Reflections- Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network, Vol. 1, no. 4 (Aug. 2001)

The cotton economy
influenced the development of a
biracial culture in Hancock County.
In 1850, Hancock County’s enslaved
population was 7,306, while the white
population totaled 4,210. At the eve
of the Civil War, five percent of the
families of Hancock County owned
40% of the enslaved population, and
over half the land. One of the most
famous planters was David Dickson,
“Prince of Georgia Farmers.” David
Dickson’s career began as a merchant
who traded and lent money at interest.
He lived on the Dickson farmstead
with his mother, and between 1841-
1849, he amassed an estate of 2,010
acres of land and 53 enslaved
Africans. Dickson developed the
“Dickson Compound” fertilizer,
and a crop rotation system managed
by his enslaved labor force. He
published numerous articles on his
farming techniques in Southern
Cultivator, and his fertilizers and
plows were sold commercially. By
1863, Dickson’s estate included 160
enslaved Africans.
In 1849, Dickson raped
his mother’s house servant, Julia.
Nine months later, Amanda
America Dickson was born.
A Program of the Historic Preservation Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources
August 2001
PRESERVING THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF SPARTA
Volume I, No. 4
continued on page 2
The Hancock County Courthouse in Sparta was completed circa 1883. It
is the cornerstone of the Sparta Historic District, listed in the National
Register of Historic Places on April 16, 1974.
S
parta, named for the classical Greek city, is the largest
municipality in Hancock County, Georgia. Surrounded by the
Oconee and Ogeechee rivers, Hancock County is located in the
Piedmont region of eastern middle Georgia. In 1795, Major Charles
Abercrombie, an American Revolutionary War veteran, founded the
town of Sparta. Abercrombie was a planter from North Carolina who
settled in Hancock County after purchasing 8,304 acres of land for
his 24 enslaved Africans to farm. When the cotton gin was invented
in the early 19th century, the region became a major area for production
of “King Cotton.” The rich Piedmont soil, enslaved Africans, and
planters determined the future of Sparta and Hancock County.
With increased production of cotton, the planters from
Hancock County built massive estates of Federal and Greek Revival
style architecture. Though furnishings and materials were imported
from Europe, enslaved Africans were responsible for carpentry,
masonry and blacksmith work on these estates. Hancock’s planters
shaped the development of the cultural landscape during the 19th
century by constructing academies and religious/educational
institutions for their white
descendants. Hancock County
emerged as a primary region for
educated, innovative leaders.
Four Georgia governors were
from Hancock County: Nathaniel
Harris, James McDonald, William
Northen, and William Rabun.
Following emancipation, African
Americans continued their impact
on the cultural landscape in
Sparta. Lucius H. Holsey, a former
slave, became a CME bishop and
founded Paine College in Augusta.
Charles L. Harper, founder of the
Atlanta branch of the NAACP and
civil rights leader, was from the
African American community in
Hancock County.
David Dickson is buried in the
Sparta Cemetery, listed in the
National Register of Historic
Places on June 22, 2001. His
obelisk, surrounded by an iron
fence, was characteristic of 19th
century burial practices.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
five members appointed by the Hancock
County Commission chair and four
members appointed by the mayor of
Sparta. Dr. Awanna Leslie, principal of
Southwest Elementary School, is chair
of the SHARE board of directors. State
partners for SHARE include the Georgia
Department of Labor, the University of
Georgia School of Environmental Design,
the Historic Preservation Division,
Georgia Department of Natural
Resources, and the Georgia Department
of Industry, Trade & Tourism. Through
these government partnerships, SHARE
is pursuing Certified Local Government
status. The Georgia Power Company
and Georgia Pacific Corporation have provided support while the
Department of Labor isassisting funding of staff positions with
Hancock County.
Hancock County provides office space for SHARE at the
Sparta-Hancock Museum. SHARE also uses this historic building as
a welcome center and museum. Arts and crafts made by local residents
are available for sale at the museum including quilts made by Nina
Butts, an African American artist. Kent Anderson Leslie is the author
of a book about Amanda America Dickson: Woman of Color, Daughter
of Privilege. Leslie’s book is sold at the Sparta Museum and bookstores.
In 2000, her biography of the Dickson heiress was transformed into a
movie aired by Showtime: A House Divided. The movie is currently
available at video stores. In July 2001, SHARE received a $10,000
special projects grant
from the Georgia
Humanities Council for
creation of an exhibition
on the lives of Hancock
County’s famous biracial
family, the Dicksons.
