Reflections- Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network, Vol. 6, no. 3 (Dec. 2006)

Volume VI, No. 3 December 2006
A Program of the Historic Preservation Division, Georgia Department of Natural Resources
PRESERVING A SENSE OF PLACE:
THE SPELMAN COLLEGE CAMPUS HERITAGE PLAN
Jeanne Cyriaque, African American Programs Coordinator
Historic Preservation Division
continued on page 2
Spelman College is one of the most prestigious undergraduate
liberal arts colleges for women in the nation. Established for
African American women 125 years ago, Spelman College
has focused on academic excellence and leadership development
in virtually every field. In 2002, the Getty Foundation awarded a
grant to Spelman to study its campus heritage. The goals of the
study were to retain and protect the distinguishing characteristics
of the historic buildings and landscapes on the campus, establish
renovation standards and strengthen the Spelman College Archives
and Special Collections. Clement & Wynn Program Managers
assembled a team of architects, archivists, researchers and
landscape architects to conduct a comprehensive investigation of
the college’s development history, focusing on 14 historic buildings
that were constructed between 1886-1952. The Campus Heritage
Plan provides a blueprint for the early development of the campus.
It includes a historic building
analysis, architectural drawings
and a photographic history that
connects the buildings to the
founders and benefactors who
developed the college.
Sophia B. Packard and
Harriet E. Giles co-founded
Spelman College. At the close
of Reconstruction, Packard and
Giles were part of a growing
wave of northern missionaries
who came to the south to
educate freedmen and women.
Both women were from New
Salem, Massachusetts, where
they attended local schools and
the New Salem Academy. Miss
Packard, who was older, first
met Miss Giles while they were students at the New Salem Academy.
Miss Packard taught at the Academy in 1854, and Miss Giles
graduated in 1856.
The two women began teaching in small towns in
Massachusetts and opened the Rollstone School. They eventually
accepted teaching positions at the Connecticut Literary Institution
in the fall of 1859. This academy was known for emphasis in liberal
Baptist principles and high academic standards. Both women
remained in Connecticut until 1864, when they joined the faculty of
the Oread Collegiate Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts. Oread
was one of the first academic institutions in the nation to admit
women for a college education. While at Oread, Miss Packard
began to hone her administrative abilities, and eventually accepted
a managerial position at the Empire Insurance Company in Boston.
In 1870, Dr. George C. Lormier offered her a position as the pastor’s
assistant at Shawmut Avenue
Baptist Church. When he left
for a position as pastor of
Tremont Temple, Miss Packard
was his assistant. This position
exposed Miss Packard to
Christian reform movements.
In 1877, Miss Packard
and Miss Giles organized the
Woman’s American Baptist Home
Mission Society (WABHMS).
This organization of 200 women
was an auxiliary to the American
Baptist Home Missionary Society
(ABHMS) and supported
women missionaries who
educated Native and African
Americans. Miss Packard was
first elected treasurer, and when
Giles Hall is a five-story, T-shaped building that is the anchor of the north
end of the historic Campus Oval. The building’s historic use was to provide
housing and classrooms. Today, it is a multipurpose academic building.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
2
Jeanne Cyriaque, continued from page 1
PRESERVING A SENSE OF PLACE: THE SPELMAN COLLEGE CAMPUS HERITAGE PLAN
she later became corresponding secretary, she worked to establish
women’s groups in churches throughout New England. In 1880,
WABHMS sent Miss Packard to the South, where she visited
homes, schools and churches in Richmond, Nashville and New
Orleans. When Miss Giles joined her in New Orleans, they
concluded that the most pressing need was educational
opportunities, especially for African American women.
When the two women
presented their findings to the
WABHMS, they asked for
financial support to establish
a new school for women and
girls. The Society did not have
the capital for this venture, and
believed Miss Packard and
Miss Giles, who were then 56
and 48 years old respectively,
were too old to implement this
plan. The women began to
raise funds with local churches for their travel expenses and salaries.
