Atlanta History Center Archives

Contributed by Ann L. Sherman and Jane L. Splawn

Atlanta History Center
Archives, McElreath Hall
130 West Paces Ferry Road, NW
Atlanta, Georgia 30305-1366
Telephone: (404) 814-4040
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.

Web Site: http://www.atlhist.org/
Contact Person: Helen Matthews, Research Archivist, or Michael Brubaker, Research Associate

Directions to and Parking at the Library
From I–75 go east on West Paces Ferry Road, turn right on Andrews Drive, and then take an immediate left into the Atlanta History Center driveway. Parking is to the left in an open area, as well as in a covered deck. McElreath Hall is located to the right as you drive into the parking facility. Register in the lobby, get a name tag, and go down the stairs where you will complete a form to get a library card good for one year. Handicap access to the library is with an elevator in back of the lobby.

History of the Area
Buckhead began as a tavern on Peachtree Road in the 1870's. Information that follows is from Susan Kessler Barnard, Buckhead: A Place for all Time, plus other publications.

Buckhead, described by some as "the Beverly Hills of Georgia," encompasses an area which was home to the Paleo-Indians of the Archaic Period (8,000 B.C.–1,000 B.C.). Their village was known as Standing Peach Tree. Thousands of years later the name was still used by Muscogee and Cherokee Indians. In 1821, settlers who became permanent residents began moving into the Atlanta and Buckhead area on land ceded to the state by the Creek Indians.

A story on the origin of the name "Buckhead" is told that in 1848 a man killed a buck and left its head nailed to a tree. Shortly, the head was placed over the doorway of a tavern owned by an early settler, Henry Irby, and led to the tavern being called "Buckhead."

In 1864, Buckhead was the scene of heavy fighting as William T. Sherman began the Battle of Atlanta. It also felt the effects of World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II, but its annexation to the city of Atlanta in 1952 precipitated an explosion of growth and development.

Finding Aids and Internet Access
One computer in the Main Reading Room is available with access to the Internet and Galileo, the only available computer catalog.

Books
All books are shelved using the Library of Congress Numbering System and may be found by card catalogs in both the Genealogy Room and the Main Reading Room. Books are filed by author, title, and subject. All of the books pertaining to genealogy are in the Genealogy Room, extending to the wall just outside of the room.

The Genealogy Room has a large collection of family histories and Georgia county histories, each shelved in alphabetical order as a group; Revolutionary War and Civil War books (grouped); a small collection of books on Indians (grouped); books on mostly southern states, but with some surprises on New England and other northeastern states (grouped); The American State Papers (8 volumes); Filby's Passenger and Immigration Lists Index (complete with supplements through 2000); Langston and Buck's Charlemagne's Descendants (3 volumes); Mackenzie's Colonial Families of the United States (7 volumes); a bound copy of the Royal Charter of Georgia (1732); bound atlases of New York State (1870's); Burke's Peerage (2 volumes); and some books on early Georgia newspaper abstracts.

There are many books in the Main Reading Room of historical interest to the genealogist. These books include the following: black history, Indian Wars, church histories, Revolutionary War and Civil War books, books on Georgia authors and poets, many histories of Atlanta and surrounding area, and histories of the South.

Periodicals
In the Genealogy Room selected periodicals include: Genealogical Helper, 1958–2000 (scattered copies of early issues); Georgia Genealogical Magazine, 1969–1998, with index (1961–1972); Family Puzzlers, 1964–1997 (scattered copies of early issues); Old Mecklenburg Genealogical Society Quarterly, scattered copies; Piedmont Lineages (Piedmont Genealogical Society covering Virginia and North Carolina), scattered copies; The Bulletin (Chester District Genealogical Society of South Carolina), scattered copies; Lot of Bunkum (Old Buncombe County, North Carolina), 1980-1998; St. Louis Genealogical Society Quarterly, 1982–1998; The Guilford Genealogist (Guilford County, North Carolina Genealogical Society), 1987–1995 (scattered copies); Georgia Genealogical Society Quarterly, 1966–1998; and South Carolina Historical & Genealogical Magazine, 1930–1934.

Maps
Maps are located in a storage area and have to be requested from the following categories: decade, county, and/or Atlanta. Maps on Georgia go back to 1835.

City Directories
A complete run of Atlanta City directories from 1859–1996 is in the Main Reading Room.

Telephone Directories
A complete run of Atlanta telephone directories is located in storage and must be requested.

Manuscripts
Located in the Genealogy Room is a card file titled, "Genealogy Files." These materials cover mostly Atlanta and Georgia families and must be requested, as they are stored in the back. In the Main Reading Room the same procedure is followed. Among the collections are the Grace Towns Hamilton Papers and the A. T. Walden Papers representing the civil rights movement. A recent gift of Franklin T. Garrett's personal collection is a great addition to the Atlanta History Center Library. Many other collections on microfilm are available and are listed below.

