Contributor

Southern Daughter: The Life of Margaret Mitchell

Book

More Info

The Margaret Mitchell House and Museum, located along Peachtree Street in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is operated by the Atlanta History Center. While living at the home, Mitchell wrote the bulk of her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Gone with the Wind. Since the home opened to the public on May 17, 1997, it has become a staple of the local community as an important literary center and event venue. 

Margaret Mitchell House and Museum

This walking tour starts at the Atlanta History Center's Margaret Mitchell House and winds its way north through Midtown with stops at several landmarks and numerous museums. 

Atlanta Midtown and Museums Walking Tour

Starting at the "Castle on Peachtree" this driving tour heads south along Peachtree Street into Downtown Atlanta. The tour stops at 20 Atlanta landmarks including museums, monuments, and historic buildings.

Peachtree Castle to Peachtree Street Driving Tour

Admin

After touring the museum, experience the rest of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta Visitors Center, take a look inside cash-processing operations, and get a glimpse into the bank's automated vault.&nbsp;

The Atlanta Monetary Museum, housed in the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, features exhibits that highlight the role of money in world history and document the history of banking in the United States. 

Atlanta Monetary Museum and Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

Also known as the "Old Lady of Peachtree", the Wimbish House was built for William Wimbish and his family in 1906. They lived there until 1919 when the Women's Club bought it. Its design was inspired by&nbsp;their French friend's home and as such resembles a French chateau. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. It is available to rent for a variety of functions including weddings and bar mitzvahs.

Located in the historic Wimbish House, the Atlanta Women's Club has been a vital, driving force in the city's social, cultural and economic development. It was founded in 1895 after a meeting of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, which was held at the Cotton States Exposition in Piedmont Park. The club's members have participated in numerous philanthropic and community-related activities in educational, arts, and civic areas. During its first two decades, the club played an important role in establishing the airport (now the busiest in the world), a mobile library, the first art gallery (in the Wimbish House), the city's kindergartens (by advocating they be incorporated into the public school system), Tallulah Falls High School, and many others. The club continues to be a vibrant and vocal force in the city.

Atlanta Women's Club (Wimbish House)

Additional Information&nbsp; For additional information about the Castle&nbsp;please see the city of Atlanta's webpage at&nbsp;<a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.atlantaga.gov/index.aspx?page=455">http://www.atlantaga.gov/index.aspx?page=455</a>.

The Castle is situated in midtown Atlanta near the High Museum of Art. The structure was built by Atlanta businessman Ferdinand McMillan as his private residence in 1904. The home housed a number of facilities related to the local arts community following McMillan's death and was named a historic landmark in 1989. The structure is now owned by New York investor Bryan Latham.

The Castle (aka Fort Peace)

The High Museum was founded as the Atlanta Art Association but it did not have its first physical location until 1926, when Mrs. Joseph High donated her family home to the museum. Another building was constructed next to it in 1955 to increase its size. The current building was constructed in 1968, then called the Atlanta Memorial Arts Center. It was named as such to honor the people, many of whom were from Atlanta, who died in a plane crash at the Orly Airport in Paris on June 3rd 1962. They were departing from a museum-sponsored trip to Europe, which included a visit to Paris and the Louvre. The plane crashed on take-off. Only two flight attendants survived the crash; the rest of the crew and all passengers were killed, many of whom were prominent Atlanta citizens. As a gesture of sympathy, the Louvre donated the Rodin sculpture, "The Shade," to the museum in the fall of that year.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

The High Museum was established in 1905 and is the leading art museum in the Southeast. It houses over 15,000 works of art that are on permanent display and has featured a variety of artwork on loan from world-class museums such as the Louvre. In 2010, the museum became one of the 100 most-visited art museums in the world after 509,000 individuals passed through its doors that year. Its collection is comprised of American and decorative art, African art, European paintings, African American art, modern and contemporary art, photography, folk art, and self-taught art. Special attention is also paid to works created by Southern artists. Artists represented at the High include Chuck Close, Dorothy Lange, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Claude Monet, Tommaso del Mazza, John Copley, and Walker Evans. The collection also includes a large sculpture called "The Shade" created by Auguste Rodin, which stands outside on the museum grounds. The High's photography collection is large, featuring 6,000 prints. At the core is one of the best Civil Rights era photography holdings in the country.