They targeted Georgia as the best locale for the school because it
had the largest African American Baptist population, even though
there were no provisions for the education of women and girls. By
1881, the Atlanta Baptist Seminary (presently Morehouse College)
had moved to Atlanta, and ABHMS could offer a supportive
environment. With these developments, WABHMS reversed their
position, and commissioned Miss Packard and Miss Giles to open
a school in Atlanta. With the support of Reverend Frank Quarles,
pastor of Friendship Baptist Church, the women accepted his offer
to use the basement of the church for a school, and opened the
Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary with 11 students on April 11, 1881.
At first, instruction at the Seminary focused on the alphabet
and children’s bible studies. From this modest beginning, news of
their success spread rapidly in the African American community,
and by the end of the school’s first year, enrollment had increased
The basement of Friendship Baptist
Church was the home of the Atlanta
Baptist Female Seminary. Photo
courtesy of Spelman College Archives,
Atlanta, Georgia.
to 175 women. The WABHMS commissioned Sarah Champney
and Caroline Grover to join Packard and Giles as teachers, but help
was needed from the ABHMS to locate a building with adequate
classrooms and living quarters for the faculty. The Society secured
an option on nine acres and five frame buildings that were used by
the Union Army for barracks during the Civil War, but ABHMS
wanted the seminary to merge with the Atlanta Baptist Seminary as
a “Girls Department.” This proposal for a merger was unacceptable
to Packard and Giles.
In 1882, Reverend George O. King invited them to speak at
the Wilson Avenue Baptist Church in Cleveland, Ohio. Miss Packard
delivered an eloquent speech to the congregation. John D.
Rockefeller, who was in the audience, contributed all the money in
his pockets and promised $250.00 for the building fund. The
following day, they were invited to the Rockefeller’s home, where
Miss Packard set forth her vision for the school. She appealed to
Rockefeller to visit the campus, and on April 11, 1884, on the third
anniversary, John and Laura Rockefeller, her mother and sister arrived
on campus. At the end of their visit, Rockefeller contributed $5,000
for the remaining debt on the property. This was the first
contribution to Negro education by the Rockefeller family. With
gratitude, Packard asked Rockefeller to name the school in his honor,
but he suggested that the school be called the Spelman Seminary
for Women and Girls to honor Mrs. Rockefeller’s parents, Harvey
Buel and Lucy Henry Spelman. The Spelmans were abolitionists in
Ohio and were activists in the Underground Railroad.
When the seminary moved to the barracks, a boarding
department was established. Soon the faculty increased to 16 and
the student body to 600. By the fall of 1884, an elementary school
opened. Mr. Rockefeller again contributed to the expansion by
providing funds for a brick building. Rockefeller Hall was
constructed in 1886 as a multipurpose building and is the oldest
building on the Campus Oval. The building’s historic use included
the academic and grammar departments and was the location of the
Howe Memorial Chapel with a seating capacity of 400. It is currently
undergoing renovations that will provide space for the college’s
This historic photo depicts the 1887 Spelman Seminary High School administrative offices.
graduates. Photo courtesy of Spelman College Archives, Atlanta, Georgia.
Packard Hall was named after co-founder Sophia B. Packard. It was
dedicated in 1888, and provided additional classrooms, a library and
dormitory space for boarding students. Today, renovations are completed,
and the building is the center for student services. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
3
Morehouse-James Hall was constructed in 1901 as a
dormitory for 100 women. It is named in honor of the corresponding
secretary of ABHMS, Henry L.Morehouse. He was president of
the first Board of Trustees. Willis L. James administered the music
department and was director of the Spelman Glee Club.
As Spelman Seminary completed its first decade, it was
granted a state charter, a Board of Trustees was organized and
Sophia Packard became the institution’s first president. When she
died in 1891, Harriet E. Giles was appointed as the second president
of Spelman Seminary.
