Jackson County GaArchives History .....History of Harmony Grove-Commerce, Chapter 4 1949
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Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 August 21, 2004, 3:33 am

CHAPTER IV
IDENTIFICATION OF HOUSES BY STREETS BEFORE THE TOWN WAS INCORPORATED

   Beginning with South Elm Street, situated just below the oil mill on the
knoll where now is the Harmony Grove Mill Ball Park, was a house and lot known
as the Rose residence. In front of Water's Store, on the opposite side of the
rail-road, was the Ezekiel Anthony small three room house, still standing, with
additions. On the site of the Harmony Grove Mill office was located a small log
building where John Embrey lived at the close of the Civil War. Josephine Carter
taught school in this building in the late sixties. This school was attended by
H. E. and L. G. Hardman, Billy McGinnis and other children of the community.
Later, this building was occupied by R. S. Cheney as a residence during the time
he was teaching in the first frame wooden school building located on the site of
the present Grammar School. W. B. Powers lived here in 1877, moving from
Oglethorpe County. Later, the building was bought by Mrs. M. S. Webb who sold it
to the Harmony Grove Cotton Mill. The next house on South Elm Street was located
on the hill, the present site of the late R. L. Daughtry home, and is now owned
by the Harmony Grove Mill. This house was occupied in 1875 and 1876 by C. T.
Nash; then by J. H. Campbell who sold it to A. H. Boone, who sold it to L. G.
Hardman in 189o. On the Bran-non Rice lot there was a small house built by
Wilson Lord which still stands on the rear of this lot. The next house on South
Elm Street was the J. H. Campbell house which was first occupied by his son,
Chan Campbell, who had a small store o nthe corner where Col. W. A. Stevenson
now lives. The Campbell house is now occupied by Luther Chandler and is the
property of Mrs. T. C. Hardman. Where the Baptist Church now stands was a log
school house prior to 1874.

   The first two-story school structure was erected in 1874 on the site of -the
present grammar school building, the top story belonging to and used by the
Masons. On the site where the old log school house stood the Baptist Church
building was erected in the same year. Both of these lots were donated by C. W.
Hood as was also one acre for a cemetery. Just back of the late Charley Cooper
home,. or house, at the head of the small branch, Rush Cromer had a saw mill and
a cotton gin. This was the year 1876, being the year that the North-eastern
Railroad was built. About '77 or '78, a house was erected for R. S. Cheney, the
first depot agent, which is now the home of Dr. A. A. Rogers. Dr. L. G. Hardman
built his first doctor's office at the corner of the depot platform and erected
his home, which was used for a hotel. It still stands on Oak Street just behind
the present L. G. Hardman residence. On the corner of South Elm Street where
stands the present City Hall was originally a spring, before the railroad was
built. Sometime after the railroad was built, W. T. Thurmond had a wool carding
machinery shop and some years later a planing mill and furniture factory, which
was operated by Albert Dunstan, who later became a Baptist Missionary to Brazil,
South America. J. A. Seegar owned and ran a livery stable in a wooden building
where the Roxy Theater now stands. On the corner of South Elm Street and Central
Avenue stood a two-story building known as Strickland Hall. The lower floor was
used for legal matters, holding courts, etc. The second floor was used for local
entertainment-slight of hand and other forms of public amusements. T. J. Allen's
photo-graph gallery was in the second story of this building. Just in the rear
of this building on Central Avenue was a boarding house known as the Jennie
Butler house. After her marriage it was known as the Jennie Haley house. Here
many transient travellers found lodging and many country people, when they came
to town, ate their dinner at the price of 15 and 25 cents.