SHARE plans to open
the exhibition during
Black History Month
in 2002.
Soon after the birth of
Amanda, she was taken
from her mother, and
raised in her white
grandmother’s room in
the Dickson household.
Until her grandmother’s
death in 1864, Amanda
was legally considered
a slave. In 1865, after
the Civil War ended,
both Julia, then 29,
and Amanda, who
was 16, remained on
the Dickson plantation.
Amanda married David
Dickson’s white nephew, Charles Eubanks, a returning confederate
soldier. Since Georgia laws forbade interracial marriages, Dickson
arranged a marriage in a northern state. Amanda and Charles had two
sons, Julian and Charles, and lived on a plantation David Dickson had
purchased for them near Rome. By 1870, Amanda returned to the
Dickson plantation with her sons, and David Dickson made
arrangements for Amanda and the boys to change their surname to
Dickson. David Dickson built a two-story house for his “outside
family” within 300 yards of the Dickson farmstead in 1871.
When David Dickson died in 1885, he willed his $309,543
estate and 15,000 acres of land to Amanda, his mulatto daughter.
After the will was upheld in Probate Court, the white Dickson family
appealed this decision in the Superior Court of Hancock County
and the Georgia Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ruled that
property rights were equal for black and white citizens under the
Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and Amanda Dickson
became the richest African American woman in Georgia!
After emancipation, African Americans remained on Sparta
and Hancock County estates as sharecroppers, craftsmen, and
domestic workers. When the boll weevil destroyed cotton
production in the 1920s, followed by the Great Depression and
World War II, the agricultural economy, driven by a sharecropping
system, was devastated. By 1990, the population of Hancock County
was 85% African American, and unemployment was the highest in Georgia.
In 1999, challenged with the paradox of unemployment and
poverty and a historic, rural community that could attract heritage tourism,
a partnership was formulated to increase economic opportunities for Sparta
residents while preserving the cultural and built environment. The SpartaHancock Alliance for
Revitalization and
Empowerment
(SHARE), a nonprofit
organization, was
created to facilitate
economic development
projects in this historic
community. The
SHARE volunteer
board of directors has
2
continued from page 1 PRESERVING THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF SPARTA
Julia Frances Lewis Dickson’s home is a circa
1850 two room cottage with a side addition. It
was purchased by her grandson, Julian Dickson.
Julia lived in this house from 1895 until her
death in 1914. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Amanda America Dickson purchased this home
on Telfair Street in Augusta in 1886.
Amanda America Dickson is
buried in the Cedar Grove
Cemetery in Augusta.
The Sparta-Hancock Museum.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Gladys Archer, board
member, and Cleventeen
Walker, SHARE Project
Coordinator.
SHARE conducts downtown
walking/driving tours of historic Sparta
properties. Brochures designed by
Industry, Trade & Tourism are available at
the museum, and SHARE is planning a
Hancock County tour to include the
Dickson properties and other African
American historic resources. SHARE
encourages downtown business
development by sponsoring a storefront
facade grant program to maintain the 19th century look of Broad Street
in the Sparta Historic District. Each fall, SHARE participates in the Pine
Tree Festival. The Department of Labor has assisted SHARE in
establishing a website to promote heritage tourism in Sparta. For more
information, contact SHARE at: www.historicspartahancock.org or visit
the Sparta-Hancock Museum, 719 Boland Street, 706/444-7462.
3
THE JULIUS ROSENWALD FUND
J
ulius Rosenwald, a Jewish businessman, was born in 1862.
He grew up in Chicago, Illinois, where he became an extremely
successful and wealthy retailer. Later in life, this former president
of Sears, Roebuck and Company decided that he wanted to help
improve public education for African Americans in the southern
states. His concern was practical as well as philanthropic: the
United States needed more productive agriculture to support urban
and industrial development. He believed that in the South, this
could be achieved only by creating a better-trained African
American labor force through industrial education, similar to the
model promoted by Tuskegee Institute. Like other northern
industrialists, Rosenwald was attracted to Booker T. Washington
and his belief that African Americans should be industrious and
self-reliant. In 1912, Rosenwald gave Tuskegee Institute $25,000,
a grant to assist existing schools implementing the Tuskegee
model. Washington used the remaining $2,000 of this grant to
help build more public schools for African American children in
rural areas of the southern states. In 1913, the Loachapoka School
in Lee County, Alabama was opened, the first rural public school
partially built with Rosenwald assistance. In 1917, the Julius
Rosenwald Fund was officially established.
