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Category: Bruce & Morgan

  • Confederate Soldiers’ Home (1891-1901) – Atlanta

    Bruce & Morgan. Confederate Soldiers' Home (1891-1901). Atlanta.
    Bruce & Morgan. Confederate Soldiers’ Home (1891-1901). Atlanta.1

    The Background

    The following article, published in The Atlanta Journal in April 1890, describes the Confederate Soldiers’ Home in Atlanta, completed in 1891 and designed by A.C. Bruce of Bruce & Morgan.

    Planned to house 150 to 200 people,2 the facility was built on 125 acres located two miles southeast of Atlanta and connected to Grant Park3 by a 1.5-mile dirt road that became known as Confederate Avenue (later United Avenue SE).

    Location of Confederate Soldiers’ Home

    The Origins of the Home

    The project was first proposed in April 1889 by Henry W. Grady, editor of The Atlanta Constitution, although it was hardly his own conception.

    In late 1888 and early 1889, Major Joe E. Stewart of Austin, Texas, traveled to the Northeast and began fundraising appeals in Boston and New York to support an existing home for Confederate veterans in Austin.4 5

    Why Stewart considered that a good idea was anyone’s guess, since no self-respecting Northener would’ve given a damn about aiding the ex-soldiers of a treasonous rebellion. As the Mail and Express of New York opined bluntly:

    “Major Stewart’s advocacy of the scheme for a Confederate Soldiers’ Home will not find favor here. That is not a matter of National concern…but is distinctly anti-National and to be discouraged.”6

    Needless to say, Stewart’s ill-conceived fundraising tour was a failure, and the soldiers’ home in Austin, Texas, received only $1500 in donations from Northern contributors.7

    Always full of self-righteous fervor, Henry Grady seized on the story in one of his typical bloviating editorials for the Constitution, proclaiming that Confederate soldiers should be aided by Southern money, making an impassioned plea to build a veterans’ home in Georgia for those who “suffered in her cause” — that is to say, those who fought for human slavery. Spare me the states’ rights bullshit.

    Grady wrote, in part:

    “Come home, Major Stewart, and let us take care our heroes to our own hearts, and wear them there, never to be paraded again with their limping gait, their poor wounds and their shabby raiment through the lines of strangers, of whom charity is begged for their behalf!

    “But we need Confederate Homes! In every state there are men wearing honorable scars who are poor and helpless.

    “WE MUST BUILD A CONFEDERATE HOME in GEORGIA! We must built it at once! We must show that Georgia’s heart beats true to the men who suffered in her cause–and that she will take them to her heart!”8

    Grady began a public fundraising campaign for the project, with the Constitution contributing the first $1,000. The campaign reportedly received over $10,000 in pledges within 12 hours of the newspaper’s distribution,9 and nine days later, an organization overseeing the project was incorporated with a board of 25 directors led by Grady.10 Credit them for moving quickly.

    Confederate Soldiers' Home
    Confederate Soldiers’ Home11

    Design and Construction

    While it was initially reported that the project’s building committee accepted a plan by W.T. Downing of Wheeler & Downing,12 G.L. Norrman also submitted plans, and A.C. Bruce13 of Bruce & Morgan ultimately secured the commission.14 It undoubtedly helped that A.C. Bruce was also a Confederate veteran.

    Looking every bit like a fashionable summer hotel, Bruce’s design for the Confederate Soldiers’ Home was one of his better efforts: a rambling structure of two to three stories, primarily Queen Anne style, with all the expected eclecticism and embellishments of the era, including a 120-foot-tall turret.

    Construction began in November 1889,15 and the building’s cornerstone was laid in a public ceremony on Confederate Memorial Day, April 26, 1890.16 17 The structure was completed in January 1891,18 19 and while the project was initially estimated at $22,000,20 the final cost was $27,699.25.21

    Another Lost Cause

    Although the Constitution set a goal of $50,000 in subscriptions for the project,22 23 24 the Confederate Soldiers’ Home ultimately received just over $41,000, leaving only $41.01 in available funds at the building’s completion.25 Henry Grady died in December 1889, and it’s safe to assume the project’s funding faltered in the absence of his leadership.

    The project’s directors should have taken a cue from Atlanta’s Carrie Steele Orphans’ Home, which was under construction at the same time and similarly funded by popular subscription. The original plans for the orphanage — also designed by Bruce & Morgan — were apparently dropped in favor of a simpler structure to accommodate reduced funding.

    We’re talking about Atlanta, though, where show and spectacle have always been prioritized over fiscal responsibility, and one of the directors of the veterans’ home project even admitted that the committee splurged on “extras in the form of a slate roof, etc.,” adding at least $1000 to the total cost.26

    As it became clear that the organization lacked the funds to operate its shiny new facility, the directors decided to unload it on the State of Georgia, offering the entire property to the state government on the condition that it shelter veterans for 25 years, after which it could be used for other purposes.27 28 Too bad the state didn’t want it.

    In November 1890, a bill was introduced in the state legislature to operate the home as a public facility,29 although it was defeated in August 1891.30 A similar bill was shelved in December 1892,31 32 and a third attempt was killed when lawmakers deferred it to a finance committee.33

    Partially fueling the legislature’s refusals was the simmering resentment Georgia’s bumfuck politicians have long held against the city, knowing full well the state would be Mississippi without Atlanta. Some legislators apparently dismissed the project as a typical Atlanta “speculative scheme,”34 35 and frankly, they weren’t entirely wrong on that count.

    In 1894, the Confederate Soldiers’ Home even became a contentious topic in the state’s gubernatorial race. The leading candidate was William Yates Atkinson, a former speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives, who voted against the home and actively denounced the project on the campaign trail, telling attendees at one event:

    “The friends of the home didn’t care anything about it, but they wanted it accepted because it was located in Atlanta.

    “That home was a regular poor house and they wanted to send you needy veterans to that Atlanta poor house, where you would be under a master to whom you would have to beg like a slave for the necessities of life.”36

    Oh, the irony.

    Atkinson won the election, and in January 1895, the Confederate Soldiers’ Home was “still uninhabited, save by a lone watchman,”37 when the organization decided to sell the property.38 39

    Confederate Soldiers' Home, 1901 illustration
    Confederate Soldiers’ Home, 1901 illustration40

    Myth and Mayhem

    By the mid-to-late 1890s, it had become glaringly obvious that the New South myth was utter bullshit. The chief promulgator, Henry Grady, was long dead, and like the grand mansions that sat vacant for years in Atlanta’s Inman Park, the Confederate Soldiers’ Home was left to rot because no one could pony up the cash — even for the soldiers of Georgia’s vaunted “cause.”

    The decision to sell the facility prompted a lawsuit from the local real estate company that initially donated the land, claiming they had done so with the understanding that the property would be used solely for a veterans’ home.41

    The trial ended with a judge’s order to sell the property,42 43 but an effort to sell in April 189644 was apparently dropped, and a second attempt in 1897 was delayed by the Daughters of the Confederacy, who wanted another chance to woo the state legislature into operating the facility.45 That also failed.

    A published description of the property in 1897 portrayed a bleak scene:

    “The home is three stories high and is of beautiful architecture. It was once painted, but no one would at present suspect it.

    “The sides are weather beaten and many of the planks are beginning to decay. The old windmill with the tank on the top is now grown up with vines and shows that it has not been in use for some time. The walks, which wind in and about the premises in the immediate neighborhood of the building, and which were once well kept, are now grown up with grass and weeds.

