In 1945, Fischer sold the house and gardens to John W. and Frania Lee. John Lee died in 1951, but Frania continued to live there until 1959. Mrs. Lee then sold close to 50 acres to the Atlanta Diocese of the Catholic Church for $10. The home became D’Youville Academy, a convent and school for girls.  The name D’Youville came from the founder of the Sisters of Charity or Gray Nuns of Montreal, Marie Marguerite d’Youville.

Today I’m focusing on photos and documents related to the General Motors assembly plant in Doraville. On opening day, June 15, 1948, assembly line workers had a big surprise when a 1909 Buick came down the line. Jesse Lee Smith of Lawrenceville drove the vintage car that had been bought by his father and was still running just fine. Smith was a new employee of the plant, working in the chassis department. (The Eagle, Tucker Federal newsletter, March-April 1984)

Ida Wallace Carroll was the daughter of William R. Wallace and Nancy Wallace. William R. Wallace owned a water-powered lumber mill and produced fine furniture in Chamblee along Nancy Creek along what is now Chamblee Dunwoody Road.

John Ripley Forbes set up nature and science centers in over 30 states and 200 communities across the United States. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Chattahoochee Nature Center in Roswell and Dunwoody Nature Center. He is responsible for the John Ripley Forbes Big Trees Forest Preserve on Roswell Road next door to North Fulton Service Center in Sandy Springs.

The Brookhaven Little League played their games at Murphey Candler Park and started out with four major teams and six minor teams.  The President of the League in 1959 was Wilbur Sanders.  For $.15 in 1961, you could get a hot dog at the park.  The park started out with one field, but had three by 1969.   Nearby Keswick park was used on occasion for a game as the number of children grew. 

I’ve had this subject on my mind for a while because I went to Camp Chattahoochee, only one time and in the 1960s. The location of Camp Chattahoochee is now the Chattahoochee Nature Center on Willeo Road in Roswell.

A search of Atlanta newspapers doesn’t reveal much about the camp, but an ad appears in the 1965 Atlanta Constitution. Camp Chattahoochee is described as a camp for boys and Camp Greenbriar for girls both in Roswell Georgia. The have both day and boarding camp and the director is Horace Holden. I don’t recall the name Camp Greenbriar from my experience.

The first record of Morgan Falls School is January 1907, when the Atlanta Constitution reported Morgan Falls as one of two new schools opening in Fulton County. The other was on Stewart Avenue. 

Morgan Falls Dam was constructed to help supply electricity to the area. The same Atlanta Constitution articles states, “The county was aided in the construction of the Morgan Falls school by the company of that name with its secretary and treasurer, Forrest Adair, very instrumental in the work.”

As I mentioned in my August 28 blog post, I was a member of the safety patrols at Pleasantdale Elementary School during the 1969-1970 school year and went on their annual trip. We went by train to Washington, D. C. and then on to New York City. It was a lot of fun, not only visiting those cities which I had never been to, but spending so much time with school friends away from the usual school setting.

This week a new exhibit opens at DeKalb History Center, located on the first floor of the Historic DeKalb Courthouse. The exhibit is called “Home: The United Methodist Children’s Home” and tells the history through photographs, text and audio. The exhibit will be open Monday through Fridays from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, Saturdays 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.

Decatur-based photographer Beate Sass took the photographs and conducted interviews for the exhibit, combining the two into a manuscript. Moira Bucciarelli assisted with interviews. Past residents, employees and volunteers of the UMCH were interviewed and recorded.