One of the significant accomplishments under Miss Giles’
administration was the expansion of teacher training for elementary
grades. A Missionary Training Department was established to
prepare students for work in the south as well as Africa. The Slater
Fund increased their grant to Spelman Seminary and John D.
Rockefeller once again contributed funds for the institution’s third
building. He requested that it be named Giles Hall, and it was
dedicated in 1893.
The new building was the home of the normal (teaching)
school, and housed the primary and intermediate departments. It
became the Georgia Colored Teachers’ Training School by an agreement
with the State of Georgia in 1897. The building was home to the
seminary’s library that was named in honor of Reverend Frank Quarles.
In 1901, the first college
class graduation exercises were
held in the Howe Memorial
Chapel. Jane Anna Granderson
and Claudia White were
awarded their baccalaureate
degrees. This signaled the
need for more facilities, and
President Giles directed
further development until her
death in 1909.
John D. Rockefeller
was a major benefactor for
Spelman Seminary during its
first 20 years. When Miss Giles
approached him to fund
construction of four new
buildings for the growing
campus, he responded with a
$200,000 donation. The
president’s home was named
the Mary C. Reynolds Cottage
in honor of the corresponding
secretary of the WABHMS.
In 1910, Lucy Hale Tapley became the third president of
Spelman Seminary. She was born and educated in Maine, and came
to Spelman in 1890. Miss Tapley led the institution for 17 years
until her retirement in 1927. During her tenure, she successfully
brought the institution out of debt and transferred financial control
continued on page 4
Claudia White Harreld taught at
Haines Institute in Augusta after
graduation and later returned as an
instructor of Latin and German at
Spelman and Morehouse. She was
president of the Spelman National
Alumnae Association from 1923-
1928. Photo courtesy of Spelman
College Archives, Atlanta, Georgia.
MacVicar Hall was erected in 1901 as a practice school for
nurse training and also served the African American community
during segregation. The building was named in honor of Dr. Malcolm
MacVicar, Superintendent of Education for the ABHMS and
developer of the curriculum for the nurse training and teacher
professional courses. One of the challenges that the 30-bed hospital
faced was the practice of staffing it with white doctors, as African
American doctors were excluded from city hospitals and clinics in
Atlanta until 1953. When nurse training was discontinued in 1928,
the building became the infirmary for both Spelman and Morehouse
students, and African American doctors were selected as physicians.
Prior to construction of Reynolds Cottage in 1901, the seminary’s
co-founders lived in the barracks. It has remained the president’s
home for over 100 years. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Morehouse-James Hall (1901) has consistently been used as a dormitory.
It was renovated in the 1970s to provide housing for 85 students.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
MacVicar Hall (1901) was renovated in the early 1990s. Today, services
include counseling and the Women’s Health Clinic.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Jeanne Cyriaque, continued from page 3
PRESERVING A SENSE OF PLACE: THE SPELMAN COLLEGE CAMPUS HERITAGE PLAN
4
In 1916, the General Education Board that was created by
John D. Rockefeller awarded Spelman $85,000 to build a nurses
home and a home economics building. Hentz, Reid & Adler was
contracted as the architectural firm and W.T. Courtney, an African
American graduate of Hampton Institute, was the construction
superintendent. Bessie Strong Hall, the former nurses home, was
dedicated in 1917 and is still used as a dormitory today. Laura
Spelman Rockefeller Hall, the Home Economics building, was
dedicated in 1918. In 1930, the Spelman Nursery School was housed
in this building, the first in the nation at a historically black college.
Courtney with an appropriation of $140,000. Today, the building
provides offices for the mathematics and science department and
health careers.