Copying Machine(s)
One copying machine is available in the Main Reading Room with a cost of 25 cents per copy. For security reasons the copies are on blue paper.

Microfilm/Microfiche
Microforms are located in the Microfilm Room to the left of the information desk in the Main Reading Room. The only microfiche available is the Georgia Death Certificate Index.

The drawers labeled "Miscellaneous Microfilm" contain the following:

Franklin M. Garrett Necrology.
Fulton County Marriages (Afro-American), 1866–1902.
Fulton County Marriages, 1854–1921.
Yiddish newspapers once published in Atlanta, an article in the Southern Israelite and a copy of a paper from Jordanian Jerusalem.
Atlanta Chamber of Commerce Membership Record and Treasury Receipts, 1901 and 1902.
A series of selections from the Georgiana Library of James Larwood.
Catalog of Collection of Georgiana (Larwood).
Walker, William Henry Papers, 1850–1883 (Roll 1).
Hopkins, A. J., Emory University Graduate School (2 rolls)
Augusta Herald: August 7, 1806, page one; Augusta Chronicle & Georgia Advertiser: October 22, 1822, page one; Augusta Chronicle: October 10, 1835, page one.
Looking Glass: Vol. 3–4, March 23, 1895–January 23, 1897 (incomplete # 69, May 25, 1895), Atlanta; Looking Glass: Vol. 5–6, January 30, 1897–May 38, 1898.
Richmond (Virginia) Sentinel: July 5, 1864–February 27, 1865.
The Christian Science Monitor: Eastern Edition, November 1970.
Southern Changes: Vol. 4 (November 1982–December 1982; Vol. 5 (January–December 1983; Vol. 7 (March–December 1985).
Campbell Manuscript, Volunteer Fire Companies, 1846–1882.
The Memphis Daily Appeal: January 1, 1863–December 31, 1863; January 1, 1864–December 31, 1865.
The Voice of the Negro: Vol. I–IV, January 1904–February 1907.
Georgia Genealogical Society Quarterly Index: 1964–1980.
Snell, J., Private Diary and Personal Memorandum Book, 1864.
Confederate Soldiers Who Died at Camp Chase [Ohio].
The Macon Telegraph: May 1, 1965–May 31, 1965.
The Atlanta Constitution: September 16, 1968–September 30, 1968. (Duplicate.)
Menitere de la Defense (France). Archives de l'Armce de Terre—Service Historique Chateau De Vincennes Etats des Trouped Embarquees, 1781–1783.
Archives Nationales Colonies (France). Troupes des Colonies—Legion du Corp Volontaires Etrangers de Lauzun, 1778–1785.
Council Minutes of Oakland City, Georgia, 1895–1901; 1901–1910. Council Minutes of East Lake, Georgia, 1917–1918.
City Council Minutes, West End [Georgia], 1868–1883, 1893; Charter, June 2, 1890; Ordinances, 1883–1891; Census Ledgers, 1890–1891.
Council Minutes, Town of East Lake [Georgia], 1917–18, 1918–1927.
Minutes of Kirkwood, Georgia, 1914–21; Kirkwood Execution Docket, 1916–21; Kirkwood Payroll Book, 1917–1920.
West End [Georgia] City Council Meetings, 1868–1883, 1888–1893; City Council Ordinances, West End, 1883–1891; Census Record of West End [no date]; City of West End Ledger, 1890–1891, Oaths and Elections of Kirkwood, 1904; Minutes of Kirkwood, 1904–1913.
Katuah Journal, 1983–1993.

Drawers containing newspapers include the following:

Fulton County Daily Report: 1895–March 13, 1928; March 13, 1928–January 31, 1992.
The Great Speckled Bird: March 1968–December 1984.
Buckhead Atlanta: August 1975–March 1980.
Atlanta Times: December 1964–August 1965.
Atlanta Weekly Intelligencer: September 10, 1860; April 12, 1865–November 1869; January 1870; April 1871.
Atlanta Weekly Intelligencer: January 1, 1861–April 1, 1862; April 2, 1862–June 30, 1863; July 1, 1863–May 29, 1864; December 1851–December 1868 scattered issues; January 1869–June 1869; January 1870–April 1871; January 1870–June 1870; July 1870–December 1870; January 1871–December 1871; January 1871–April 1871.
Atlanta Journal: February 1883–November 1993 (scattered).
Atlanta Constitution: June 1868–January 15, 2000.
The Daily Intelligencer: 1851–1857.
The Independent: January 1904–December 1928.
Atlanta Daily World: January 1985–June 19.
Atlanta Voice: January–December 1988, June 1998.
The Southern Architect Building News: January 1895–October 1897.