   Continuing north on Elm Street, the next was the Echols House, just above the
old Central Hotel site. C. W. Hood, Sr's store was next which stood just south
of the R. L. Sanders' house at the driveway of Mrs. C. W. Hood, Sr. Between this
store and the railroad was a blacksmith shop run by W. T. Stapler who moved to
town about 1879 or '80. In the woods at the rear of the present late B. M.
Durham house, C. W. Hood operated a gin and threshing machine. Mr. Hood built a
house for his sister, Mrs. C. A. M. Mann, mother of W. D. Mann, where Mrs. P. B.
Trawick now lives. Just above the Mann house was a house built for, or by, W. L.
Williamson, who was clerking for C. W. Hood, and moved into this house in 1879.
This afterwards was occupied by A. B. Deadwyler and later by his mother, Mrs. V.
H. Deadwyler. Just on the corner of Jefferson Street was the home of Isaac
Wilbanks. His wife was a sister of J. C. and H. W. Wheeler. This home later was
owned by B. B. Hawks. Isaac Wilbanks was one of the early merchants of Harmony
Grove and erected the first brick store, located where Mrs. M. R. Barron's Dress
Shop now is. On the opposite side of Jefferson Street on the site of the
Standard Oil Station was the home of W. S. Ed-wards who was once one of the
early merchants of the town and trustee of the Harmony Grove Common Schools.
This was also the house which F. H. Aderhold bought and lived in until his
death. The other house just above was the home of Addison Chrisler, afterwards
the home of Dr. F. M. Hub-bard, where he spent his life as a physician.
  Beginning on South Broad Street just within the incorporate limit was the W.
C. Farrabee two-story building, erected in 1879. Going north the next was the C.
T. Nash dwelling, which was known as the Eberhart place and where John I. Ray
lived for several years. Later this was owned by Mrs. C. T. Nash. Next was the
old Eli Shankle home off the road, east. Later this place was owned by Mrs.
Virginia Baugh who sold it to Mrs. W. M. Barber in 1883. It is now known as the
Colquitt Hardman home. Next was the Jonah Bond two-story home, later owned by
Mrs. T. E. Key, where Harvey Bray now lives. On the adjoining lot was the Rush
Cromer home, an exact duplicate of his brother-in-law, Jonah Bond's house. It is
now the Will D. Martin home. Next was the home occupied by L. H. Gober,
afterwards bought and occupied by W. T. Harber. And adjoining this was a house
in which a Mrs. Carithers lived which was later bought by Col. R. L. J. Smith.
Adjoining this was the Methodist Church building, which later was remodelled and
replaced by the present brick structure. Just above the Methodist Church on
Cherry Street was the J. A. Segar home, later owned and occupied by T. A.
Little. Just above on Cherry Street was the Green Sewell home, later bought by
W. F. Langston who sold it to P. W. Sheppard. It is now owned by Reagan Sanders.
Next was the S. M. Shankle home of which the ell part, the present kitchen, is
more than a hundred years old. The main body was built about 1879 or '80. On the
corner of Cherry and Carnesville Streets was the house known as the Bowden
house, originally owned by James W. Shankle, who married Martha Borders,
daughter of Isaiah Borders, and who died in 1847. His widow later married James
Bowden. Just across the Carnesville Street was the Caleb Wood home. The original
house is still preserved in the backyard of Miss Jessie Wood. This property
became the Jesse P. Wood home. Adjoining was the Jasper N. Wood home. North of
Carnesville Street, just to the rear of the First National Bank, was the Solomon
Seegar home, where he ran the Northeastern Hotel. It was later bought by W. A.
Quillian and is still standing. Just below, on the same street, was the Eli
Riley house. In the rear of this, near Claud Little's home, was the home of John
C. Yeargin, who was the son-in-law of Solomon Seegar. Farther down on the same
street, toward North Broad, was a building that, for a long while, was occupied
by J. T. Allen, photographer. Farther on was a building owned by Kimsey Smith
and later owned by L. J. Sharp. Following North Board Street was a store
building owned by J. N. Wood, next to W. A. Dale's tin shop and S. G. Dale's
shoe shop, originally Dr. Deadwyler's office. Later it was occupied by T. M.
Daniel. Next were two or three buildings occupied by Negroes. These buildings
were owned by J. T. Quillian and E. B. Anderson. One was Tom Norris' restaurant.
His chief business was feeding prisoners and doing white-washing. Next in the
hollow, Jeff Freeman lived and in this house was a Negro barber shop, later a
Chinaman's laundry. As I recall there were only three or four Chinamen who ever
lived here and ran a laundry. Just in the rear of these houses was the Dr. V. H.
Deadwyler home, later owned by J. T. Quillian. Following North Broad Street was
the John A. Williford home on the site of the Davis Warehouse. On the site of
the A. B. Deadwyler home was the home of Dr. Alexander, a dentist. The G. L.
Carson, Sr., home was the home of Marion P. Wood. The last home on North Broad
was a house on the site of the J. B. Hardman home.

   On the corner of North Broad and Homer Streets originally was located a
cotton gin, operated by W. B. Powers and W. T. Thurmond, where later was the
residence of W. A. Dale and the residence of D. C. Nichols. Just in the rear of
the Nichols' house was a small two-room dwelling with a brick basement, which
still stands. This building was occupied in 1877 by M. L. Parker, superintendent
of the public schools, later by W. T. Stapler. Continuing up Homer Street, there
was a house above the railroad sidetrack, on the present Harden lot, which Dr.
F. M. Hubbard occupied when he first came to Harmony Grove in 1883. Just above
this, was the C. M. Wood home; where he lived all his life. It is now the home
of Mrs. John Carson. The First Presbyterian Church was located on the site of
the L. L. Davis home. North of this was the Riley lot, the house originally
built and occupied by R. L. Hardman, next to the home of Mrs. W. B. Wagnon. The
Wagnon lot was part of the Sander's land. On the west side of Homer Street was
the home of W. J. Goss, now occupied by Mrs. P. C. Strickland. The last house on
Homer Street was the home of D. J. Sanders, still standing on the top of the hill.


Additional Comments:
From

HISTORY OF HARMONY GROVE - COMMERCE
JACKSON COUNTY, GEORGIA

BY
THOMAS COLQUITT HARDMAN
1810-1949

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