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    Augusta in Vintage Postcards
    Augusta in Vintage Postcards
    Augusta in Vintage Postcards
    Ebook183 pages1 hour

    Augusta in Vintage Postcards

    By Joseph M. Lee III

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    About this ebook

    In the early 1900s, America was swept up in the postcard craze. All over the country, people seized on these charming snapshots of life as a means of keeping in touch with friends and family, as well as seeing strange and exciting parts of the world.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArcadia Publishing
    Release dateNov 1, 1997
    ISBN9781439619759
    Augusta in Vintage Postcards
    Author

    Joseph M. Lee III

    In Augusta in Vintage Postcards, Joseph M. Lee III, an Augusta native and member of the Richmond County Historical Society, has selected over 200 images from his vast collection of Augusta postcards. Coupled with informative captions, these views illustrate almost every aspect of Augusta life�the importance of river commerce to the local community, the striking landscapes and golf history, and the beautiful homes and southern hospitality that make Augusta an unforgettable city. Whether a newcomer to Augusta's charms or a lifelong resident, Lee's work has something for everyone. August in Vintage Postcards is a unique tribute to the city's past, sure to be treasured for years to come.

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      Book preview

      Augusta in Vintage Postcards - Joseph M. Lee III

      completed.

      INTRODUCTION

      This picture history is a snapshot view of Augusta as it was in the first two decades of the twentieth century. The face of Augusta has been dramatically altered since that time. As Augusta prepares to move into the twenty-first century and into a new millennium, this book can serve as a benchmark or point of reference from which we may measure how much it has changed.

      Over the past two hundred years, Augusta has survived floods, fires, earthquakes, and a civil war. In the first two decades of the twentieth century, Augustans had to deal with two major catastrophes: the August 26–27, 1908 flood, which was Augusta’s most destructive flood, and the March 22, 1916 fire, which burned over seven hundred structures and left over three thousand people homeless. These were all just notable events compared to the self destruction of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s to create parking lots, office buildings, apartment buildings, libraries, bus stations, motels, shopping centers, medical complexes, roads, and bridges—all in the name of progress. The legacy of our heritage left to us by our forebearers appeared to have been forgotten or ignored. Fortunately, it has recently been rediscovered, and our history is now being promoted as one of our greatest assets.

      In the first two decades of the twentieth century, postcard collecting became a national fad. The picture postcard, or view card, was the most popular type of card. Every aspect of Augusta’s history was documented during this period. Street scenes, homes, businesses, civic buildings, transportation in all forms, floods, fires, fire engines, bridges, schools, medical facilities, military encampments, orphanages, parks, and more were captured by the photographer to provide us with an unparalleled visual record of Augusta. Many postcard views are the only visual record we have on a subject. Messages found on many cards embellish the picture, as the writer expresses his or her views of the surrounding world. These view cards, supplemented by a few contemporary amateur photographs and a few billhead views of businesses, comprise this picture history of Augusta’s first two decades of the twentieth century.

      During this same period, Augusta’s civic and business leaders were engaged in a heavy promotional campaign to build up Augusta as a commercial center. Thomas Loyless, the editor and publisher of the Augusta Chronicle from 1903 to 1919, was an avid civic promoter who used the newspaper to promote Augusta. The Augusta Chamber of Commerce was organized in 1905, largely due to prodding by Loyless and the Chronicle. His efforts were also behind the construction of the ten-story Chronicle Building, now known as the Marion Building (Bell and Crabbe, The Augusta Chronicle 1785–1960, pp. 150–151). Local lobbyist promoted Augusta as a splendid site for a World War I training camp, and as a result, Camp Hanock was established on the west side of the Hill. The literature published by the various organizations involved in the promotional campaigns provides outstanding documentation for the view cards. The campaign literature is reflected in the captions on a few of the cards.

      The photographs used to print the postcards were taken by various photographers. Most are undocumented. Some postcard firms had salaried photographers that would travel to a town on assignment to take pictures. Many of the photos were taken by local photographers. There were photo supply stores that had negatives on file for anyone to use. There are a number of Augusta views issued by different printers that are from the same original negative on file at some photo supply store. Anyone could take a photo of a scene or business and send it to Germany to have it printed. The highest quality cards were printed in Germany before 1914, when WW I began. One Augusta photographer that is documented on some of the prettiest Augusta cards made is Juan Montell. Montell’s business was continued by his nephew Frank Christian Sr., whose son, Frank Christian Jr., is the current owner of the Frank Christian Studio. There are a number of cards with a local person or business listed as the publisher: Silvers 5 & 10 Cent Store, Steve’s Place, Albion News Co., Murphy & Farrar, John F. Dugas (African-American subjects), Miss W.D. Thomas, Williams New Book Store, Murphy Stationery Co., and Prontaut Jewelers, among others. All the postcards, photographs, and billheads used in the book are from the author’s collection.

      G. Lloyd Preacher was an architect in Augusta during the postcard tour period. He designed so many buildings that he has been credited with creating modern Augusta. When it is known that a building pictured in a postcard was designed by Preacher, it is so noted.

      Here is one note about the direction the streets run in Augusta with regard to the compass. Broad Street actually runs from southeast to northwest. For ease of explanation, the postcard publishers assumed that Broad Street ran directly from east to west. All scenes looking towards East Boundary are described as looking east. All scenes looking towards Fifteenth Street are described as looking west. This continues for all streets running parallel to Broad Street. All streets crossing Broad Street are assumed to be running north and south. The same assumption is made for all directions given in this book.

      Queen City of the South Atlantic States, Queen City of the Savannah Valley, The Coming City of the South, The Lowell of the South, and Garden City of the South were all labels applied to Augusta by its promoters during this era. I hope this book will provide you with a lasting visual record of what Augusta was like during those times.

      One

      BROAD STREET

      Broad Street was the heart and soul of Augusta, as well as the center of business and commerce. In the early 1900s, Augustans lived and worked all along its 2-mile length from East Boundary to Fifteenth Street. Our tour will begin at the eastern end of Broad Street.

      Lower Broad Street, looking east from Lincoln (Third) Street, c. 1905. The corner house at 267 was the home of attorney Irvin Alexander, who was also secretary of the Alexander Drug Company. The second house at 261 was occupied by Hugh H. Alexander, who was associated with Alexander, Johnson and Steiner, dealers in real estate, rentals, loans, and insurance. These homes

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