    “The approach to the home for a quarter of a mile is almost as gloomy as the building itself, and one would suspect that he was in the neighborhood, even though the building had not been sighted. The street car track which was laid when the home was built and when it was thought that there was no doubt but what it would soon be inhabited by many veterans, is now in a state of decay. The rails are rusty, the bed has in many places caved in and is covered with weeds.

    “The little road which had been graded along side, is now grown up with shrubbery, and the lizards dart away at the approach of a chance pedestrian.”46

    In April 1898, an attempt to sell the home on the steps of the Fulton County Courthouse was halted because the highest bid was only $10,000.47

    A year later, another public auction resulted in an even lower winning bid: $8,000, offered by Joel Hurt,48 who reportedly “had not intended to buy the property when he went to the sale, and only did it to help the veterans out.”49

    That sale was also denied,50 and the property remained unsold and vacant, with no hope of eventual use in sight.

    A Blaze of Glory

    In 1900, nearly ten years after the Confederate Soldiers’ Home was completed, a group of Confederate veterans, led by Major W.T. Gary,51 once again lobbied the Georgia legislature to operate the facility, aided by the recommendation of a new, more sympathetic governor, Allen D. Candler.52

    Worn down by the state’s repeated rejections, it was a shock to everyone involved when the Soldiers’ Home Bill was passed in December 1900 by a vote of 106 to 50,53 54 and the facility finally opened on June 3, 1901.55 56

    Ah, but it’s Atlanta, so you know there’s a shitty twist ending.

    Before it had been occupied for even four months, the Confederate Soldiers’ Home was destroyed by fire on September 30, 1901.57 58

    The building’s restroom (just the one?) apparently incorporated the “Smead dry closet“, in which facilities without sewer access could collect feces and burn it into a fine powder — a novel solution in 1890, but quite outdated by 1901, when flush toilets had become the accepted standard.

    As the Journal explained:

    “In the lavatory the Smead system of disposing of the refuse was used. Daily the crematory in connection with the lavatory was fired up.

    The negro porter who started these fires this morning placed a wheelbarrow load of shavings and other timber from the premises into the furnace. The fire burned fiercely and broke through the top of the furnace.

    “When Dr. Bryan went into the department he noticed the flames. He ran out and asked if the flames were not too high.

    “Superintendent James L. Wilson seeing the condition of the fire quickly gave the alarm. By this time the flames had commenced to burn the woodwork in the vicinity of the furnace.

    “The smoke was pouring into the center of the house in great volumes, and owing to the draft at this place the flames spread rapidly.”59

    Of course, they tried to pin the blame on the Black man, but after sitting unused for ten years, the furnace was probably a faulty mess. Or maybe the place was just haunted by Sherman‘s ghost.

    Bruce & Morgan. Confederate Soldiers' Home (1891-1901). Atlanta.
    Bruce & Morgan. Confederate Soldiers’ Home (1891-1901). Atlanta.

    We Love Them

    And Now In Their Declining Years

    We Will Shelter Them.

    Something About the Home to be Occupied by the Soldiers

    Who Shed Their Blood For The Southern Land–A Description of the New Building Soon to be Completed for the Veterans.

    The veterans will soon be quartered in their new home.

    The plans for the building were prepared by Messrs. Bruce & Morgan.

    The contract was awarded to Messrs. Austin & Boylston.

    The building will be one hundred and eighty feet long, and at the south end, the widest portion, one hundred feet in width.

    The approach will be through a “Porte coache,” [sic] and the entrance will be handsomely finished and attractive. On either side of the main entrance there will be niches for statuary.

    On the first floor are a main hall, corridors, reception rooms, a parlor, a chapel, a sitting room, office, dining room, kitchen, pantry, laundry and bed rooms.

    You first enter a large hall, handsomely finished, 32×50 feet. On the right are the ladies’ reception room and parlors and on the left the gentlemen’s reception room. Adjoining the latter is a reading room. The sitting room is 25×59 feet, and will be used by the old soldiers when the weather will not permit them to go out of doors.

    The office is in the main hall.

    The “memorial chapel” is in front of the building, and to the left of the main entrance. It will be used for divine services, banquets and public receptions.

    The dining room is 36×40 feet, and will seat one hundred people. The kitchen and pantries are a one-story wing and adjoin the dining hall. The laundry is beneath the kitchen.

    There are ten bed rooms on this floor.

    Two hundred and seventy-five feet of wide verandahs surround the first floor.

    There are thirty rooms on the second floor, the smallest of which are 12×14 feet, and the largest 15×18.

    Each bedroom has a fireplace and two windows.

    There are several easily accessible staircases leading to the first floor.

    On the second floor there are three balconies, one in the center of the building and one on each side.

    A portion of one wing of the building is three stories high, and in this upper story are ten bedrooms.

    The turret, the highest point of which is one hundred and twenty feet from the ground, is of an octagon shape.

    A large balcony surrounds the building seventy-five feet from the ground, and from it an excellent view of the city can be had.

    The foundation of the building will be stone and the balance of wood, inside the wood work will be natural pine, and the main hall will be panel-wainscotted.

    It will cost between twenty and twenty-five thousand dollars and will be one of the handsomest buildings in the county.60

