“Inevitably, Buckhead draws comparisons to other cosmopolitan enclaves; Beverly Hills, Georgetown, the Soho section of New York city, even London’s Chelsea, with perhaps some modicum of truth in each of them. Still, despite the obvious parallels or the protestations of the U.S. Mail, there is but one Buckhead. More than a place, it is a way of being.”
1838
“The thriving community of Buckhead…received its initial impetus on December 18, 1838, when Daniel Johnson deeded the land to Henry Irby.
Later, in early 1840, someone, perhaps Irby himself, shot a large buck…The buck’s head was mounted on a post at the spring and the locality, including Irby’s tavern, came to be known, in something of a jocular vein, as Buckhead. Even so, the name has persisted to the present and is indelibly associated with the Atlanta area.”
Image: Sketch by Julian Harris of his proposed Buckhead sculpture.
Early 1900s
Between 1908 and 1920, a number of noted Atlantans established permanent residence in the Buckhead District, including John T Grant, heir to a railroad and real estate fortune. When John T Grant married Annie Inman, who was from one of Atlanta’s most successful cotton and steel families, her father gifted the couple the Kimball House Hotel as a wedding gift.
Image: Sketch by Julian Harris of his proposed Buckhead sculpture.
The Grant home later became Atlanta’s most prestigious private club, known today as the Cherokee Town Club.
Image caption goes here.
“Buckhead is brimming with awe-inspiring residences designed during its most opulent era— mysterious mansions that continue to inspire local architects’ modern-day masterpieces.
When we saunter down a stately Buckhead street, why do we ooh and ahh? The answer is synonymous with the setting itself: pure grandeur, dashed with grace.”
1920 - 1930
Not long afterward, well-to-do Atlantans, developed a yen for the country, especially during the summer months. In 1904 Robert F. Maddox, Atlanta banker, bought a building site off the east side of the Dickey farm, fronting the north side of Paces Ferry Road, and containing 73 acres. A few years later, he built a handsome home on the property -since 1967, site of the Governor’s Mansion.
Image: Sketch by Julian Harris of his proposed Buckhead sculpture.
Image: The Mansion Hotel & Residence on Peachtree. Photographed by David Christensen.
“It was just another lovely tree-studded street in Atlanta’s handsome Buckhead, a top drawer residential area just in from the hustle and bustle of Peachtree Road, close to downtown, yet as removed and serene as if it were an island unto itself.”