Sisters Chapel reflects the continued philanthrophy of the
Rockefeller family in providing a place to meet the spiritual needs of
Spelman students. Mr. and Mrs. Rockefeller, Jr. attended the
dedication of the building that honored his mother and aunt on
May 19, 1927. Sisters Chapel had a seating capacity of 1,050 and
the first commencement exercises were held there in 1927. Because
Sisters Chapel had the largest seating capacity among the Atlanta
black colleges, it became the site for the annual Spelman-Morehouse
Christmas Carol Concert. In 1928, this was the only facility in Atlanta
where seating for blacks and whites was not segregated. The body
of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. laid in state at Sisters Chapel while Dr.
Joyce Johnson played the new Grand Holtkamp organ for the first
time on April 6, 1968. The building today still serves as an
auditorium for concerts, convocations, lectures and special events.
The architectural firm of Surber Barber Choate and Hertlein received
numerous awards for their renovation of Sisters Chapel.
from ABHMS to the school. Her crowning achievement
occurred in 1924, when Spelman Seminary became Spelman College.
With bequests from Lucy Spelman and her sister Laura
Spelman Rockefeller, Spelman College built Tapley Hall in 1925 and
Sisters Chapel in 1927. Hentz, Reid & Adler were the architects for
these buildings. Tapley Hall, the science building, was constructed
entirely by African Americans under the supervision of W.T.
In June 1927, Florence Matilda Read succeeded Miss
Tapley as the fourth president of Spelman College. She accepted
the position on one condition: that the Board establishes an
endowment fund for the college. Miss Read immediately set in
motion a plan to dedicate all of the institution’s resources for
development as a liberal arts college. She was a partner in the
“Agreement of Affiliation” between Morehouse and Spelman
colleges and Atlanta University that formed the core schools for
today’s Atlanta University Center (AUC). Florence Read was the
first secretary of the United Negro College Fund and was the author
of The Story of Spelman College.
Two buildings on the campus were constructed during
the Read presidency. Read Hall was named in her honor. It was
dedicated in 1951. In 1952, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Hall was
dedicated as a new dormitory for 100 students. It was named in
honor of the wife of John D. Rockefeller, Jr. The Masons of Georgia
laid the cornerstone. The Grandmaster of the Masons of Georgia,
John Wesley Dobbs, had six daughters who were Spelman graduates.
On April 11, 2006 Spelman College celebrated its first 125
years as a liberal arts college for women of African descent. As the
campus expands into the next century, the Spelman College Campus
Heritage Plan will be an invaluable tool for its future development.
Bessie Strong Hall (1917) was named in honor of John D. Rockefeller’s
oldest child. Its historic use was a residence for nursing students. It is
currently a dormitory. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Laura Spelman Rockefeller Hall (1918) is a dormitory today and is the
home of the Child Development Center. Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
Read Hall (1951) still serves as the recreational
facility for Spelman College.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
5
REFLECTIONS RECEIVES
LEADERSHIP IN HISTORY AWARD
Jeanne Cyriaque, Reflections Editor
Historic Preservation Division
History’s Enduring Voices was the theme of the 2006 annual
meeting in Phoenix, Arizona of the American Association for
State and Local History (AASLH). Over 700 participants attended
the annual conference of historians, writers, museum professionals
and volunteers who interpret state and local history throughout
the nation. The annual meeting offered 81 workshops and plenary
sessions, tours to Arizona historic sites and an exhibit hall featuring
42 displays. The highlight of the annual meeting was the 2006
Awards Banquet. AASLH has sponsored the awards program since
1945, and in this 61st year the program was renamed the Leadership
in History Awards. “This year AASLH is proud to confer 85 national
awards honoring people, projects, exhibits, books and
organizations,” said Terry L. Davis, president and CEO. Among
this year’s awardees was one to a Georgia project: Reflections, the
quarterly publication of the Georgia African American Historic
Preservation Network (GAAHPN).