    References

    1. Illustration credit: “We Love Them”. The Atlanta Journal, April 26, 1890, p. 12. ↩︎
    2. “The Veterans’ Home”. The Atlanta Journal, December 9, 1890, p. 1. ↩︎
    3. “Veterans’ Home”. The Atlanta Journal, May 9, 1889, p. 4. ↩︎
    4. “Ex-Confederate Home.” Austin Weekly Statesman (Austin, Texas), November 1, 1888, p. 4. ↩︎
    5. “To Aid Confederate Soldiers.” New-York Tribune, February 7, 1889, p. 3. ↩︎
    6. “Echoes From The People.” The World (New York), January 31, 1889, p. 2. ↩︎
    7. “The Confederates Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 2, 1889, p. 1. ↩︎
    8. “Shall We Go Begging For Them?” The Atlanta Constitution, April 6, 1889, p. 4. ↩︎
    9. “Let Us Wear Them In Our Hearts!” The Atlanta Constitution, April 7, 1899, p. 17. ↩︎
    10. “The Soldiers’ Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 26, 1890, p. 15. ↩︎
    11. Illustration credit: “The Soldiers’ Home”. The Atlanta Constitution, April 26, 1890, p. 15. ↩︎
    12. “The Confederate Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 11, 1889, p. 7. ↩︎
    13. “The Trustees Meet.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 17, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    14. “In And About Atlanta.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 21, 1889, p. 5. ↩︎
    15. “The Confederate Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, November 24, 1889, p. 11. ↩︎
    16. “To Lay The Corner-Stone.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 15, 1890, p. 5. ↩︎
    17. “Confederate Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 25, 1890, p. 9. ↩︎
    18. “The Veterans’ Home”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 9, 1891, p. 6. ↩︎
    19. “Strong Effort To Pass Gary Bill”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 25, 1900, p. 4. ↩︎
    20. “In And About Atlanta.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 21, 1889, p. 5. ↩︎
    21. “The Trustees Meet.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 17, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    22. ‘The Confederate “Home” Movement.’ The Atlanta Constitution, April 9, 1889, p. 4. ↩︎
    23. “It Is Still Moving On!” The Atlanta Constitution, April 16, 1889, p. 4. ↩︎
    24. “The Confederate Home of Georgia Organized.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 19, 1889, p. 4. ↩︎
    25. “The Trustees Meet.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 17, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    26. “The Idler’s Note Book”. The Atlanta Journal, September 9, 1890, p. 4. ↩︎
    27. “About The Capitol.” The Atlanta Constitution, October 19, 1890, p. 16. ↩︎
    28. “Confederate Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, November 22, 1890, p. 10. ↩︎
    29. ibid. ↩︎
    30. “Defeated!” The Atlanta Constitution, August 27, 1891, p. 1. ↩︎
    31. “Defeat The Fate.” The Atlanta Constitution, December 15, 1892, p. 7. ↩︎
    32. “The Veterans Mourn.” The Atlanta Journal, December 15, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    33. “Confederate Soldiers’ Home Is Sold To Joel Hurt For $8,000”. The Atlanta Constitution, May 3, 1899, p. 5. ↩︎
    34. “The Greeks Bearing Gifts.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 5, 1891, p. 4. ↩︎
    35. “The Soldiers’ Home”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 24, 1892, p. 8. ↩︎
    36. “Those Joint Debates.” The Atlanta Journal, March 31, 1894, p. 13. ↩︎
    37. “Trustees Will Meet”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 22, 1895, p. 10. ↩︎
    38. “To Sell It In The Spring”. The Atlanta Journal, January 29, 1895, p. 1. ↩︎
    39. “The Home To Be Sold”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 30, 1895, p. 5. ↩︎
    40. Illustration credit: “Soldiers’ Home Opens Its Doors To Veterans Today”. The Atlanta Journal, June 3, 1901, p. 7. ↩︎
    41. “The Soldiers’ Home Case.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 4, 1895, p. 5. ↩︎
    42. “To Sell The Soldiers’ Home”. The Atlanta Constitution, September 17, 1895, p. 5. ↩︎
    43. “The Soldiers’ Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, December 18, 1895, p. 8. ↩︎
    44. “Sale of Soldiers’ Home Property.” The Atlanta Constitution, March 31, 1896, p. 10. ↩︎
    45. “Home Trustees Have Not Acted”. The Atlanta Constitution, June 3, 1897, p. 12. ↩︎
    46. “Soldiers’ Home To Be Sold. Court’s Order Expected Any Time”. The Atlanta Constitution, May 24, 1897, p. 6. ↩︎
    47. “Sale Of Home Declared Off”. The Atlanta Constitution, April 6, 1898, p. 5. ↩︎
    48. “Confederate Soldiers’ Home Is Sold To Joel Hurt For $8,000”. The Atlanta Constitution, May 3, 1899, p. 5. ↩︎
    49. “Soldiers’ Home Sells For $8,000 At Auction”. The Atlanta Journal, May 2, 1899, p. 1. ↩︎
    50. “Sale Of The Home Is Not Confirmed”. The Atlanta Constitution, May 22, 1889, p. 8. ↩︎
    51. Gary, W.T. “Why We Should Accept Confederate Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, November 13, 1900, p. 4. ↩︎
    52. “Veterans Fighting For Soldiers’ Home”. The Atlanta Journal, November 20, 1900, p. 10. ↩︎
    53. “Soldiers’ Home Bill Passed By House; Georgia Veterans Will Have Shelter At Last After Waiting Eleven Years”. The Atlanta Journal, December 12, 1900, p. 1. ↩︎
    54. “Georgia Veterans Get Their Home By The Vote Of 106 To 50”. The Atlanta Constitution, December 13, 1900, p. 1. ↩︎
    55. “Soldiers’ Home Will Be Opened To Vets Today”. The Atlanta Constitution, June 3, 1901, p. 1. ↩︎
    56. “Soldiers’ Home Opens Its Doors To Veterans Today”. The Atlanta Journal, June 3, 1901, p. 7. ↩︎
    57. “Soldiers’ Home Totally Destroyed: Generous People Will Rebuild It; Journal Leases Hotel For Vets”. The Atlanta Journal, September 30, 1901, p. 1. ↩︎
    58. “Soldiers’ Home, Destroyed By Flames That Relit The Fire Of A Smouldering Sympathy, Will Be Rebuilt By Georgians”. The Atlanta Constitution, October 1, 1901, p. 1. ↩︎
    59. ibid. ↩︎
    60. “We Love Them”. The Atlanta Journal, April 26, 1890, p. 12. ↩︎

  • Floyd County Courthouse – Rome, Georgia (1893-2026)

    Bruce & Morgan. Floyd County Courthouse (1893-March 23, 2026). Rome, Georgia. Photograph from an undated postcard.
    Bruce & Morgan. Floyd County Courthouse (1893-March 23, 2026). Rome, Georgia.1 2 3 4 5 Photograph from an undated postcard.

    References

    1. “Floyd’s New Court House.” The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Georgia), June 3, 1891, p. 3. ↩︎
    2. “The Courthouse For Floyd”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 3, 1891, p. 5. ↩︎
    3. “It Is Handsome.” The Weekly Tribune (Rome, Georgia), November 9, 1893, p. 4. ↩︎
    4. Rome courthouse tower collapses in massive fire – Northwest Georgia News ↩︎
    5. Historic Floyd County Courthouse fire: What we know – Northwest Georgia News ↩︎

  • George E. King Residence (1890) – Inman Park, Atlanta

    Bruce & Morgan. George E. King Residence (1890). Inman Park, Atlanta.
    Bruce & Morgan. George E. King Residence (1890). Inman Park, Atlanta.1 2 3 4 5 6
    Oriel window on the north facade of the George E. King Residence
    Oriel window on the north facade of the George E. King Residence
    Gable on the west facade of the George E. King Residence
    Gable on the west facade of the George E. King Residence
    Attic dormer and cornice on the east elevation of the George E. King Residence
    Attic dormer and cornice on the east elevation of the George E. King Residence
    Fretwork rails on the second-floor porch of the George E. King Residence
    Fretwork rails on the second-floor porch of the George E. King Residence
    Looking at the first-floor porch of the George E. King Residence from the northeast
    Looking at the first-floor porch of the George E. King Residence from the northeast

    References

    1. “From Our Notebook.” The Atlanta Constitution, March 13, 1890, p. 4. ↩︎
    2. “The Inman Park Sale.” The Atlanta Journal, April 21, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎
    3. “Real Estate Sales.” The Atlanta Constitution, May 21, 1890, p. 6. ↩︎
    4. “Hundreds of Homes”. The Atlanta Journal, July 30, 1890, p. 1. ↩︎
    5. “Atlanta Building Up.” The Atlanta Constitution, October 3, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎
    6. “Inman Park Items.”The Atlanta Constitution, December 19, 1890, p. 9. ↩︎

  • Kiser Law Building (1891-1936) – Atlanta

    Bruce & Morgan. Kiser Law Building (1891-1936). Atlanta.
    Bruce & Morgan. Kiser Law Building (1891-1936). Atlanta.1

    The Background

    The following article, published in The Atlanta Constitution in 1890, includes an illustration and a brief description of the Kiser Law Building, completed in 1891 and designed by Bruce & Morgan.

    Location of Kiser Law Building

    Located at the northwest corner of Hunter and Pryor Streets (later Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive SE and Pryor Street SE) in Atlanta, the five-story office building was owned by M.C. Kiser (1830-18932), a local real estate developer.

