By Emily Taff
At the CPNO monthly member meeting October 16, Charlie Paine, with Historic Atlanta, and Susan Coleman, with the City’s Historic Preservation Studio, gave a brief presentation of the recently completed Atlanta LGBTQ+ Historic Context Statement.
Historic context statements identify important themes in history and then relate those themes to the built environment. While it is not intended to be a complete narrative history of the LGBTQ+ experience in Atlanta, the document seeks to establish an understanding for what resources may be historically significant under the identified themes. The Atlanta LGBTQ+ Historic Context Statement defines nine historic themes that can be used to better understand the history of Atlanta’s LGBTQ+ places and spaces. These themes provide context on areas of Atlanta history that proved pivotal for the LGBTQ+ communities.
The Atlanta LGBTQ+ Historic Context Statement provides the starting point for formal recognition of historic LGBTQ+ places and spaces, open doors for property owners to Local, State, and Federal historic preservation tax and zoning incentives, and serves as a springboard for other preservation-minded programs and research and much more.
Charlie noted that Candler Park (along with Little Five Points) has one of the highest concentrations of LGBTQ-significant sites that have not been lost here in Atlanta. The map of a selection of nearby sites identified in the Historic Context is shown here (click or tap to enlarge).
The underlying map is the Updated National Register map from 2005. It includes houses and apartment buildings constructed between the 1930s and 1955. Note that the boundaries of the historic district are not quite the same as the City of Atlanta’s definition for the Candler Park neighborhood. The National Register district excludes commercial buildings on Moreland and DeKalb Avenues and includes parts of Lake Claire east of Clifton.