Fullerville, Georgia City Hall 1916-1956

This historic building served as the City Hall for the town of Fullerville when it was classified as a city. Fullerville was chartered as a city in 1916 and became part of the City of Villa Rica in 1956. Fullervulle was known for several textile mills, a lumber yard, the Fullerville Jail, and other businesses and community institutions.

The city was named for Judson T. Fuller (b. March 1851, Meriwether County, Georgia d. 20 March 1919, Carroll County, Georgia[1]) who established one of the first cotton thread mills in Georgia along Cedartown (now Rockmart) Road. [2]   By 1880 he is in the Fairplay area of Carroll county with his first wife Mary Johnson although Memoirs of Georgia states he does not arrive until 1886.  None the less he worked hard to accumulate 1,400 acres of farm and sustained an “elegant home” on Wilson Street.[3]  He is listed on the 1900 census as a land lord on Wilson Street.   The 1910 census on Cedartown Road as a general farmer living with his second wife Elizabeth Mitchell of Griffin and carpenter sons DeWitt and Thomas.[4]  His sons, Hardy, DeWitt, and Thomas, later built the Villa Rica Hosiery Mills.  DeWitt, listed as “Willy T.” appears on the 1920 census as the proprietor of a hosiery mill in Los Angeles, California with a son named for his father Judson.[5]

Fullerville received a charter from the state of Georgia on 8 August 1916.  The state charter set up the city as one quarter of a mile from J. H. Hogue’s store in the Cement Block building. [6]  J.H. Hogue is appointed as mayor of the city with W.A. Ball, J.H. Kimbrell, W.F. Fuller, C.M. Floyd and Henry Cole as councilmen all serving until the first election held on the “first Tuesday in January 1917.”  R.J. Voss is named the town clerk.[7]

 

The community is populated predominantly by home and general farmers and some laborers.  A few women are listed working for private families presumed elsewhere in the area. [8]  .  The population estimates range from 299 on the 1910 census to 350 on the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps in 1923.  The area is a racially mixed area.

In 1923, Fullerville had a railroad spur and two mills: the Villa Rica Cotton Oil Company and the Villa Rica Hosiery Mill. Road names will appear  unfamiliar to those in 2007 with Tyson Place (now parts of Rockmart Road), Fuller Place (First Street), Villa Place (Second Street), Rica Court (Third Street), Paulding Road (now Old Town and the southern end of North Dogwood), Jones Road (now part of Rockmart south of Old Town), and Division Street (Sugar Hill Street).  Even Rockmart Road ran down what is now North Dogwood  Street.  Pate Street is unnamed.

In late 1955, the Town of Fullerville began proceedings to disband the town. The last announcement appeared in the Carroll County Georgian on 5 January 1956.  This allowed for a bill to be introduced to return the town charter.  Rader Farr, mayor pro-tem of Fullerville signed the Notice of Intention to Apply for Local Legislation.  It was approved 13 February 1956.[9]  Villa Rica extends the city limits to cover Fullerville with request for the legislature at the same time that Fullerville requested to be disbanded.[10]