    For several years, members of the Atlanta Bar Association had reportedly approached Kiser (pictured here3) with requests for him to build a structure designed exclusively for law offices.4 5

    When Kiser finally agreed to the project, the association formed a building committee that considered two designs for the structure: one by A.Mc.C. Nixon, and the winning plan by Bruce & Morgan.6 7

    Bruce’s Approach

    Although T.H. Morgan increasingly became the primary designer for Bruce & Morgan through the 1890s, A.C. Bruce still handled the majority of the firm’s output in the early part of the decade, and the Kiser Law Building appears to have been his design.

    Bruce was a former cabinet maker and carpenter who lacked formal architectural training, and by 1890, the limits of his skill set were becoming readily apparent.

    Many of Bruce’s designs from the early 1890s appear heavy-handed and anachronistic: you can see he was attempting to adapt to modern tastes, but his design sensibility was still fundamentally stuck in the 1870s — the Kiser Law Building was a prime example.

    Looking at the illustration above, the building resembles a stack of drawers haphazardly piled on top of each other, and oversized windows of varying shapes and sizes junk up both facades.

    That additive approach to design was typical of architects with a background in carpentry, who often designed buildings as if they were giant pieces of furniture, joining disparate elements and tacking on unnecessary embellishments instead of envisioning their compositions as solid masses to be sculpted into form.

    The building’s overall style is equally baffling: Bruce was presumably aiming for the Romanesque, but for all the eclectic adornments, including terra cotta trim,8 9a decorative slate roof with iron crestings, ornamental iron balconies, and marble columns,10 he didn’t quite achieve a cohesive style. The pyramidal peaks and elaborate gables were also becoming rapidly outdated by 1891.

    Kiser Law Building circa 1895
    Kiser Law Building circa 189511

    Design and Construction

    As construction began, it was reported that the Kiser Law Building would be constructed of either Berea sandstone or marble.12 It’s Atlanta, so it appears they opted for the cheaper sandstone for most of the structure and incorporated marble trim around the entrance.13

    Set over a full basement, the building’s five floors included a 16-foot-wide central hall, served by one elevator, four stairwells, and two fire escapes. A light court was also designed to extend from the top to the bottom floor, so that each of the building’s 84 offices would be lighted and ventilated from the outside.14

    The building was illuminated with electric lighting and included “water closets of the latest patterns…located in the rear [heh] of every floor.15

    While it was originally reported that the building would be heated by steam,16 17 Kiser ultimately chose the Bolton Hot Water System, which was marketed as a “purely scientific, healthful way of heating.”18

    I don’t really care enough about such things to learn more; however, the man who supervised the heating system’s installation told the Constitution: “…the larger buildings in the north have been heated by hot water apparatuses for the last ten or twelve years, yet it is practically new for the south…”19

    No surprise, really: Atlanta’s self-conscious developers are always late to the game, simply replicating what was done a decade ago in the better cities of the North.

    The floors of the Kiser Law Building were planned as follows:

    • The ground floor included spaces for four stores — the storefront at the corner of Hunter and Pryor was designated for a bank,20 and another space facing Pryor Street was planned as a restaurant.21 The entrance hallway featured marble wainscoting and tile22 and led to “four broad stairways” and “an elevator of the most approved pattern.”23
    • The second, third, and fourth floors were identical in design, and each contained 28 office suites — 14 on each side of the central hall. The offices were finished in hardwoods and Georgia pine, with fireproof vaults and closets.24 25
    • The fifth floor was intended to house two large halls “suited to the use of secret societies, public meetings and other similar purposes,”26 as well as a kitchen, storerooms, reception room, and a club room or library.27

    Construction on the building began on April 8, 1890,28 with J.H. Matthews,29 “a wide-awake contractor”,30 supervising the project. The initial estimated cost of the building was $90,000, with a projected completion date of April 1, 1891.31 The cost rose to $100,000 by 1891,32 and the building was completed in August 1891.33 34

    Local interest in the project was high, and while construction was still underway in November 1890, Kiser had reportedly received applications from 100 lawyers seeking office space.35

    Firms began announcing their intention to move to the building in early 1891,36 and in June 1891, George W. Adair, who handled leasing for the property, reported: “The Kiser law building is nearly ready for occupancy, which is good news to those who have already selected their rooms, and others that are waiting for its completion.”37

    Their lease agreements should have included the following caveat: the only thing slimier than a lawyer is an Atlanta developer.

    The Terminal Debacle

    In July 1891, Kiser leased nearly the entire law building — including the top four floors, the corner store on the ground floor, and the full basement38 39 — to a single firm: the Richmond Terminal Company, which had abruptly decided to relocate its headquarters from Washington, D.C. to Atlanta.40

    The company stated its intention to use the Kiser Building as temporary office space until it could build its own facility in the city,41 signing a two-year lease for the then-unheard-of sum (in Atlanta anyway) of $14,500 a year.42 43

    Commonly referred to as the “Terminal”, the company had previously purchased the Central Railroad and Banking Company, Georgia’s oldest railroad,44 based in Savannah. The Terminal’s new Atlanta headquarters consolidated the employees from both Savannah and Washington in a single location.

    However, the Kiser Building was much too small to house the Terminal’s 250 to 300 workers,45 46 and one executive stated, “Unfortunately that building is not large enough to fully accommodate all the offices, but we will try to make do.” Kiser said of the negotiation: “…the trouble was they wanted more room, but finally concluded they could get along by adding the corner room and the basement.”47

    The Terminal’s hasty relocation to Atlanta was more than a little suspicious, and there were allegations that it wasn’t “bona fide”, which the company denied.48 Atlanta’s newspapers, of course, hailed the move, with the always-bloviating Constitution prognosticating:

    “A grand new depot and office building. That is the inevitable result.

    The bringing of these offices to Atlanta is a bigger thing than might appear at first glance. This naturally makes Atlanta the center of the railroad situation of the south, and, as Atlanta is now the insurance center, it becomes beyond question the financial center of the south.”49

    The lawyers who already selected offices in the Kiser Building just had to suck it, I guess. The Odd Fellows probably weren’t too thrilled either: the Constitution reported in July 1891 that “about ten days ago they selected the fifth floor of the Kiser building and immediately rented it as an Odd Fellows’ hall. Then the Terminal people came along and wished the place.”50

    Anyone who knows how shit goes down in Atlanta could guess what happened next: Just six months after the Terminal employees began working in the Kiser building, the Central Railroad was forced into receivership by a local judge.51 52

    Rumors of the Terminal’s financial difficulties and potential bankruptcy had swirled around Atlanta for months, spurred by the resignations of top executives and directors who had reportedly been battling for control of the company.53 54

    There was also the time in January 1892, when the company apparently lacked the funds to pay its employees, delaying their paychecks for more than a week,55 56 57 58 a situation charitably described as “embarrassing.”59

    The final blow was delivered in a lawsuit filed by a stockholder against the company, alleging that, among other things, the Terminal’s owners were conspiring to transfer $500,000,000 in debt onto the Central Railroad, “which it [could] never pay,”60 61 presumably with the intent to bankrupt it. Sounds like business as usual for an American enterprise.

