despite years of training under “the South’s most prominent architect”8 — his words — Smith’s skill never came close to Norman’s high level of artistry, although his work here was at least intriguing.
Unfortunately, the initial vision was compromisedby the later addition of second-floor porchesover the front porch and porte-cochère, topped with flat roofs and punctuated by incongruent half-round openings.
I suspect the porches were added circa 1908, when the cemetery spent $5,000 on a range of improvements9 following its first annual report to the city, which requested $1,000 for “needed changes and repairs in the main building.”10
The effect of the alterations is detrimental: the upper porches add unnecessary visual mass to the structure and pull focus away from the bell tower, robbing the entire composition of the uplifting, monumental effect Smith originally intended.
West elevation of the Public Comfort Building
“Public comfort” was a polite 19th-century euphemism for restrooms, which were originally housed on the ground floor of the structure.
When the building was completed in October 1899, The Atlanta Journal delicately noted: “Here one now finds a convenience and comfort that was lacking for many years.”11 I guess early visitors just had to hold it — or maybe piss on a grave.
There were initially six rooms in the building, including a ladies’ parlor and an “apartment for gentlemen.” All six rooms had tiled mantels,12 which was apparently noteworthy. Two of the mantels remain intact.
The structure also included an office for the cemetery’s sexton,13 and Oakland Cemetery’s website claims the building contained a chapel, with the second floor used as the sexton’s residence. So many uses for such a small structure.
Second-floor windows on the Public Comfort Building
Despite its fanciful design, the building was, at heart, purely utilitarian, “suitable for the purposes for which it is intended,”14 as the Journal put it.
People need to pee, of course, but the building’s other raison d’être was concealed in the basement.15 The structure was built on the site of a converted 2-story farmhouse16 known as the “dead house”17 — you can see where this is going.
As the Journal explained:
There is a vault with eight catacombs and sixteen racks. This is as strong and substantial as could be made. For the retention of bodies for any length of time the catacombs will answer every purpose, as they are built to be air-tight for years to come. The racks, as a matter of course, are intended as a temporary place of keeping and are conveniently arranged. When the iron gate to the vault is locked entrance is practically impossible.18
Front porch of the Public Comfort Building
Since Oakland is a public cemetery operated by the city of Atlanta, the building was funded by an appropriation from the city council.19 The Atlanta Building Company secured the contract with the lowest bid, and the project’s total cost was $4,600,20 with $650 spent on the stone.21
Construction on the building was initially slated to begin on April 27, 1899,22 but was apparently delayed until June and completed in four months.23
Although early plans called for the construction of one or two additional public comfort buildings in the cemetery,24 those never materialized, and this structure remained the only significant public building at the site, altered many times over by piecemeal repairs and alterations.
When the Historic Oakland Foundation was formed in 1976 to preserve and maintain the cemetery’s historic integrity, the building became office space for the organization, with the ground floor converted into a small visitors center,25 a function that it served for decades.
East elevation of the Public Comfort Building
In 2022, as Oakland Cemetery prepared to build a much larger visitors’ center outside its main entrance, the former Public Comfort Building was given a gut renovation designed by Smith Dalia Architects, Atlanta’s finest firm for the adaptive reuse of historic structures.
The project included tearing out the hodgepodge of rooms on each floor for larger, open spaces, removing god-awful windows added to the second-floor porches, and making necessary accessibility alterations, which altered a portion of the front porch.2627
The building reopened later that year28 as an event space: the fallback choice when owners don’t know what to do with a historic structure.
Following its renovation, the building now appears a little too clean and gleaming — I actually preferred it when it was worn and shabby — but it still has an undeniable anachronistic charm that’s uncommon in Atlanta.
And as one of just six known extant works by Walter Smith, it’s also a matter of curiosity, if nothing else.