To achieve this Award of Merit in the publication category,
the nomination for Reflections was submitted to the AASLH state
chair for Georgia, Laura T. McCarty, vice president of the Georgia
Humanities Council. McCarty said, “Reflections is providing a lot
of ‘bang for its buck.’ It is an important historical resource in our
state, both in terms of documenting stories and in inspiring other
groups to document the stories of their community.” McCarty then
submitted her review to the regional chair, Carole King, historic
properties curator of the Landmarks Foundation of Montgomery,
Alabama. Following her assessment of the nomination, King then
presented it to the national awards committee for a final
determination. The awards committee commented that Reflections
made “wide use of preservation to include culture as well as
structure,” was “very impressive” and a “role model for other
preservation organizations.” In addition, it was to be “considered
in the top 10 (out of 149) nominated projects.”
The award nomination for Reflections included critical
assessments from peer reviewers. Helen Aikman, president of
Friends of Historic Downtown Louisville, said “Reflections is
essential reading for anyone who is concerned with Georgia
history… it is a unique voice with an undeniably important
message.” Cynthia Ashby, director of state schools for the Georgia
Department of Education, especially appreciated the Reflections
article about the Gordon campus of the Georgia School for the
Deaf. The article was distributed to every student on the campus
and became an important addition to the campus library. The
research about its African American principal will be used for a
historic marker that will be erected at the site of the former
segregated dormitory.
“Since its inception in 2000, Reflections has been the
definitive source in Georgia for raising awareness among
preservationists, historians and the general public of the importance
of African American history and the preservation of the tangible
links to that past,” said Richard Laub, director of Georgia State
University’s Heritage Preservation Program. Audrey Brown, who
recently retired from the National Park Service as acting chief
ethnographer, commented, “this kind of information about local
heritage and historic preservation activities is unique in the
literature. The articles are descriptive, in depth, and cover African
Both Tracy Hayes of the National Trust for Historic
Preservation and Leola Hubbard of the Camilla and Zack Hubert
Foundation commented that they thought Reflections was a unique
information tool that could be duplicated in other states. Meeting
Tours International, who sponsors cultural history tours, said
Reflections highlighted the importance of the Gullah/Geechee
cultural history and African American farmers. One World Archives
commented that “it is accessible and interesting to a general
audience while often revealing to scholars overlooked pieces of
research.” Althea Sumpter noted, “an important factor is that
Reflections is available on-line. It is a place that I send others to
take note of a certain topic.”
Carlton E. Brown, president of Savannah State University,
“was enormously pleased with the issue which traced the
university’s humble beginnings from the 1862 Morrill Land Grant
Act and highlighted Hill Hall. Because the issue was a thorough
historical account, we have often shared the publication with key
decision-makers so that they, too, will appreciate all that Hill Hall
symbolizes as we seek to restore it as a central element of our
student-centered campus.”
GAAHPN thanks our reviewers and members of the
network who provide oral history, photographs and documents
that assist us in researching Georgia’s African American past. We
salute your valuable input to ensure that African American built
and cultural resources are a continuing part of History’s
Enduring Voices.
American preservation projects in the gamut of locales in Georgia.
The images in Reflections with their accompanying explanations
and testimonies of local people about their significance reinforce
our philosophy of the need for flexible historic designation
standards. Reflections makes it clear that historic sites and
structures encompass places and edifices of significance to ordinary
everyday people as well as those that celebrate our national heroes,
heroines and historic events.”
Reflections editor Jeanne Cyriaque (2nd from left) and GAAHPN chairman
Isaac Johnson (3rd from left) accept the Leadership in History Award from
Terry Davis, AASLH president and CEO (left) and David Crosson, AASLH
chairman (right). Photo by Jeff Stanton, Stanton Photography, Phoenix, AZ
6
REVITALIZING PITTSBURGH: AN ATLANTA RAILROAD COMMUNITY
Tiffany Tolbert, African American Programs Assistant
Historic Preservation Division
The neighborhood of Pittsburgh began as an African American
settlement in Atlanta during the 1880s. In 1883, the East
Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia Railroad built a series of shops
along the southwestern edge of the city. The area surrounding
these shops was similar to communities around the steel mills in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Consequently, this area became known
as Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh attracted a large number of African
Americans who were employed as laborers and domestic servants
for the railroad. By 1890, Pittsburgh developed into a predominately
African American working-class community with a population of
684. The community’s growing population led to the building of
small, single family homes. Electric streetcar lines ran through
Pittsburgh by 1902, allowing residents to have easy access to
downtown Atlanta.