    Under the rules of the receivership, the Central Railroad’s 74 employees62 returned to Savannah,63 64 and while it initially appeared that the remaining Terminal employees would stay in Atlanta, they were ordered back to Washington in June 1892, leaving the Kiser Building nearly vacant.65 66The company hired George W. Adair to sublet the building,67 which was filled with lawyers as originally planned.68

    Kiser Law Building circa 1936
    Kiser Law Building circa 1936

    The Inevitable Demise

    Office structures tend to fall out of fashion quickly, and in 1930, the Journal said of the Kiser Law Building: “…the lawyers, loan brokers, and trade representatives [have] shifted to more modernly equipped buildings…”, noting that, “storms of nearly half a century have raised havoc with the structure and its artistic domes, its oriel windows, and its ornamental trimmings.”69

    By 1936, the Kiser Law Building was reportedly “almost empty except for a store or two on the sidewalk.”70 No one seemed too upset when the structure was demolished in November and December 1936 for — take a wild guess — a parking lot.71 72 73

    The Article

    Bruce & Morgan. Kiser Law Building (1891-1936). Atlanta.
    Bruce & Morgan. Kiser Law Building (1891-1936). Atlanta.

    Major M.C. Kiser’s “Law Building” will be one of the handsomest buildings in the south, and when finished will be one of Atlanta’s greatest attractions.

    The Constitution gives here an excellent cut of the building, made from the drawings of Bruce & Morgan, the architects. The uses to which the building are to be put have been fully explained in these columns.

    The building will be erected at the corner of Pryor and Hunter streets, fronting on Pryor, and will be five stories in height. It will be devoted to offices for lawyers, with clubrooms for a Lawyers’ club. It will be just as complete as possible, an ideal building in every respect.74

    References

    1. Illustration credit: Atlanta in 1890: “The Gate City”. Atlanta: The Atlanta Historical Society, Inc. (1986), p. 62. ↩︎
    2. “M.C. Kiser Dead”. The Atlanta Constitution, December 1, 1893, p. 5. ↩︎
    3. Illustration credit: “The Programme For Today Is Here.” The Atlanta Constitution, August 14, 1890, p. 5. ↩︎
    4. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    5. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    6. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    7. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    8. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    9. “History In Clay.” The Atlanta Constitution, May 15, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    10. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    11. Photo credit: Art Work of Atlanta: Published in Twelve Parts ↩︎
    12. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    13. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    14. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    15. ibid. ↩︎
    16. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    17. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    18. “Kiser Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 6, 1891, p. 3. ↩︎
    19. ibid. ↩︎
    20. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    21. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Journal, November 29, 1890, p. 5. ↩︎
    22. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    23. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    24. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    25. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    26. ibid. ↩︎
    27. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 26, 1890, p. 19. ↩︎
    28. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    29. “Atlanta Building Up.” The Atlanta Constitution, October 3, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎
    30. “A Hoisting Elevator.” The Atlanta Journal, November 11, 1890, p. 1. ↩︎
    31. “Kiser’s Law Building.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 8, 1890, p. 7. ↩︎
    32. “Etched and Sketched.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 30, 1891, p. 4. ↩︎
    33. “Railroad Notes.” The Atlanta Constitution, August 16, 1891, p. 19. ↩︎
    34. “They Are Here.” The Atlanta Constitution, August 24, 1891, p. 4. ↩︎
    35. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Journal, November 29, 1890, p. 5. ↩︎
    36. “Land Titles.” The Atlanta Journal, April 30, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    37. “FOR RENT — Houses, Cottages, Etc.” The Atlanta Constitution, June 28, 1891, p. 10. ↩︎
    38. “The Kiser Building”. The Atlanta Constitution, July 23, 1891, p. 4. ↩︎
    39. “Terminal Offices In The Kiser Block.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 24, 1891, p. 2. ↩︎
    40. “The General Offices”. The Atlanta Constitution, July 22, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    41. ibid. ↩︎
    42. “Terminal Offices In The Kiser Block.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 24, 1891, p. 2. ↩︎
    43. “Then And Now.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 28, 1891, p. 5. ↩︎
    44. “The Central’s Fate.” The Atlanta Constitution, March 5, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    45. “To Move Their Offices.” The Atlanta Journal, June 17, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    46. “Fleming Out.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 25, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    47. “Terminal Offices In The Kiser Block.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 24, 1891, p. 2. ↩︎
    48. ibid. ↩︎
    49. ibid. ↩︎
    50. “Might Have Interrupted Their Plans.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 26, 1891, p. 15. ↩︎
    51. “A Receiver!” The Atlanta Journal, March 4, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    52. “The Central’s Fate.” The Atlanta Constitution, March 5, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    53. “Changes In The Terminal.” The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Georgia), January 5, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    54. “The Complete Story”. The Atlanta Constitution, January 6, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    55. “Railroad News.” The Atlanta Constitution, January 1, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    56. “Pay Day Postponed.” The Atlanta Journal, January 1, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    57. “They Have Resigned”. The Atlanta Journal, January 5, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    58. “Salaries Paid.” The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Georgia), January 7, 1892, p. 2. ↩︎
    59. “Atlanta’s Rumors.” The Morning News (Savannah, Georgia), January 7, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    60. “A Receiver!” The Atlanta Journal, March 4, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    61. “The Central’s Fate.” The Atlanta Constitution, March 5, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    62. “Fleming Out.” The Atlanta Constitution, June 25, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    63. “Paints A Rosy Picture.” The Atlanta Journal, March 29, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    64. “The Central’s Officials”. The Atlanta Journal, March 30, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    65. “To Move Their Offices”. The Atlanta Journal, June 17, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    66. “Are Anxious To Leave.” The Atlanta Journal, June 18, 1892, p. 3. ↩︎
    67. “Mr. W.G. Oakman”. The Atlanta Journal, June 22, 1892, p. 1. ↩︎
    68. “Kiser Building, Familiar Landmark Here For Almost 50 Years, Will Be Demolished”. The Atlanta Journal, November 15, 1936, p. 8-D. ↩︎
    69. Moody, George O. “‘Home’ In Kiser Building Lost By Pigeons”. The Atlanta Journal, July 6, 1930, p. 2. ↩︎
    70. “Old Landmark Of City Will Be Demolished”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 15, 1936, p. 6C. ↩︎
    71. ibid. ↩︎
    72. “Kiser Building, Familiar Landmark Here For Almost 50 Years, Will Be Demolished”. The Atlanta Journal, November 15, 1936, p. 8-D. ↩︎
    73. “Adair Announces Important Leases”. The Atlanta Journal, December 6, 1936, p. 6-D. ↩︎
    74. The Atlanta Constitution, March 30, 1890, p. 8. ↩︎

  • Cherokee County Courthouse – Murphy, North Carolina (1892-1895)

    Bruce & Morgan. Cherokee County Courthouse (1892-1895). Murphy, North Carolina.
    Bruce & Morgan. Cherokee County Courthouse (1892-1895). Murphy, North Carolina.