One of the aims of the Rosenwald Fund was to facilitate
better education by building “model schoolhouses.” In the
summer of 1920, the organization issued guidelines for an
expanded “Rural School Building Program.” Each state school
superintendent and African American school agent were required
to submit a tentative annual budget for school construction to the
Rosenwald Fund. All Rosenwald schools had to be built
according to approved design patterns called “Community School
Plans.” These plans included all facets of the proposed school
structure, from the number of classrooms in a building to acreage
allotment. The southern office of the Rosenwald Fund in
Nashville, Tennessee, approved each state’s allocation and
architectural plans. The organization required that any proposed
school structure needing aid meet certain minimum standards
and pass an on-site inspection before receiving the grant.
The Rosenwald Fund encouraged communities to
develop school partnerships. The organization required fundraising drives involving African Americans, whites and the local
school district. More importantly, the Rosenwald Fund required
the African American community to provide leadership.
Rosenwald hoped these requirements would strengthen rural
African Americans’ commitment to their community. From 1912
to 1932, the Rosenwald Fund helped to build close to 5,000
schools for African American children in 15 southern states. In
Georgia, more than 35,000 students were taught in the state’s
242 Rosenwald schools and 103 of the state’s counties had at
least one Rosenwald school. The Rosenwald Fund ceased
operations in 1946.
What happened to Georgia’s Rosenwald schools?
Because of the significance of Rosenwald Fund schools in the
areas of architecture, education, and African American historic
preservation, GAAHPN is researching extant schools and
locations of former schools. If you are an alumnus or have any
information or photographs of Georgia Rosenwald schools, please
contact Jacinta Williams or Jeanne Cyriaque (see page 7).
Tracy Dean, Historic Preservation Consultant
HANCOCK COUNTY
HISTORIC RESOURCE SURVEY
H
ancock County was established in 1793 by merging parts of
adjoining Washington and Greene Counties. Located in the
Central Savannah River Area Regional Development Center’s
jurisdiction, Hancock County is known for beautiful craftsmanship
in the built environment and its educational institutions. African
Americans have contributed to the history of Hancock County and
many African American resources are still present. Enslaved labor
and design talent was probably employed to construct the impressive
structures in Hancock County. Several slave cabins are still in existence
and are occupied by tenant farmers on a few of the plantations.
The Georgia Historic Resources Survey is used to identify
resources and collect data for inclusion in a statewide, computerized
inventory maintained by the Historic Preservation Division (HPD).
The survey is used to identify individual buildings and districts for
possible listing in the National or Georgia Register of Historic Places.
Survey information assists counties and communities in historical
designations of buildings and districts, expedites environmental review
by governmental agencies, aids preservation and land-use planning,
and promotes research of the state’s history and architecture.
Information collected on each survey form includes an
architectural description of the structure, outbuildings, age, history,
location, setting, general condition, integrity and significance.
Endangered properties are identified. The properties are photographed
and completed survey forms are submitted to the local sponsoring
organization and the Historic Preservation Division.
The Georgia Survey Manual outlines the methodology for
completing the survey form. Funding for surveys supported by local
sponsors is available each year through HPD. $12,000 was provided
for the Hancock County Historic Resource Survey by HPD, in
partnership with the Sparta Hancock Preservation Review
Commission,who contributed $2,500. The survey identified 600
historic properties. For a copy of the Georgia Historic Resources
Survey Manual, or for information on sponsoring, conducting or
funding a survey, contact: Kenneth Gibbs, Survey Coordinator,
Historic Preservation Division, Georgia Department of Natural
Resources at 404/651-6432.
The Camilla-Zack
Country Life Center in
Powelton, Hancock
County, is one of
several buildings in
theCamilla-Zack
Community Center
District, listed in the
National Register of
Historic Places in
December1974.