With the railroad providing a constant source of
employment and the continuance of segregation, many African
American institutions, including businesses, churches and schools,
developed throughout Pittsburgh. Shortly after Pittsburgh was
settled, residents began holding Sunday School and Bible Study
classes in their homes. These classes eventually led to the
founding of Ariel Bowen (United Methodist) Church and Iconium
Baptist Church.
Ariel Bowen is the oldest church in Pittsburgh. While the
church was founded around the turn of the century, the current
building was built in 1939. Ariel Bowen also served as the site of
the community’s first school, where classes of the Pittsburgh
Grammar School were held in the basement. While a growing number
of students and inadequate conditions led to numerous relocations,
a new two-story building was built in 1909.
Another school was not built in Pittsburgh until 1922 when
the Pittsburgh Grammar School was closed due to inadequate
facilities. Clark College, the Freedom Aide Society and the Atlanta
Board of Education donated land for the new school. The 19-
classroom school was designed by prominent Atlanta architect, A.
Ten Eyck Brown and named the William H. Crogman School in
honor of the first African American president of Clark College. The
Crogman School quickly grew and became one of the best public
schools for African Americans in Atlanta until it closed in 1979, due
to declining enrollment. The Crogman School was listed in the
National Register of Historic Places on July 14, 2005. It was a
certified tax incentives project that rehabilitated the old school for
adaptive use as loft apartments.
By 1960, Pittsburgh contained over 9,000 residents.
However, the population as well as housing began to decrease due
to transportation and urban renewal projects. During the 1950s, in
order to provide easier access
to Atlanta’s business district,
a new expressway system was
proposed and designed. This
new design not only affected
Pittsburgh, but many of
Atlanta’s African American
neighborhoods. While the
impact in other neighborhoods
was not as severe in Pittsburgh,
a number of houses were
destroyed as well as the
commercial district.
Housing was further
destroyed by Atlanta’s urban
renewal plan that called for the
demolition and replacement of deteriorated housing. Funding to
replace these homes was not made available until 1968 after most of
Pittsburgh’s middle-class residents had moved to other areas.
Pittsburgh has 792 historic buildings. Among these
buildings can be found excellent examples of 19th-early 20th century
house types, such as shotgun houses and bungalows as well as
commercial and religious buildings. The Pittsburgh Historic District
was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on June 14, 2006.
This historic structure is one of the
surviving historic buildings that
still exist on McDaniel Street in the
Pittsburgh Historic District.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
The historic Crogman School is located in the Pittsburgh Historic District.
The building is adaptively used as loft apartments today and provides
housing for community residents. Photo by James R. Lockhart
Ariel Bowen Church is a community landmark building in the Pittsburgh
Historic District. Photo by Tiffany Tolbert
Tiffany Tolbert
African American
Programs Assistant
Voice 404/657-1054
Fax 404/657-1040
tiffany_tolbert@dnr.state.ga.us
7
Velmon Allen
Karl Webster Barnes
C. Donald Beall
Linda Cooks
Gerald Golden
Terry & Cynthia Hayes
Kris Roberts
Corinne Blencoe Thornton
Linda Wilkes
Thomas Williams
Isaac Johnson, Chair
706/738-1901
Beth Shorthouse, Vice-Chair
404/253-1488
Jeanne Mills, Secretary
404/753-6265
STEERING COMMITTEE
Jeanne Cyriaque
African American
Programs Coordinator
Reflections Editor
Voice 404/656-4768
Fax 404/657-1040
jeanne_cyriaque@dnr.state.ga.us
STAFF
SAVE THE DATE:
WHAT’S NEW IN THE OLD NEIGHBORHOOD?