    The Background

    The following article, published in The State Chronicle in March 1890, includes an illustration and a description of the Cherokee County Courthouse in Murphy, North Carolina, designed by Bruce & 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 $40,000.4 5 6

    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, 1926,11 12and replaced with an entirely new structure.13 14

    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

    References

    1. “State News.” The Weekly Review (Reidsville, North Carolina). January 21, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    2. “Around Town.” Asheville Daily Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina), January 12, 1891, p. 4. ↩︎
    3. “State News.” The Weekly Review (Reidsville, North Carolina). January 21, 1891, p. 7. ↩︎
    4. “Building Notes.” The Atlanta Constitution, February 21, 1890, p. 5. ↩︎
    5. “Murphy’s Marble Court House.” Asheville Daily Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina). December 14, 1895, p. 1. ↩︎
    6. “To Rebuild the Court House.” Asheville Daily Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina), January 7, 1896, p. 1. ↩︎
    7. “Murphy’s Barbecue.” Asheville Daily Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina), July 18, 1891, p. 1. ↩︎
    8. “Murphy’s Marble Court House.” Asheville Daily Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina). December 14, 1895, p. 1. ↩︎
    9. “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. ↩︎
    10. “To Rebuild the Court House.” Asheville Daily Citizen (Asheville, North Carolina), January 7, 1896, p. 1. ↩︎
    11. “Cherokee Courthouse Is Destroyed By Fire”. The Charlotte News (Charlotte, North Carolina), January 16, 1926, p. 1. ↩︎
    12. “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. ↩︎
    13. “Start Plans For Cherokee Courthouse”. The Asheville Times (Asheville, North Carolina), January 22, 1926, p. 18. ↩︎
    14. “New Courthouse Will Be Built In Cherokee County”. Salisbury Evening Post (Salisbury, North Carolina), January 28, 1926, p. 6. ↩︎
    15. The State Chronicle (Raleigh, North Carolina), March 11, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎

  • The Edge of Fairlie-Poplar – Atlanta

    Muse's Department Store sign, The Bank of Georgia/34 Peachtree (1961), Citizens & Southern National Bank (1901), English-American Building (1898). Fairlie-Poplar, Atlanta.
    From left to right: Muse’s Department Store sign, The Bank of Georgia/34 Peachtree (1961), Citizens & Southern National Bank (1901), English-American Building (1898). Fairlie-Poplar, Atlanta.

  • Carrie Steele Orphans’ Home – Atlanta (1889)

    Bruce & Morgan. Carrie Steele Orphans’ Home (1889, unbuilt). Atlanta.

    The Background

    The following article was published in The Atlanta Constitution in December 1889 and discusses the proposed design for the Carrie Steele Orphans’ Home, prepared by Bruce & Morgan of Atlanta.

    Carrie Steele Logan (pictured here1)was “well known and highly respected”2 in both the White and Black communities of Atlanta in the late 19th century. Born into slavery in 1829,3 she worked for many years as an attendant in Atlanta’s passenger depot,4 5 where she reportedly became distressed by the “little army of street vagrants who ran around the depot entrance.”

    Steele ultimately quit her job, “impressed with the responsibility of rescuing the little tots that struggled for existence,” and according to the Constitution, “as she left the depot she led several homeless waifs to her home on Wheat street.”

    In 1887, Steele began raising money to build an orphanage for Black children, which the Constitution described as a “praiseworthy work,” opining that: “The home will do a vast amount of good in recovering from lives of vice and crime the little negroes who run around our streets ragged, friendless and homeless…”

    Note that in this article, Albert Howell, one of the orphanage’s early supporters, claimed that the home would “take the little negro waifs and make good servants of them.”

    Steele was a tenacious advocate for the project, pursuing every possible fundraising method. In 1888, she even published a book of anecdotes about her time working in Atlanta’s depot, titled Life and Adventures of Mrs. Carrie Steele, Stewardess Atlanta Depot, with proceeds funding the orphanage.6

    Lacking land for the project, in 1889, Steele petitioned the City of Atlanta,7 8which granted her a 99-year lease9 on a 4 to 5-acre parcel10 11 near the intersection of Fair Street and Flat Shoals Road (now the southeast corner of Memorial Drive SE and Holtzclaw Street SE).

    Location of Carrie Steele Orphans’ Home

    Steele reportedly “made many friends among the white people”,12 and it’s a testament to her reputation that the orphanage’s construction was funded by several of Atlanta’s wealthiest citizens, including Jonathan Norcross,13 who was, by all accounts, a miserly old asshole.

    In March 1890, The Atlanta Journal said of Steele’s fundraising efforts:

    “Almost all the prominent white people in the city have contributed something to the good cause, and to those who have not we desire to say that you could not contribute to a more laudable undertaking.”14

    Construction on the orphanage began in July 1890,15 but because it had to be built in stages as funding permitted, the project was completed in May 1892.16 However, the final structure wasn’t the one designed by Bruce & Morgan.

    The original design had apparently been dropped by May 1890, when Steele bought 30,000 bricks for the project17 18 — note that the plan described and illustrated here was for a wood-frame building.

    Architect unknown. Carrie Steele Orphans’ Home (1892). Atlanta.19

    The plain brick structure that was ultimately built for the orphanage appears to have had no designer — or at least, not a good one. Containing 13 rooms,20 the orphanage housed 36 children at its dedication,21 and by 1896, it sheltered 75 children between the ages of one and fifteen years old.22

    In 1894, Steele told a reporter from the Constitution:

    “If these were my own children I could not love them more than I do. They all look up to me as if I were their mother, and come to me with all their little troubles as if I always had a remedy for them. I have had a great many discouragements and trials, but when I look back over these years and see how the Lord has taken care of me and my children, I feel that I ought to be thankful.”23

    Steele died in November 1900 at the age of 61, two months after a debilitating stroke.24 Her funeral was reportedly attended by 3,000 people,25 with the Constitution reporting that “the church was filled to overflowing and about half of the audience was composed of whites.” She was buried in Oakland Cemetery, the final resting place of Atlanta’s most distinguished citizens.

    Steele’s husband managed the orphanage until he died in 1904,26 which continued operating under a succession of directors, notably Clara M. Pitts, who managed the home from 1919 to 1950.27

    In 1928, the orphanage left its original property on Fair Street and moved to the Pittsburgh neighborhood in southwest Atlanta.28 Later renamed the Carrie Steele-Pitts Home, the orphanage moved to Faiburn Road in west Atlanta in 1964,29 where it remains in operation as the oldest black orphanage in the United States.30

    For Negro Orphans.

    The Good Work Which Carrie Steele Has Done.

    The Home As It Will Appear When Finished
    — What a City Officer Has To Say About It — Other Notes of Interest.

    “That’s the best investment Atlanta has ever made.”

    Colonel Albert Howell was the speaker. As he made the remark he pointed to an architect’s drawing of the Carrie Steele Orphan home.

    “Yes,” said Colonel Howell, “that is one of the most sensible charities ever inaugurated, and to one woman belongs the credit for its inception and the good work that has already been done. Carrie Steele is a good woman, and I know she deserves every success in this life work of hers. For it is a life-work. It is two years now since the project was conceived by Carrie, or rather since she gave up her position at the carshed that she might devote her whole time to this home. She has labored honestly and earnestly for its success, and she expects to devote the rest of her life to it.”

    Colonel Howell has shown his faith by his works. It was through his influence as alderman that the lease on the four acres of city land, upon which the home will stand was extended from ten to ninety-nine years. And in all her efforts to secure city aid, Colonel Howell has been one of Carrie Steele’s most staunch supporters.

    “It is a good thing for Atlanta as well as the state at large–this orphans’ home,” he said yesterday. “For it is the intention of the people interested in the home to take the little negro waifs and make good servants of them. The education they receive will all be in the direction of practical usefulness.”

    The home will be located on the Flat Shoals road where Fair street will intersect it. This is about two and a half miles from the center of the city and is delightfully located.

