Category Archives: Historic Photos

Abandoned, Alabama, Historic Photos, National Register of Historic Places

Cowan-Ramser House-Eufaula, Alabama

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This Greek Revival home was built in the 1840s for Dr. William Lockhart Cowan. William Cowan and his wife, Anna, had eight children. Five of them lived to adulthood. Their second eldest daughter, Laura, married a local doctor, Dr. Robert Fleming. Fleming moved into the Cowan home. Known as a sleepwalker, he awoke one night and fell off the balcony. Paralyzed by the fall, he and his wife moved to live with his relative to get care. Her mother and sister followed them.

The family sold the home to Jacob Ramser, a Swiss craftsman. Ramser was known for his carpentry skills. He built the first theater in town.

The Ramser family lived in the home until they sold it to the White family, who turned it into a funeral home. The Colonel White and Sons Funeral Home was in business until 2004. The building has been vacant since. It is listed as an Alabama Place of Peril. It’s sustained damage from storms, and the roof has been breached.

In the background, you can see the historic Black lodge, the St. Matthew Lodge.

It was documented in 1934 as part of the Historic American Building Survey. It is one of the last remaining Greek Revival homes in the area.

Cemeteries, Georgia, Historic Photos, National Register of Historic Places

Historic Photos of the Sautee Nacoochee Indian Mound-Helen, Georgia

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For people familiar with the Sautee Nacoochee Indian Mound, they may not have seen the numerous photos from the dig. While I was familiar with the survey conducted of the mound in the early 1900s, I never thought to look at it until recently when I was trying to find information about a church in White County and stumbled across a pdf of the report.

I didn’t read the document fully, but some interesting information was in it. Dr. L. G. Hardman granted the archeologists permission for the dig only on the condition that they turned over any gold discovered to Hardman. Additionally, they could not complete the dig in 1915 and asked to return. Hardman refused to grant access to the land again.

Additionally, at least three feet had been removed from the mound that did contain skeletal remains. These were gone before the arrival of the researchers. No one could tell the researchers where the remains went.

Seventy-five skeletal remains were identified in the dig. The first set of remains was found approximately three feet down. Some, like the top photo, were found with different objects. This one is believed to have a pendant at its neck. The bottom photo shows a copper armband around the top part of the arm.

This is a drawing of the material layers in the mound.

Below are images of different items found in the mound. I am particularly intrigued by the “effigies” and the heads.

There are more images in the report. I highly suggest taking a look if you want to see more.

Historic Photos, Houses, South Carolina

Archdale Hall-Lambs, South Carolina

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The Archdale House was featured in the 1895 book, Examples of colonial architecture in South Carolina and Georgia: Charleston, S. C., and Savannah, Ga. by Edward Crane and E. E. Soderholtz. Lambs, South Carolina, is now considered a part of Dorchester, and the ruins of the home can still be seen. It is believed the home was built in the early 1700s. It stood until the 1886 Charleston earthquake. The land and home stayed in the Richard Baker family for decades. A full description of the house’s history and the family is available here.

Georgia, Historic Photos, Schools

The Mystery of the Vernon Johnson School-Wilkinson County, Georgia

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This school is identified as the Vernon Johnson School on the Georgia Genealogy Trails, but I question if it is the school in the black-and-white photo below. The heights of the buildings are quite different. If it is the same building, when was the roofline dropped and how?

I’ve also seen the black-and-white image identified as the Clear Creek School, but I believe that was mislabeled.

What are your thoughts?

Georgia, Historic Photos, National Register of Historic Places, Schools

St. Anthony’s School-Atlanta, Georgia

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St. Anthony’s School opened in February 1934. The Art-Deco-influenced building was designed by the Reverend Michael McInerney, who, according to the Atlanta Constitution, is an “ecclesiastical and instructional architect of Belmont Abbey.” It cost $40,000 to construct.

It is listed as a contributing property on the Historic West End’s application to the National Register of Historic Places.