Founded by Benjamin
Hubert, the center was
named to honor his parents, Zacharias and Camilla Hubert. The Huberts
were former slaves who successfully raised 12 children, including Benjamin
Hubert, former president of Savannah State Industrial College. The center
was constructed circa 1932 from pine logs, and was founded to serve the
nearby African American farming community. The cabin is Craftsman
style with paired log supports on granite piers. The district includes a cafe
and cooperative store.
continued on page 4
B
y the late 1970s, a trio of Georgia buildings stood in their
respective counties, their historical past forgotten by most. The
first of the three structures—which still retained the bank of windows
that identified it as a school building—faced the threat of demolition,
the second had been converted into a warehouse and the third was
now a church meeting hall. These properties were once Rosenwald
schools, landmarks in southern rural African American education,
and their period in obscurity was about to end. Emerging during
this time was a growing interest in African American historic
preservation. This development would serve as a catalyst to launch
the first rehabilitation of a Rosenwald school in the state of Georgia.
Through the combined efforts of former Rosenwald students and
the Historic Preservation Division, three Rosenwald schools have
been listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Thomas
Jefferson Elder High and
Industrial School is located
in Sandersville, Washington
County. On May 12, 1981, it
was the first Rosenwald
school in Georgia to be listed
in the National Register of
Historic Places. African
American educators Thomas
Jefferson Elder and his wife,
Lillian Phinizy, who are buried
on the campus, founded the school in 1889. The previous year,
Elder had begun teaching African American children at the Springfield
Baptist Church in Sandersville. Desire for a more academic
environment led Professor Elder and his group of trustees to purchase
land and build the school. Originally named the Sandersville High
and Industrial School, it was the only school for African American
students in town, and provided dormitories where children from
nearby farms resided during the school year. Elder’s school soon
grew to become the largest African American school in the central
rural section of the state, averaging over 300 students per term by the
turn of the century.
T.J. Elder High and
Industrial School is important
as being a genuine Rosenwald
Plan school. The building is
constructed out of brick and
has an “H” shape. The features
of the school include: a front
porch, a bank of windows, an
auditorium, two classrooms on
each side of the building with
another pair behind, a stage
with curtains, and wooden
floors. In 1917, a domesticscience building was built with the help of the Rosenwald Fund, and
from 1927 to 1928, the fund also provided monetary assistance for
the completion of a brick dormitory building. Six classrooms with
restrooms were added to the rear wings in 1938.
4
SAVING GEORGIA’S ROSENWALD SCHOOLS Jacinta Williams
African American Programs Intern
Historic Preservation Division
continued from page 3
Renamed to honor Professor Elder in 1933, this school was
the first in central rural Georgia to offer industrial training as a part of
its curriculum. The students were also required to study Latin,
math, social studies, and a host of other academic courses from
handpicked teachers who met the highest standards in their
professional and personal lives. In fact, T.J. Elder hosted one of the
state’s two training institutes for rural African American school
teachers. Professor Elder combined state funds, local funds, student
tuition and foundation grants to build a school of outstanding quality
and impeccable standards.
In 1960, the Thomas Jefferson Elder High and Industrial
School was converted into an elementary school when a new high
school was built. In 1980, due to the town’s plans to expand the
elementary school, the now empty original Rosenwald classrooms
faced the threat of demolition. The proposed plan became a call to
action for former graduates of the institution, affectionately referred
to as “Elderites.” The group received a $300,000 community
development block grant and additional funding. Preservation
architect Lane Greene oversaw the building’s rehabilitation and
today it serves as the T.J. Elder Community Center. The Washington
County Elderites, Inc. were honored with a 2001 Preservation Award
for Preservation Service by The Georgia Trust.
The Noble Hill School was listed in the National Register
of Historic Places on July 2, 1987. Located in Cassville, Bartow
County, the site was the first of two Rosenwald schools in northwest
Georgia. Noble Hill is a good example of the first standardized
Rosenwald “Community School Plan.” It had two classrooms,
two cloakrooms, two vestibules, an industrial room, and a large
bank of windows.
The Noble Hill School is located in a historical area of
Cassville occupied by colleges during the 1850s. The local residents
referred to it as “College Hill.” These institutions were destroyed
during the Civil War. Through the joint partnership of local African
Americans, whites, the Bartow County Board of Education, and
the Rosenwald Fund, Noble Hill School was opened in 1924. The
school offered a seventh grade curriculum and the students were
required to study mathematics, reading, spelling, English, history,
T.J. Elder High and Industrial School,
circa 1981. Photo by James R. Lockhart
T.J. Elder Community Center, circa 2001. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
masonry exterior facade, and hipped or gable roof. Located on the
west side of Georgia State Route 92, the school was constructed on
a 3 1/2 acre lot (well exceeding the Rosenwald Fund’s minimum
requirement of 2 acres) in order to accommodate the mandatory
garden and playground.