    The building, which, when completed, will look like the accompanying cut, will be a frame structure built in the most substantial manner. The building when finished which will contain, on the first floor an office and room for matron, with two school rooms, chapel and large dining room, with kitchen and laundry rooms, for teaching kitchen work. The second floor will contain dormitories, bath rooms, and all modern conveniences, and in every way adapted to the purposes for which it is intended. The plans were prepared by Messrs. Bruce & Morgan, and preparations are being made for commencing the work at once.

    It is the intention of the projector to start with one wing, and use that for the purposes of the home. Then as the years go by and the home gets well started, the building will be completed.31

    References

    1. Illustration credit: “Training The Colored Children”. The Atlanta Constitution, June 7, 1896, p. 3. ↩︎
    2. “The Colored Orphans’ Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, June 9, 1889, p. 3. ↩︎
    3. Carrie Steele Logan: A ‘Mother’ to Atlanta’s Orphans | Atlanta History Center ↩︎
    4. ibid. ↩︎
    5. “Carrie Steele Gets Married.” The Atlanta Journal, February 16, 1889, p. 2. ↩︎
    6. “Carrie Steele’s Book.” The Weekly Telegraph (Macon, Georgia), March 6, 1888, p. 8. ↩︎
    7. “The City’s Finances.” The Atlanta Journal, January 21, 1889, p. 1. ↩︎
    8. “Local Law Makers.” The Atlanta Constitution, January 22, 1889, p. 5. ↩︎
    9. “The City Fathers”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 19, 1889, p. 3. ↩︎
    10. “The Carrie Steele Orphan Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, July 2, 1889, p. 8. ↩︎
    11. “Home For Colored Orphans.” The Atlanta Journal, May 9, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎
    12. “Carrie Steele Died Last Night”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 4, 1900, p. 7. ↩︎
    13. “The Atlanta Orphan Home.” The Atlanta Journal, February 13, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎
    14. “Atlanta Orphan Asylum.” The Atlanta Journal, March 12, 1890, p. 4. ↩︎
    15. “Foundations Laid”. The Atlanta Journal, July 4, 1890, p. 1. ↩︎
    16. “City Notes.” The Atlanta Constitution, May 2, 1892, p. 5. ↩︎
    17. “Home For Colored Orphans.” The Atlanta Journal, May 9, 1890, p. 3. ↩︎
    18. “The Good Work of Carrie Steele”. The Atlanta Constitution, May 10, 1890, p. 4. ↩︎
    19. “Training The Colored Children”. The Atlanta Constitution, June 7, 1896, p. 3. ↩︎
    20. “The Colored Orphans.” The Atlanta Journal, August 16, 1892, p. 5. ↩︎
    21. “The Colored Orphans’ Home.” The Atlanta Constitution, June 21, 1892, p. 10. ↩︎
    22. “Training The Colored Children”. The Atlanta Constitution, June 7, 1896, p. 3. ↩︎
    23. “Her Own Work.” The Atlanta Constitution, April 15, 1894, p. 23. ↩︎
    24. “Short Items Of Local Interest”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 7, 1900, p. 9. ↩︎
    25. “What The Negro Is Doing”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 11, 1900, p. 4. ↩︎
    26. “Josiah Logan, Well-Known Negro, Died Tuesday”. The Atlanta Constitution, November 16, 1904. ↩︎
    27. Scott, Stanley S. “Groundbreaking Exercises For Children’s Home Sunday”. Atlanta Daily World, February 15, 1964, p. 7. ↩︎
    28. “New Home for Carrie Steele Colored Orphanage To Be Dedicated Wednesday”. The Atlanta Constitution, May 27, 1928, p. 19 A. ↩︎
    29. Scott, Stanley S. “Groundbreaking Exercises For Children’s Home Sunday”. Atlanta Daily World, February 15, 1964, p. 7. ↩︎
    30. Carrie Steele Logan: A ‘Mother’ to Atlanta’s Orphans | Atlanta History Center ↩︎
    31. “For Negro Orphans.” The Atlanta Constitution, December 1, 1889, p. 15. ↩︎

  • Butts County Courthouse (1898) – Jackson, Georgia

    Bruce & Morgan. Butts County Courthouse (1898). Jackson, Georgia.1 2 3
    East elevation of Butts County Courthouse
    Northeast corner of Butts County Courthouse

    References

    1. “Notice to Contractors.” The Atlanta Constitution, June 8, 1897, p. 11. ↩︎
    2. “Butts’ New Courthouse.” The Atlanta Constitution, September 14, 1897, p. 5. ↩︎
    3. 1898 Historic Courthouse – Butts County, Georgia | Georgia’s Outdoor Capital ↩︎

  • Walnut Street Christian Church – Chattanoooga, Tennessee (1886)

    A.C. Bruce of Bruce & Morgan. Walnut Street Christian Church (1886-1976). Chattanooga, Tennessee.1

    The Background

    The following article was published in The Chattanooga Daily Times and details the plan and construction of the Walnut Street Christian Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee, built in 1886 and designed by A.C. Bruce of Bruce & Morgan. The building was demolished circa 1976.

    Bruce was raised in Nashville, Tennessee, and began his practice in Knoxville, Tennessee. When he later partnered with T.H. Morgan in Atlanta, the firm continued to secure considerable work throughout eastern Tennessee, including, as the article notes, Chattanooga’s Hamilton County Courthouse and First Presbyterian Church, both demolished.

    Location of Walnut Street Christian Church

    The design of the tidy Gothic-style church, shown in the illustration above, is typical of Bruce, who consistently struggled to balance solids and voids in his compositions. Note that the doors and windows appear just a little too large for the overall massing: Bruce frequently drew doors and windows out of scale.

    The Walnut Street Christian Church occupied this building until 1910, when the congregation moved half a block to the former First Presbyterian Church, becoming Central Christian Church.2 3

    The old Christian Church building was then sold to the local chapter of the Knights of Pythias organization, who converted it into a meeting hall.4 Based on fire maps, the structure’s original 85-foot-high steeple5 was removed at some point,6 likely during this renovation.

    In 1923, the building was sold again to the neighboring Newell Sanitarium,7 which converted it into a 10-room annex circa 1925.8 It appears the former church — altered at least twice — remained at 709 Walnut Street9 until the construction of the neighboring Downtown General Hospital, which opened in July 1976.10 The hospital’s parking lot replaced the building.

    I won’t lie: This is a dead-boring article that reads a lot like those Old Testament books with endless lists of names and dry histories — the ones Christians pretend to read, if they read the Bible at all.

    To make it easier to find, I’ve highlighted the portion about the building’s design in tasteful lavender. You’re welcome.

    The New Christian Church to be Dedicated Today.

    Handsome Brick Structure on Walnut Street Between Seventh and Eighth Streets.

    History Of The Church.

    Its Organization, Struggles, Work and Final Great Success–Full Roster of the Membership

    During the winter of 1879, A. Teachout of Cleveland, O., came to this city to spend some months, and being an earnest Christian, he sought out some men and women of his own “faith and order,” and induced them to engage with him in an effort to begin the work in this city which has culminated in their house today, and the happy and memorable occasion which will there be celebrated. Among this little band who were brave enough to make such a beginning, may be mentioned Lucius DeLong and wife, N.P. Nail, R.S. Kendrick and wife, and W.C. Carter and wife.

