The Davis-Dickey home was torn down to its foundation in June (Photo courtesy John Rosemeyer) |
Stone Mountain Park’s Davis-Dickey home, which was formerly owned by a
Confederate colonel, was demolished in early June after officials decided it
was damaged beyond repair by an accidental fire in November 2023.
I
don’t normally report something that occurred two months ago, but I only became
aware of the demolition last week. I had
checked on the fate of the structure previously and was last on site in
early April. A blue tarp placed over the roof after the blaze was in pieces
then, leaving sections of the roof open to the elements.
Park spokesman John Bankhead on Tuesday forwarded me a press release that was sent out ahead of the work, but I did not receive at the time. He said no photos of the demolition were available and no news outlets covered the story. I did see a photo on Flickr.
The
Stone Mountain Memorial Association, which oversees the state venue, said structural engineers made an assessment and historic preservationists were consulted before the decision
was made.
More damage is evident on the other side of the house (Stone Mtn Park Dept. of Public Safety) |
“Reconstructing
the home to 1840’s era construction standards would be next to impossible and
incredibly expensive,” the association said in the release. “In addition, with
it now being part of a state park, the building would need to be reconstructed
as ADA compliant with additional points of entry, most likely an interior
elevator and ramps added for access and egress."
All
items, mostly period furniture and antiques, not lost to the fire are in
storage, Bankhead said.
The Davis-Dickey home was built in the community of Dickey,
west of Albany, Ga., for the family of slaveholder Charles Milton Davis, who
left Aiken, S.C., in 1850.
The home was completed in about 1856. Davis, a cotton planter, was the third-largest slaveholder in Calhoun
County with 78 enslaved persons. He owned about 3,500 acres, according to
census records. Charles and his wife Agnes lived there with seven children.
Davis served as a colonel in the Calhoun County cavalry. Other websites indicated he served as well in the 12th Battalion Georgia Cavalry and the 10th Georgia State Troops. All of the units appeared to be stationed in Georgia.
The 6,250-square-foot home was broken into quarters and moved in 1961 to the park for reconstruction. The house faced the park's famous Confederate memorial carving of Lee, Jackson and Jefferson.
The fire ravaged-home before its demolition (Photo courtesy John Rosemeyer) |
Now it's gone, with no apparent replacement in sight.
Memorial association CEO Bill Stephens said: "We take historic preservation seriously at Stone Mountain Park, and though the Dickey/Davis House was the centerpiece of the Historic Square, none of these buildings are original to the region, each were transferred and reconstructed here from other parts of the state.
“The costs of restoration are prohibitive, and there is currently no funding source available for complete restoration. The building also cannot be secured in its current state, potentially making it a target for vandalism or potential injury by a park visitor."
Confederate carving and lawn at Stone Mountain Park (Chris Yunker, Wikimedia) |
They write that the plantation complex buttressed Georgia’s resistance to desegregation in the late 1950s and early 1960s and is a mixture of fact and fantasy. The authors suggest a reinterpretation of the square is critically important.
Stone Mountain rises behind the home before the fire (Jason Armstrong, HMdb.org) |
A planned museum at Memorial Hall will cover the site's entire past.
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