The rehabilitation of the Crogman School, its certification
as a tax incentive project and the National Register listing has
brought increased attention to Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh
Community Improvement Association (PCIA) partnered with
Georgia Tech and the Atlanta Neighborhood Development
Partnership’s Mixed Income Communities Initiative to participate
in the Georgia Conservancy’s BluePrints for Successful
Communities Process. BluePrints is an educational and technical
assistance program designed to facilitate community-based planning
across the state of Georgia. This process will help Pittsburgh
develop a plan for the smart growth and revitalization of the
neighborhood. With the implementation of this plan, Pittsburgh
will experience many of the positive effects other revitalized Atlanta
in-town neighborhoods have experienced, while maintaining its
unique historic character.
Augusta, like many Georgia cities and other locales, is
experiencing change in the built landscape of historic African
American communities. During segregation, many of these
communities were considered undesirable, but due to their in-town
locations, today these neighborhoods are often the communities
that are most likely to be revitalized. Rebuilding historic
neighborhoods while achieving balance among existing historic
houses, schools, churches and commercial structures requires
innovative approaches and partnerships. Thus, the 2007 annual
meeting of the Georgia African American Historic Preservation
Network (GAAHPN) will focus on the topic: What’s New In the
Old Neighborhood?
The GAAHPN annual meeting will be held February 8-10
in two Augusta African American historic districts: Bethlehem and
Laney-Walker, where participants will experience both educational
sessions in these communities while exploring field sessions to
address neighborhood preservation. The opening reception will be
held on the campus of the Lucy Craft Laney High School, where
today the Haines Alumni Association are stewards of the CauleyWheeler building on the campus. Educational sessions and the
luncheon will be held on Friday, February 9 at the Beulah Grove
Building of Opportunity, a
faith-based initiative that was
implemented by the Beulah
Grove Baptist Church in the
Bethlehem Historic District.
Following the educational
sessions, participants will
move to Springfield Village
Park to see how public art is
incorporated into community
design, with a presentation
by sculptor Richard Hunt,
who will discuss the newest
element in the park, And They Went Down Into the Water. Friday
sessions will conclude with a reception hosted by Springfield
Baptist Church.
The annual meeting will conclude on Saturday, February
10 with a field session and end with lunch at the Julian Smith
Barbeque Pit. The registration
fee is $50, and includes
educational/field sessions, and
two lunches. GAAHPN’s
principal partners are the
African American Preservation
Alliance (AAPA), the Central
Savannah River Area Regional
Development Center, Historic
Augusta, Inc., the Historic
Preservation Division (GASHPO), the National Alliance
of Preservation Commissions and the National Trust for Historic
Preservation. Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and Tennessee are
statewide networks of AAPA who exist to preserve African American
history and culture and build diversity in preservation.
Ample lodging is available for annual meeting participants
at the Quality and Comfort Inns, or if you prefer a historic hotel, the
Partridge Inn is one of the National Trust’s designated hotels. For
a complete conference brochure, hotel and other information, please
contact Jeanne Cyriaque (see below) by telephone, fax or email.
Isaac Johnson
Chairman
And They Went Down Into the Water
and the Tower of Aspiration are two
sculptures designed by Richard Hunt
in the Springfield Village Park.
Photo by Jeanne Cyriaque
The Cauley- Wheeler building is the
sole historic building on the modern
Lucy Craft Laney High School campus.
Photo by James R. Lockhart
The 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 GAAHPN Steering Committee 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 2,200 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. Visit the Historic Preservation Division website at
www.gashpo.org. Preservation information and previous issues of Reflections are
available online. 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
34 Peachtree Street, NW
Suite 1600
Atlanta, GA 30303-2316