Atlanta And Its Builders, Vol. 2 - A Comprehensive History Of The Gate City Of The South. Thomas H. Martin
Mining Company, by John D. Gray, A. Alexander, and others. There are also, in Atlanta, three iron and brass foundries, seven machine shops (including those in connection with railroads), and three large sash, door and blind manufactories, besides other and smaller establishments.
"The printing, publishing, and also the educational interest of the city deserves notice. We have at this time three daily newspapers, one large weekly literary paper, one monthly medical journal, and one large monthly magazine; also, several large job printing offices and two book binderies. All these establishments seem to be well conducted and in a prosperous condition.
The medical college has been refitted, and will doubtless soon become eminently successful and popular. The cause of education, generally, is attracting attention. We have already several good schools, notwithstanding the absence of appropriate buildings for that purpose, and we hope some practicable system of free school education, both mental and manual, will at an early day be established, that the poor children who are learning nothing but beggarly and vicious habits on our streets may be taught that they were created for more noble and glorious purposes.
"The number of stores on the business streets will reach at least two hundred and fifty, mostly brick buildings. The assessed value of the real estate in the city in 1866 was over $7,000,000, and the amount of goods sold is estimated at $4,500,000. The population of the city, as shown by the census, just taken, under direction of the city council, is 10,940 whites, 9.288 blacks, nine hundred and twenty-eight (nearly five per cent, of the whole number) being widows and orphans, four hundred and forty-nine of whom are widows and orphans of Confederate soldiers — the aggregate showing a population of 20,228 souls.
"It will be seen that this city, within the past two years, has risen out of her own ashes, to the populous, mercantile and manufacturing Atlanta of 1861 and 1862. Her future, who can foresee? The tides of immigration and of improvement still continue to flow in her favor. The two new railroads to this city, in contemplation before the war. will probably be completed at an early day. The Georgia Air Line railroad will, we are advised, be in running order as far as Gainesville, Hall county, within the year 1868. The grading of this road will be commenced between this point and Gainesville, in March or April next. From the history of the past, we may. with a certainty, anticipate the effects that will be produced on the city by the completion of these roads. On the railroad and manufacturing interest of Atlanta, and the mineral resources of Upper Georgia — which are now rapidly being developed — and not on agricultural (for the surrounding country is comparatively poor), must this city base her hopes of prosperity. Success attend them! and may we not again be cursed by the demoralizing and destructive tendencies of war, but continue, as a community, to march onward and upward in every ennobling cause, until Atlanta shall have become one of the great cities of the continent."
From the same little volume we learn that "The incorporation line of the city of Atlanta, as extended by an act of the general assembly of the state of Georgia, approved March 12, 1866, encloses the area of a perfect circle three miles in diameter, the center of which is located near the general passenger depot."
At that time Atlanta had five wards and about one-half the present number of streets, few of which were paved beyond the business center. The municipality maintained two market houses, in which butchers and green grocers were required to rent stalls. Each market house had a keeper appointed by council, and rigid rules governed the conduct of business therein. Much of the rapid progress in building after the war was due to the local building and loan associations, which had then begun to be popular all over the country. In 1867 Atlanta had four of these helpful organizations, as follows: Gate City Building and Loan Association — J. R. Wallace, Pres.: N. R. Fowler, Sec.; W. J. Houston, Treas.; N. J. Hammond, Atty.; F. M. Richardson, Thomas Spencer, L. C. Wells and William Rushton, directors. Fulton Building and Loan Association — Perino Brown, Pres.; C. F. Wood, Sec.: N. R. Fowler, Treas.; Daniel Pittman, Atty.; C. F. Wood, E. R. Sasseen, John Glenn and F. P. Rice, directors. Stonewall Building and Loan Association — S. A. Verdery, Pres.; J. S. Peterson, Secy.; B. F. Moore, Treas.; L. J. Glenn, Atty.; John A. Doane, R. P. Zimmerman, J. W. Clayton and J. M. Ball, directors. Mechanics' Building and Loan Association — L. C. Wells, Pres.; S. W. Grubb, Sec; W. j. Houston, Treas.; N. J. Hammond, Atty.; J. R. Wallace, Thomas Spencer, F. M. Richardson and J. E. Gullatt, directors. In glancing over the list of the various business establishments in Atlanta as contained in this directory for 1867, one can but be struck by the great number of firms in certain lines of business, and in stopping to analyze the reason in comparison with the situation today, must conclude that concentration has a decided tendency to weed out the small dealer. For instance, in 1867 there were twenty-nine exclusive wholesale grocers in Atlanta — twice the number engaged in that line of trade in this city today. There were, the same year, fifty-one commission merchants in Atlanta. The census of Atlanta by wards, taken by direction of the city council in December and January, 1866-7, was as follows: First ward, 4,837; Second ward, 2,749: Third ward, 2.036: Fourth ward. 5,389: Fifth ward, 5,217 — total, 20,288.