    Arrangements were made by them to invite Dr. W.H. Hopson, of Louisville, Ky., to preach a series of sermons in this city. Accordingly Dr. Hopson came and preached for about a week in the old Southern Methodist church, which stood at the corner of Eighth and Market, where Loveman’s new building stands. Dr. Hopson concluded his services in James Hall. In some respects, this was a notable meeting. Large crowds waited upon the preaching and the immediate results were ten accessions by obedience of the gospel: Bradford Post and wife, Fred H. Phillips, B.H. Ferguson and wife, James Nichols, Mrs. Webb and three others.

    Before leaving the city Dr. Hopson effected a temporary organization and A. Teachout was appointed Elder of the church. From the time of organization regular meeting were held in a hall or other place within their reach. The worship of God has therefore been steadily maintained ever since.

    THE SUNDAY SCHOOL

    was established about 1878. Probably its first Superintendent was Weston F. Burch, of Missouri,–a man of rare worth never to be forgotten by those who knew him. His successors in that office have W.C. Carter, G.B. Woolworth, R. W. Andrews and the present incumbent, D.W. Chase, who has brought the school to unprecedented prosperity.

    The school undertook to pay for the eight stained windows in the auditorium and will succeed. The children and the teachers of the school have paid to the building fund about $400 during the past two years besides paying their own current expenses and are ready to be among the first today to make pledge for liquidating the indebtedness. There is also a lively Mission Sunday School under the care of Charles Caldwell and Charles R. McCall, which has started during the last spring, which will bear its share of the responsibility.

    THE PREACHERS

    who have served the church have been A. Allison, Geo. W. Abell, J.R. Biggs, F.M. Hawkins, Dr. A.G. Thomas, A.S. Johnson, D.T. Beck and T.D. Butler. In a brief history such as this aims to be, many names which are entitled to honorable mention are likely to be overlooked. This is unavoidable and should not be construed by partial friends as intentional.

    The local organization of the Christian Womens’ Board of Mission, which has done a large share of the work of raising money for this new house, as it had done for the very eligible lot upon which it stands, is largely due to Mrs. G.B. Woodworth for its establishment and successful management, though no year of its existence has been crowned with such prosperity as the present, under the active and indefatigable Presidency of Mrs. Eva Wilkinson.

    The following have served the church as its Elders: A. Teachont [sic], N.P. Nail, B. Post, L.S. Barret, Isaac Strickle and G.B. Woodworth.

    The Deacons have been: L. DeLong, Fred H. Phillips, S.J. Graham, Jno. A. Graham, A.B. Phillips, W.T. Lucas, J.R. Hays, R.W. Andrews, B. Post and Geo. B. Woodworth and D.W. Chase.

    Up to the 1st of September, 1884, much had been done by this active and devoted people. They had secured the lot they now occupied and nearly paid for it, and they had made an appeal to the Home Missionary Society of the church in America to help them to sustain regular preaching. An arrangement was completed by which their present pastor, T.D. Butler, came among them, and the work at once began to advance vigorously. The new house, which is to be opened today, was started, and a systematic series of operations pursued by which financial help was received. To this end Mr. Butler has traveled much in Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri, and has raised nearly $2,500 in cash, and has secured loans to the amount of $1,500 on safe and advantageous terms. In addition to this, the spiritual needs of the church have been amply supplied, and more than a hundred members added to the membership. The lot furnishes only a narrow margin beyond the walls, but the house stands 75×50 feet, with a first-class basement. Here are two rows of graceful iron columns, supported by a substantial footing of stone, and thes [sic] in turn adequately support the floor of the auditorium. We reach the main room by spacious steps, which lead into a vestibule of ample size, having a door on the right which opens into the pastor’s room–as on the left you pass into the gallery above, which has a capacity of nearly 100 people–or below into the commodious school and prayer meeting room. The auditorium is furnished with neat pews from the Excelsior Furniture Co., Cincinnati, O., and cathedral glass windows from the Robert Mitchell Furniture House, Cincinnati. Beneath the rostrum is a baptistery [sic], with all the modern appliances, and on either side are the robing rooms to be used by candidates for baptism and for other purposes. On the whole this is one of the neatest, best furnished and most convenient churches in the city.

    The plans and specifications for this church were generously donated by A.C. Bruce, Esq., of Bruce & Morgan, Architects, Atlanta, Ga.–the architect of the court house and the First Presbyterian church.

    THE CONTRACTORS.

    Stone work, Trout & Coxon; brick work, J.F. Wright; slate and galvanized iron, J.C. Banks & Co.; roof and tower, R.D. Whitice; carpenter work, W.M. Cosby and R.W. Andrews; gas fitters, Lookout Plumbing Company and plumbing by H.A. McQuade.

    The building committee has been Isaac Strickle, D.W. Chase, G.B. Woodworth, R.W. Andrews, W.M. Cosby and John A. Graham.

    The Trustees are Lucius Delong, President; D.W. Chase, Secretary and Treasurer; Bradford Post, G.B. Woodworth, M.M. Caldwell.

    The present organization of the church is: Thomas D. Butler, Pastor; Official Board, G.B. Woodworth, Chairman; B. Post, D.W. Chase, John A. Graham, A. B. Phillips, W.M. Cosby, L. DeLong, G.M. King, J.T. Lynn.

    [LIST OF CHURCH MEMBERS — too long and boring to repeat here.]11

    References

    1. “The New Christian Church to be Dedicated Today.” The Chattanooga Daily Times (Chattanooga, Tennessee), August 8, 1886, p. 8. ↩︎
    2. “Dr. Boswell In His New Pulpit”. The Chattanooga News (Chattanooga, Tennessee), January 3, 1910, p. 2. ↩︎
    3. “Reasons For Their Faith”. The Chattanooga Daily Times (Chattanooga, Tennessee), January 3, 1910, p. 3. ↩︎
    4. “New Home Of Keystone Lodge”. The Chattanooga News (Chattanooga, Tennessee), January 8, 1910, Magazine Section, p. 4. ↩︎
    5. Image 9 of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee. | Library of Congress ↩︎
    6. Image 42 of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee. | Library of Congress ↩︎
    7. “Knights Of Pythias Give Up Old Home”. Chattanooga Daily Times (Chattanooga, Tennessee), March 24, 1923, p. 1. ↩︎
    8. “Newell Sanitarium To Increase Capacity”. Chattanooga Daily Times (Chattanooga, Tennessee), December 10, 1925, p. 9. ↩︎
    9. Rothberger Directory Company’s Chattanooga, Tennessee City Directory 1960. Chattanooga, Tennessee: Rothberger Directory Company (1960). ↩︎
    10. “In Tennessee”. Bristol Herald-Courier (Bristol, Tennessee), July 11, 1976, p. 1. ↩︎
    11. “The New Christian Church to be Dedicated Today.” The Chattanooga Daily Times (Chattanooga, Tennessee), August 8, 1886, p. 8. ↩︎

  • Main Building at Georgia Institute of Technology (1888) – Atlanta

    Bruce & Morgan. Main Building (1888). Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta.1 2 3

    References

    1. “Georgia’s Pride”. The Atlanta Constitution, March 16, 1887, p. 5. ↩︎
    2. “Technological School.” The Atlanta Journal, March 16, 1887, p. 1. ↩︎
    3. “The First Session”. The Atlanta Constitution, October 4, 1888, p. 8. ↩︎