Opened in 1930, the Hiram Colored School was the only
African American school in Paulding County to have a library and
it was one of two African American schools that offered a ninth
grade curriculum. Although the property deed to the school was
held by the school board, the institution was run by trustees and
employed two teachers, one for the elementary students and one
for the eighth and ninth graders. Among the first teachers at Hiram
Colored School were G.R. Newell and Eva I. Harper. The school
averaged an enrollment of 60 students per term.
On February
2, 1954, the Paulding
County Board of
Education resolved to
reorganize the county
schools into eight
schools for whites and
one, the Matthews
Consolidated School,
for African Americans.
The Hiram Colored
School closed in 1955.
Later that year, the
school board sold the building and property to the Sweet Home
Baptist Church.
Since 1955, the Sweet Home Baptist Church has used the
Hiram Colored School building for several church and community
5
SAVING GEORGIA’S ROSENWALD SCHOOLS
geography, writing, music, and industrial arts. In 1927, Noble Hill
School employed two teachers and had an enrollment of 88 students.
These students were Cassville residents who walked to school.
In 1955, when all schools for African Americans in Bartow
County were consolidated into the Bartow Elementary School in the
Cassville community, Noble Hill was closed. The Bartow County
Board of Education sold the property to New Hope Baptist Church.
The building was being used as a warehouse, when in 1983, Dr.
Susie Wheeler, a founding member of GAAHPN, and one of Noble
Hill’s first students, decided to spearhead a project to revitalize the
school. She approached the property’s owner, Bertha Wheeler (her
sister-in-law), and convinced her to donate the building as a heritage
museum. In 1984, a group of selected trustees, including the future
State Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Benham, began working
to restore the building as the Noble Hill-Wheeler Memorial Center.
(Judge Benham is an advisor to GAAHPN.) The group raised $200,000
in private donations and obtained grants totaling $3,000 from the
Historic Preservation Division and the Georgia Humanities Council.
Today, the center is furnished with Depression-era artifacts, photos,
and historical information about schools for African Americans from
the early 1900s. Future plans include a Rosenwald classroom model
and heritage village.
The Hiram Colored School was listed in the National
Register of Historic Places on May 10, 2001. Located in Hiram,
Paulding County, the institution has the distinction of being the
sole Rosenwald school built in the county. The Hiram Colored
School is an excellent example of a Rosenwald school because it
used the organization’s “Two Teacher Community School” plan,
which included: a building constructed on at least a two-acre lot,
single, paired, and ribbon windows, two large open classrooms
separated by a moveable partition, an industrial room, wood or
functions. During the 1960s, they used the building for dances,
social functions and movies. In the 1980s, the church held its services
in the old school building while revitalizing the church building. Today,
the former Hiram Colored School functions as a community center and
hosts family reunions, church auxiliary meetings, fish fry/barbeque fundraisers, community organization meetings and yard sales.
The Hiram Colored School in Paulding County had a library and offered
a curriculum for African American students through the ninth grade.
Photo by James R. Lockhart
The Noble Hill-Wheeler Memorial Center is located in Cassville, Bartow
County. Noble Hill School was listed in the National Register of Historic
Places in 1987. Photo by James R. Lockhart The Hiram Colored School features large
windows, two classroooms and an
industrial room. Photo by James R. Lockhart
6
AFRICAN AMERICAN CHURCHES LISTED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES
S
t. Thomas African Methodist Episcopal Church is located in
Hawkinsville, Pulaski County. This historic AME church is
the cornerstone of the African American community in
Hawkinsville. Reverend Henry McNeil Turner organized St.
Thomas AME Church in 1866. President Abraham Lincoln
appointed Turner as the first African American chaplain in the U.S.
Army. Reverend Turner was the bishop of
St. Thomas AME Church for 35 years after
his consecration in 1880. He served two
terms in the Georgia legislature. Turner led
the construction of the original church
building, a wood-framed structure,
completed in 1877. After it was demolished,
the current brick, Folk Victorian, building was
constructed in 1908, and completed in 1912.
African American craftsmen constructed
both buildings. These craftsmen
incorporated architectural features in St.