Newspapers and/or abstracts are on microfilm or in book form in the Genealogy Room.

Additional rolls of microfilm include:

Fort McPherson Returns, 1866–December 1881.
1819 Plat Book MMM: Walton County, District 4; Gwinnett County, Districts 5, 6, and 7; Hall County, District 8 and 9; 1820 Land Lottery.
1821 Plat Book AAA: Districts 5–9; 1821 Land Lottery.
1821 Plat Book DDD: Henry County, District 18; Fayette County, Districts 6, 7, 9, 14; 1821 Land Lottery.
1826–1827 Plat Book TTTT: Lee County, District 21–17; 1827 Land Lottery.
1832 Cherokee County Gold Lottery: 2nd section, 18th district, 15th district, and 1st district.
Decatur Cemetery, DeKalb County, Georgia: 1837–June 1979, Roll 1.
Federal Works Agency (WPA) Reel 985W (Georgia).
Southern Dames of America Quarterly Journals, 1963 to April 1984 #1.
North Carolina 1850 Census: Warren–Washington, Watauga–Wayne.
Philippine Diary, 1900, Roll 1, Greenblat, Mike.
Carolyn Long Shields Diary.
Redpath Chautauqua, Roll 1.
C. S. Ordinance Bureau, Group 109, Chap. IV, Vol. 78 & 79, Records from Nashville and Atlanta.
Selected Works of Frederick L. Olmstead, 1857–1904.
Wiggins-Brimson Genealogy, Roll 1.
Techwood Homes/University Homes, Rolls 1 and 2.
First Presbyterian Church, 1858–1877 (9 rolls); Miscellaneous Papers and History, 1871–1970 (9 rolls).
Richards, S. P. Diaries, Vol. I–X, (3 rolls).
Creek Indian Letters, 1705–1839, Vols. 1–4 (2 rolls).
Confederate Soldier's Home Records, Register of Inmates, Boxes 1–3.
Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775–1783, Georgia Jacket Nos. 1–7.
Index to Service Records of Revolutionary War Soldiers Who Served With the American Army in Georgia Military Organizations.
Index to Service Records of Revolutionary War, Georgia, First Battalion, Capt. Samuel Scott's Company.
U. S. City Directories, Atlanta, Georgia, 1867–1881; 1874–75; 1877; 1886; 1891.
Georgia Census Schedules, 1820–1920; Soundex, 1880–1920.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps: City of Atlanta, Augusta, Decatur, East Point, Jonesboro, Macon, Marietta, Roswell, Stone Mountain.

Books located in the Microfilm Room include:

Georgia Census Index Books, 1820–1870.
1880 Census Supplement.
The Soundex: Daitch Mokotoff Reference Guide.
The Atlanta Constitution: A Georgia Index, 1971–1979.
The Atlanta Journal/Constitution Index, 1983–October 1999.
A notebook listing microfilm holdings.

On top of the filing cabinets are fourteen rolls of miscellaneous records for Oglethorpe County, Georgia, and eight rolls for Wilkes County, Georgia; General Assembly: "abduction through ceklor"; "budget committee through murders (H)"; "murders (I) through stewert cap"; "stock exchange through zoology," 5 rolls; Fulton County Building Permits, 1894–1929, 1960–1987; City of Atlanta Building Permits; 1897–April 1983.

Microform Reader-Copiers
In the Microform Room there is one microfiche reader and four microfilm readers (two with printers). Cost is 25¢ per page.

CD-Rom Collection
None.

Other Area Attractions
Located on the same property as McElreath Hall is the Atlanta History Center Museum, the Tullie Smith House and Farm, and the Swan House (built by the Inman family in 1928).

The visual arts collection housed in the museum consists of more than one million photos and negatives, and collections include the Howe Album of the Cotton State Exposition, the Thornton Mayre Collection of Architectural Photographs, plus so much more. The museum features changing exhibitions throughout the year. Not only is the history of the area featured in the museum, but the facilities also include a museum shop, a café (the Coca Cola Café), classrooms, and rental facilities. The Tullie Smith House is a rare example of an 1840's plain plantation house and farm including outbuildings. The Swan House is an elegant home built with many examples of swans throughout the house and gardens. Thirty-three acres provide an ongoing array of Georgia's horticultural history, both rural and suburban. Tickets for admission to the museum, Swan House and the Tullie Smith House must be purchased in the main Museum Building. All other areas are open to the public.

A delightful restaurant and gift shop is located east of the Swan House in its original coach house. Lunch is served daily.

Just west of the Atlanta History Center is the Governor's Mansion on West Paces Ferry Road. Tours are available daily.