High Museum of Art

The museum's history dates back to 1983 when the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta put on an exhibit about Jews in Georgia. It included photographs, memorabilia and artifacts from local families. The exhibit was a great success, prompting calls for the establishment of a museum. The next year, the Cuba&nbsp;Family Archives for Southern Jewish History and the Holocuast Resource Center were established thanks to a joint grant from the&nbsp;Historic Records and Publications Commission and the Atlanta Jewish Federation (what is now the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta). The Center, which would grow into the museum, was located in the basement of the Jewish Community Center. Shortly thereafter, using the funds donated by William Breman, the museum opened in the Selig Center where it remains today.&nbsp;

The Breman Jewish Heritage and Holocaust Museum opened in 1996 and, as its name indicates, is dedicated to preserving Jewish history in Georgia and teaching visitors about the Holocaust. To these ends, the museum features permanent and changing exhibits using items from its collection (national touring exhibits are presented as well). Many of these items were donated to the museum from Jewish families from the city and state. Interesting items include the minute books of the Hebrew Ladies' Benevolent Society which date to 1878, and Rabbi Isaac Marcuson's papers from Temple Beth Israel in Macon, Georgia. The museum also features the Cuba Archives, the Weinberg Center for Holocaust Education, the Jewish Genealogical Society of Georgia, and a library. The archives contains over 2,000 manuscripts and 15,000 photographs. The museum is named after Jewish philanthropist William Breman, who owned a steel company called Breman Steel Company. 

Breman Jewish Heritage and Holocaust Museum

The monument stands 55 feet above Pershing Point in Midtown. The five columnns honor the five continents that sent athletes to the 1996 Summer Olympics and the statue is dedicated to the all of the athletes who participated in the games. The statue was a gift from the Prince of Wales with help from local citizens who agreed to raise one-third of the cost of the statue. When Princess Diana was killed in 1997, an estimated 20,000 mourners gathered at the statue. Since that time, the statue has become the symbol of the Midtown neighborhood and the center of celebrations as well as vigils and remembrances. 

Prince Charles Monument-World Athletes Monument 

Architecture and Design Rhodes Hall is a Victorian Romanesque Revival 9,000-square-foot house inspired by the Rhineland castles that Rhodes admired on a trip to Europe. Architect Willis F. Denny designed the unique home with Stone Mountain granite, incorporating medieval Romanesque, Victorian, and Arts and Crafts designs. After two years of construction, the house was completed in 1904. It cost nearly $50,000 and was one of the most grand of the mansions overlooking Peachtree Street. The Rhodes family referred to their house as "Le Rève" ("The Dream").&nbsp;
Rhodes Hall is unparalleled, architecturally, in Georgia. Few residential structures were built in the Romanesque Revival style. By the time Rhodes wanted this home, the style was already deemed unfashionable. The architect, Willis F. Denny, adapted the medieval Romanesque style in the design of a 20th-century home. The mansion was an instant success in the Atlanta social scene. One writer in an Atlanta paper even said that “in the war of wealth and opulence waged along Peachtree Street at the time, it can probably be said that Amos Rhodes’ fortress won hands down.”&nbsp;Its "medieval" appearance reflects the Southern fascination with the Middle Ages during the 19th and early 20th century. Inspired by popular works such as Walter Scott's Ivanhoe&nbsp;(1820), and by cultural ties to England and Scotland, many members of the white Southern elite romanticized the medieval past and drew inspiration from medieval knights, chivalry, and courtly life.Confederate Symbolism and Medieval Nostalgia Rhodes Hall features a prominent series of stained and painted glass windows, produced by the renowned von Gerichten Art Glass Company, depicting moments in the history of the Confederacy. For example, the panels show Jefferson Davis's election as president of the Confederate States of America, alongside portraits of other Confederate leaders (such as Robert E. Lee) and images from famous battles. As historian Richard Utz writes, these visually striking stained glass panels form "a church-like shrine to the 'Lost Cause,'" looking wistfully back to the antebellum South. The medieval-inspired aesthetics of the castle and its decor further amplifies the nostalgia, highlighting the connection between Southern gentlemen and heroic medieval knights and aristocrats. Historic Preservation of the House 
After the deaths of Mrs. and Mr. Rhodes in 1927 and 1928, their two children deeded the house to the State of Georgia. The deed had a restriction that the property could only be used for "historic purposes." In 1930, the building opened as the home of the State Archives and functioned as such until 1965, when a more modern facility was opened elsewhere. Rhodes Hall continued to serve as the Peachtree Branch of the Archives.
In 1983, The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation signed a long-term lease for Rhodes Hall with the State of Georgia. Serving as headquarters for The Georgia Trust, Rhodes Hall has undergone significant restoration.
Rhodes Hall has house tours on Saturdays (from 10 - 2, the last tour starts at 1). Group tours can be given on other days with advance arrangement. Rhodes Hall is also available for rentals including weddings, receptions, corporate events, cocktail gatherings, and birthday parties.

Rhodes Memorial Hall, commonly known as Rhodes Hall or the Castle on Peachtree, is a historic house located in Atlanta, Georgia. It was built as the home of Amos Giles Rhodes, founder of Atlanta-based Rhodes Furniture. The Romanesque Revival house occupies a prominent location on Peachtree Street, the main street of Atlanta, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It is open to the public and has been the home of The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation since 1983.

Atlanta Midtown and Museums Walking Tour

Margaret Mitchell House and Museum

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information