Thomas AME Church including a sidesteeple, wainscoting, wooden double doors,
and wrought iron railing for the choir.
St. Thomas AME Church is the largest brick building in
the African American community in Hawkinsville. Church
members Gwen Brown, Willie Boney and Mary Colson were
instrumental in the preservation of this community church. The
congregation has raised funds for restoration and repair of the church
since the depression in 1934. Members
worked in partnership with city and county
officials, the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha
Regional Development Center historic
preservation planner Robin Nail, and the
business community, to preserve the church.
In 1998, the Historic Preservation Division
awarded a $6,000 Georgia Heritage grant to
St. Thomas AME for a new roof and masonry
repairs. St. Thomas AME Church was listed
in the National Register of Historic Places
on December 7, 2000. The church hosts
religious services, Sunday School, and
community meetings.
McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church and Cemetery is located
near the town of Sardis in Burke County. This historic
African American church and cemetery complex is in a rural setting
surrounded by pine and oak trees. McCanaan Missionary Baptist
Church is a wood-framed, Gothic Revival style church, with a side
steeple, weatherboard cladding and metal roof. The interior of the
church sanctuary features two rows of pews separated by a center
aisle, choir stand, and pulpit area. The wood ceiling consists of
five diamonds with cross patterns. The
cemetery is located to the rear and south
side of the church, with granite markers
dating from the 1930s. The original cemetery
associated with the church was located in
Millhaven Plantation, Screven County.
Church members were buried at Millhaven,
circa 1878 until the 1930s. McCanaan
Missionary Baptist Church baptized
members at Brier Creek, approximately one
mile north of the church.
Reverend Frank Cooper organized
the McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church
in 1875, and constructed the first church on
land he owned in the area known as Cooper Hill. The congregation
consisted of families who were sharecroppers at the nearby Millhaven
Plantation in Screven County. Reverend Cooper organized five
churches in this area. With consultation from white ministers, he
learned that if five churches were founded, he could form an
association. A church association provided a mechanism to ordain
additional ministers. Reverend Cooper envisioned the need for
additional ministers, and ultimately formulated the Frank Cooper
Missionary Baptist Association in Burke and surrounding counties.
During the 1890s,McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church
was destroyed by fire and the congregation constructed a prayer
house on the site. Eventually, the congregation expanded, and
Reverend G.I. Johnson, pastor for 36 years, led efforts to raise funds
to build the present church, constructed in 1912.
McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church is an excellent
example of a rural, African American church described by Carole
Merritt in Historic Black Resources. These Georgia churches were
typically one-room, wood-framed buildings with gable roofs and
simple architectural detailing, with a cemetery adjacent to the
property. Following emancipation, these
churches were some of the most important
buildings constructed for the free African
American community. In rural Georgia,
sharecropping families lacked economic
independence from surrounding
plantations. Typically, one complex
provided religious services, burials and oneroom schools for several communities.
McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church and
Cemetery had a church school on the
property. The church school provided
education for students from grades one
through six. Mrs. Leila McKinnon, now in
her 90s, taught at the school from 1929 to 1934. She was the last
teacher who taught at the school when it was demolished in the 1930s.
In 1996, church member Evelyn Williams wrote a history
of McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church for the 121st anniversary
celebration. With assistance from Anne Floyd, historic preservation
planner, Central Savannah River Area Regional Development
Center, Ms. Williams submitted the Historic Property Information
Form to HPD for the purpose of nominating the church. McCanaan
Missionary Baptist Church and Cemetery was listed in the National
Register of Historic Places on June 14, 2001.
St. Thomas African Methodist Episcopal Church
is a neighborhood landmark in the African
American community in Hawkinsville.
Photo by James R. Lockhart
McCanaan Missionary Baptist Church is an
excellent example of a rural African American
church. A cemetery is located behind the church.
