**Note 3/24/2015: The stone and blue building was NOT the Center! See blog from 10/9/14**
Sometime during my first year at the
Center, I expressed to Clayton an interest in the history of the Stewart Center. In response, he handed me a yellow folder
containing fragile pages of type-written history, compiled around 1950. The histories were written by volunteers and
board members of the Center, some of whom had even been present for the Center’s
beginnings. It was through this folder
that I began to understand that the impact of the Stewart Center was far
greater than I had ever imagined, as 96 years began to take the form of human lives.
While
I knew that the Stewart Center had been located in another neighborhood before
moving to Reynoldstown in 1950, it wasn’t until reading this little yellow
history that I realized the original locations might still be in
existence. I was excited to discover the
addresses of the first two buildings amidst the written history: 219
Bellwood Avenue and 816 Pelham Street. I immediately searched for their location on
Google maps, and discovered that both addresses (although the street names have
changed) are both located in the English Avenue neighborhood of Atlanta. This called for a field trip.
One
morning, I drove to English Avenue and began winding my way through the
neighborhood. It was quickly apparent to
me that the original location on Bellwood Avenue (now Donald Lee Hollowell Pkwy)
was no longer in existence, as the street was lined with stores and vacant
lots. As I headed toward Pelham Street,
I was temporarily distracted by a huge, old, abandoned school. I surmised that this was where the Stewart
Center children would have attended.
As I continued down the street, I
suddenly knew that I was in the right place.
Sitting on the corner of English Ave and Pelham Street, was a stone house with lots of baby blue trim. My eyes grew watery as I climbed
out of my car and beheld the original “Blue Center.”
Beyond the eerily similar blue
paint, two other facts confirmed that I was in the right place. First of all, the address matched. Secondly, next door to the house was a church. Similar to our current location, the Pelham
Street Center had two buildings. My
little yellow history explained that when it came time for the Center to move
to Reynoldstown, the Chapel/Recreation building had been sold to “St. James
Negro Baptist Church” while the main building had been sold as an apartment
house. St. James Baptist Church, to
which the Chapel/Recreation building had been sold, still owns and operates out
of the building.
________________________________________________________________________________
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| The first Center was located at 219
Bellwood Avenue (now Donald Lee Hollowell Pkwy) |
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| Click the article for an enlarged version |
As the above article mentions, the parents of most children who attended the Stewart Day Nursery worked at the Exposition Cotton Mill*** and lived in the Bellwood community of Atlanta. (Bellwood is now called English Avenue.) Since these parents worked long hours for low wages at the mill, their children often lacked adequate supervision. The Center provided a safe, affordable, happy place for children to be while their parents were at work.
The Center eventually outgrew their small cottage (shown in the top photo above) and Frances Stewart purchased the English Avenue School annex located nearby in the same neighborhood.
"Mrs. Stewart passed away September 9, 1924, after
a lingering illness, leaving a legacy of ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) for
the erection of a new building to care for the increase of the work. This building was erected at 816 Pelham
Street, N.W. It was completed October
10, 1927."
The school annex was demolished and a new building was constructed. A few years later, a second building was constructed on site, for use as a Chapel and recreational activities. The two buildings still stand today, and are pictured below.
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| The red and white building to the left was the Chapel and recreation building, and the stone and blue building (we sure love that color...) to the right was the main building. While the main building gives the appearance of being abandoned, it is actually amidst the renovation process. (Clayton and I met the owner, and she allowed us to tour the inside!) The Chapel is still owned by the St. James Baptist Church, to whom it was sold in 1950. |
In 1950, due to "neighborhood changes", it was decided to relocate the Center. The English Avenue buildings were sold; the Chapel to "St. James Negro Baptist Church" and the main building sold to be used as an apartment house. The Center's current location at 153 Stovall Street SE in Reynoldstown was purchased, and opened on July 10, 1950.
Sources:
***The
Exposition Cotton Mill was originally built for the International
Cotton Exposition of 1881, and remained open until 1969. It was located
on West Marietta Street (now called Joseph E. Lowery Blvd) and was
within walking distance of Bellwood and the Stewart Center. (For photos
of the cotton mill from the 1940's, see this photo album from the
Atlanta History Center: http://album.atlantahistorycenter.com/store/Category/432-exposition-cotton-mills-photographs.aspx)
History of Andrew and Frances Stewart Good Will Center. First History 1916-1951. M.J. Long.
"Stewart Goodwill Center Will Have Larger Quarters."
The Atlanta Constitution, ProQuest Historical Newspapers Atlanta Constitution
(1868-1945).
"Little Tots of the Andrew Stewart Center." The
Atlanta Constitution, ProQuest Historical Newspapers Atlanta Constitution
(1868-1945).
