Ralph Glaze was born in 1943 at Chamblee Hospital, run by Dr. Mendenhall. His parents had moved from Stone Mountain to property along Peeler Road and Cherry Hill Lane just a few years earlier. They opened a small store at this location. A few years later, they purchased property where Tilly Mill Road meets Winters Chapel and opened H. T. Glaze Groceries.

Donaldson-Bannister Farm is celebrating its sesquicentennial this year and to commemorate the occasion I am sharing the stories of the six families who lived there. The last family to live at Donaldson-Bannister Farm was the Chesnuts, who moved there in 1975.

Editor’s note: The pioneering developer of the residential and commercial centers of Dunwoody has been eager to tell his story of how what is now Perimeter Mall almost became a corridor of apartments resembling Buford Highway. We were happy he spent some time with our reporter.

Dunwoody, Chamblee, Doraville, Sandy Springs, Roswell, and Brookhaven.  These neighboring communities north of Atlanta each have a unique story (or stories) for how their names came about. 

Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941, stars of Hollywood traveled around the United States to promote the sale of war bonds. One of those stars was actress Dorothy Lamour, who came to Decatur and Atlanta in May of 1942 for bond rally events.

This is the story of two soldiers stationed at Camp Gordon in Chamblee, Georgia during World War I. They are Julius Lombardi of New York City and Edward Mauney of Blairsville, Georgia. Thank you to their families for sharing this history.

Julius Lombardi’s granddaughter shared his journey. He first came to New York City from San Marino with his family in 1907, at the age of fourteen. Ten years later, he was drafted and sent to New York’s Camp Upton and soon after to Camp Gordon.

Frank and Hortense Smith, along with their children Frank, Jr. and Bonnie moved into the 1870 home at the corner of Vermack Road and Chamblee Dunwoody Road in Dunwoody in 1956. Bonnie Smith Nichols has returned to the home and property in recent years to share her memories of the family’s time there. 

William R. Wallace and his two brothers came to DeKalb County not long after the Civil War. They were all Confederate veterans and they all built mills in the county. Wallace bought his land along what is now Chamblee Dunwoody Road, along Nancy Creek and including where Chamblee United Methodist Church, The Preserve at Fischer Mansion and D’Youville Condimiums are located today.

What do Dr. C. C. Hart, Dr. J. Cheston King, Veterans Hospital #48, DeKalb Services Center and Brookhaven Park all have in common? At one time or another, they all were located on the southwest corner of Peachtree Road and Osborne Road. DeKalb Services Center and Brookhaven Park are located there today.