Photo by James R. Lockhart
7
GEORGIA AFRICAN AMERICAN
HISTORIC PRESERVATION NETWORK
STEERING COMMITTEE
Karl Webster Barnes
Atlanta
Chair
404/758-4891
Isaac Johnson
Augusta
Vice-Chair
706/738-1901
Donald Beall
Columbus
Treasurer
706/569-4344
Beth Shorthouse
Atlanta
Secretary
404/881-9980
Corinne Blencoe
Newnan
770/254-7443
Charlotte Frazier
Columbus
706/687-4688
Chrys Rogers
Macon
478/301-5370
Linda Wilkes
Atlanta
404/688-0472
Thomas Williams
Atlanta
404/331-4811
Jeanne Cyriaque
African American Programs Coordinator
Historic Preservation Division
Georgia Department of Natural Resources
156 Trinity Avenue, S.W. Suite 101
Atlanta, GA 30303-3600
Voice 404/656-4768 Fax 404/651-8739
jeanne_cyriaque@mail.dnr.state.ga.us
Jacinta Williams
African American Programs Intern
Voice 404/657-1054 Fax 404/651-8739
jacinta_williams@mail.dnr.state.ga.us
A CHANGING OF THE GUARD
T
he Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network
(GAAHPN) elected new officers at the Steering Committee
meeting June 20, 2001.
Officers for 2001-2003 are: Karl
Webster Barnes, Atlanta,
chair; Isaac Johnson,
Augusta, vice-chair; Donald
Beall, Columbus, treasurer;
and Beth Shorthouse,
Atlanta, secretary. Chrys
Rogers, director of marketing
for Core Neighborhood
Revitalization, Inc., in Macon,
is a new member of the Steering
Committee.
The Steering Committee held a celebration to honor the
contributions of Charlotte Frazier to GAAHPN. Frazier was
presented with photographs of the William H. Spencer House and
the Gertrude Pridgett
“Ma” Rainey home in
Columbus. Frazier will
continue her active
involvement with the
GAAHPN Steering
Committee. Barnes has
appointed her chair of
the Chitlin Circuit
research project.
Jacinta Williams
joined the GAAHPN
team as the intern for African American programs in the Historic
Preservation Division. Williams is a recent cum laude graduate of
Morris Brown College. She received her bachelor of arts degree in
history, and plans to attend law school next winter. Williams will
assist Jeanne Cyriaque, Reflections editor, in research projects on
African American schools and the Chitlin Circuit.
Jeanne Cyriaque, African American Programs Coordinator, and
GAAHPN Steering Committee members Linda Wilkes and Beth
Shorthouse provide information about GAAHPN. The Network
featured an African American historic preservation exhibit at the
Georgia Municipal Association annual convention in Savannah.
Photo by Paul Simo
A GAAHPN Steering Committee meeting. Photo by James R. Lockhart
Charlotte Frazier passes on the torch
to Karl Barnes, new chair of the
GAAHPN Steering Committee.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Donald Beall, treasurer, Isaac Johnson,
vice-chair, and Beth Shorthouse,
secretary,are new GAAHPN Steering
Committee officers. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
T
he Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network (GAAHPN)
was established in January 1989. It is composed of representatives from
neighborhood organizations and preservation groups. GAAHPN was formed
in response to a growing interest in preserving the cultural and ethnic diversity of
Georgia’s African American heritage. This interest has translated into a number of
efforts which emphasize greater recognition of African American culture and
contributions to Georgia’s history. The Network meets regularly to plan and implement
ways to develop programs that will foster heritage education, neighborhood
revitalization, and support community and economic development.
The Network is an informal group of over 700 people who have an interest in
preservation. Members are briefed on the status of current and planned projects and
are encouraged to offer ideas, comments and suggestions. The meetings provide an
opportunity to share and learn from the preservation experience of others and to receive
technical information through workshops. Members receive a newsletter, Reflections,
produced by the Network. Membership in the Network is free and open to all.
ABOUT GAAHPN
This publication has been financed in part with federal
funds from the National Park Service, Department of the
Interior, through the Historic Preservation Division,
Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The contents
and opinions do not necessarily reflect the views or
policies of the Department of the Interior, nor does the
mention of trade names, commercial products or
consultants constitute endorsement or recommendation
by the Department of the Interior or the Georgia
Department of Natural Resources. The Department
of the Interior prohibits discrimination on the basis
of race, color, national origin, or disability in its
federally assisted programs. If you believe you have
been discriminated against in any program, activity, or
facility, or if you desire more information, write to: Office
for Equal Opportunity, National Park Service, 1849 C
Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20240.
Published quarterly by the
Historic Preservation Division
Georgia Department of Natural Resources
W. Ray Luce, Division Director &
Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer
Jeanne Cyriaque, Editor
A Program of the
Historic Preservation Division
Georgia Department of Natural Resources
156 Trinity Avenue, S.W.
Suite 101
Atlanta, GA 30303-3600