A Tucker history scavenger hunt

To celebrate Tucker, Georgia’s ten year anniversary as a city and the U.S. 250th birthday, the city came up with a scavenger hunt with ten historic sites to visit. The idea was to take a selfie at each site, then stop by city hall and receive an official ten-year medallion. My neighbor, friend and fellow history fan Debbie Miller found out about this event and mapped out our journey. We began our mission early one morning due to the hot weather and moved quickly between most sites, staying a little longer at Fellowship Baptist Church Cemetery to see what familiar names we could find.

If you enjoy history, I highly recommend visiting each of the ten sites, although you could spread it out over a few hours or a few days. The city’s scavenger hunt and prize medallion time period ended July 11.

Here are the ten sites, each with a brief description. However, the historic sites left me wanting to learn more about the people and places, so they will likely be subjects for this blog in the future.

1) Browning’s Courthouse. The circa 1860 courthouse is located today at 4898 LaVista Road next to the Tucker Recreation Center. When the old courthouse was threatened by the widening of LaVista Road, in its location just down the road, it was moved in 1985 to this new home. In 1988, community members came together to renovate and shore up the building. (Atlanta Journal, Sept. 22, 1988, “A Century Later, Browning’s Courthouse Rededicated at its New Tucker Location”)

Browning’s Courthouse on LaVista Road. (Photo by Valerie Biggerstaff)

2) Cofer Brothers at 2300 Main Street. Founded in 1919 by Kelley & Reid Cofer. Cofer Brothers is an institution in Tucker and Atlanta. The Reid H. Cofer Library and Kelley Cofer Park are named in memory of the founders. (tuckerga.gov)

3) Greenville Henderson family plot is located behind Glenrose Subdivision off Henderson Mill Road.

Greenville Henderson Cemetery, photo by Valerie Biggerstaff.

4) Henderson family cemetery. You may have noticed this family cemetery when shopping at Aldi, Best Buy or any of the stores or restaurants in the area. Gas stations, stores, and restaurants may come and go through the years, but the Henderson family cemetery is still there. William G. Henderson was buried at this spot in 1878, when it was nothing but farm land.

5) Logan’s Corp Marker, a Georgia Historical Society marker near the intersection of LaVista and Midvale Roads. The marker describes the movement of Union troops leg by Logan during July of 1864. The troops returned to Henderson’s Mill to replenish their water supply.

6) We visited Fellowhip Baptist Cemetery, located where Fellowship Primitive Baptist Church was once located along Fellowship Road. There is also an Old Fellowship Cemetery at the end of Wildflower Land, off Brockett Road. A. C. Chewning (1865-1938) is among those buried at Fellowship Baptist Cemetery. He was the first postmaster of Tucker, appointed in 1892. (U.S. Appointment of Postmasters) His 1938 obituary indicates he also built the first store in Tucker in 1892.

7) Tucker High School. The earliest Tucker High School dates to 1900 and was also located where LaVista Road meet Main Street. There were schools in Tucker previous to 1900, such as John B. Johns School, Rehoboth School and a school at the intersection of Lynburn Drive and Lawrenceville Highway in the 1890s. (tuckerga.gov)

This photo of Tucker School, DeKalb County in 1916 is from “DeKalb and Union Counties Educational Survey, 1916.” held in the DeKalb History Center archives.

8) Tucker train depot. The first train to come through Tucker carried 150 passengers and the mail. The Depot is named for Captain Rufus S. Tucker, an official of Seaboard Air Line. (tuckerparks.org, article by Laura Thigpen)

Debbie Miller and myself with the Tucker Depot in the background. Note to self: wear sunglasses next time! (Photo by Debbie Miller)

9) Henderson’s Mill marker, a Georgia Historical Marker located along Henderson Mill Road next to the St. Bede’s Episcopal Church parking lot on that road. The marker recognizes the location of Greenville Henderson’s grist mill, which operated both before and after the Civil War. The mill was demolished in 1911. This location is tied in with the Federal forces plans to destroy the Georgia railroad, as described on the marker.

10) John’s Homestead is a 50-acre Tucker park along Lawrenceville Highway, just outside I-285. John Johns won land lot 144, District 18 in the land lottery. His son, John B. Johns Sr. bought land lot 165 from lottery winner Reason Whitehead. The park includes the historic circa 1829 Johns Homestead and outbuildings. These are not open at present. “The Homestead is one of the oldest remaining houses in DeKalb County.”

There are also two scenic lakes at the park, known as Twin Brothers Lakes.

John B. Johns donated one acre of land in 1854 for a school, which was known as John B. Johns School. (Tuckerparks.org)