James M. Calhoun, Atlanta's "war mayor," who served the city faithfully during her days of sore travail, was honored with the mayoralty the first year after the war closed, serving in that capacity four successive terms. To his public spirit and wise administration was due no little of the progress made by Atlanta immediately after her almost total destruction by Sherman.
Atlanta had four fire companies the first year after the war closed, and it will doubtless be interesting to the pioneer citizens in our midst, and their descendants, to read the names of the members, few of whom are alive or residents of Atlanta today. The rosters of the four companies are given as follows:
FIRE DEPARTMENT
S. B. Sherwood, Chief Engineer. Henry Gullatt, First Assistant Engineer. W. G. Knox, Second Assistant Engineer.
ATLANTA FIRE COMPANY NO. I (STEAM ENGINE) .
Organized, March 24, 1851. Incorporated, April 4, 1851. Meets first Monday night in each month, at their Engine House, cor. Broad Street and M. & W. R. R.
Officers. — John B. Norman, President: Charles Schnatz, 1st Director: John Berkele, 2nd Director: John Wilbey, 3rd Director; Samuel Wilson, Secretary; H. Muhlenbrink, Treasurer; John H. Ellsworth, Rep. to Fire Dept.; John Bridwell, M. Rogan. Axemen.
Active Members— Alexander, I.; Bell. H. G.; Broxton, H. W.; Cannon, P. J.: Collier, M. L.; Collier, John W.; Cox, W. B.; Daly, Pat; Eisenhut, John; Ficken, John; Fleck, Daniel; Galvin, John; Garcia, B.; Garvy, P.; Grambling, John; Grogan, Z. W.; Goudy, D. H.: Haney, Thomas; Haney, Henry; Haverty. M.; Henderson, A. F.; Immel, J.; Immel, M. J.; James, Wm.; Jentzer, John; Joyner, H. W.; Klotz, Jno.; Kuhrt, Henry; Klassett, A.; Krog, Wm.; Kavanaugh, P.; Lynch, Peter; Lynch, J.; Mann, J. E.; Mann, James; Mann, John; Mann, Wm. J.; Mann, Henry; Mason, J. P.; Mason, Wm. K.; Murrins, L.; McGee, John; Nelley, Martin; Olerich, P.; Peel, John; Pettis, W. P.; Roab, George; Ransford, H.; Roberts, M. L.; Schoen, J.; Spencer, Wm.; Sherwood, S. B.; Weaver, J. K.; Van Loan, A. H.; Van Loan, Richard.
Honorary Members — Bracken, P. J.; Daly, Martin; Flynn, John H.; Forsyth, Wm.; Heinz, Charles; Hunnicutt, C. W.; Kershaw, John; Kidd. Wm.; Kirby, T.; Lamb, B. T.; Lynch, John; Mecaslin, J. H.; Murphy, T. C.: Stadelman, J.
MECHANIC FIRE COMPANY, NO. 2
Organized December 10, 1856. Meets first Friday night in each month, at their hall over Engine House, corner Washington St. and Georgia R. R.
Officers — J. E. Gullatt, President; James G. Kelly, Vice-President; W. D. Luckie, Jr., Secretary; O. H. Jones, Treasurer; E. Buice, First Director; C. Beermann, Second Director; W. G. Middleton, Chief Engineer; Joel Kelsey, 1st Ass't. Engineer; G. W. Terry, 2nd Ass't. Engineer; James Daniels, 3rd Ass't. Engineer; G. T. Anderson, W. F. Woods, Pipemen; J. M. Buice, Joseph Wiley, Axemen; M. L. Lichtenstadt, Rep. to Fire Dep't.; James Alexander, M. D., Surgeon.
Members — Buice, C. W.; Buice, J. D.; Bellingrath, H.; Bradbury, T. W.; Bannan, W. J.; Campbell, J. T.; Crenshaw, J. L.; Darby, Arch.; Dewberry, J. R.; Doby, J. B.; Harmsen, Carl; Krogg, Fred; Langford, W. Y.; Lyons, J. L.; Manning, W. H.; Middleton, M. J.; Moore. B. F.; O'Connor, Thomas; Read, Thomas; Rogers. J. C.; Rodes, C. C.; Rosenfeld,