"Gone but not Forgotten in Atlanta" (Forest Park, Decatur: store, land)

[Iconographer]

Do you remember the sidewalk market that used to be a part of Rich's Harvest Sale when fall produce was sold from wooden wagons and stalls on the sidewalk in front of the Store For Homes?

After my mother died, I was cleaning out her jewelry drawer and found a 'Spanish senorita' pin that I bought for her at Santa's Secret Store at Rich's. I remember paying $1.00 for it.

One of my college professors was an investor in Alexander Stinson. In addition to the store at Emory village, they opened one at Perimeter when it was new.

I still have a paperweight that I bought at Alexander Stinson.

Not directly across from the Roxy, but a little north was the Cross Keys Restaurant. It was next to the old Atlanta Gas Light Company building. We sometimes ate at the Cross Keys before going to a movie at the Roxy.

We also ate at Evans Fine Food Restaurants with some friends. One was on North Decatur Road at Clairemont Ave. The other was on Candler, south of Glenwood Road.

Evans is still going strong at the corner of Clairmont and N. Decatur.

Remember when Beaudry Ford was on the square in Decatur? Past the square on Ponce de Leon was a Chevy dealership then Hanson Buick and Calloway Olds. The Newsome family had the Texaco station and tire store across the street just to the west and behind them was a Chrysler dealership. As long as your father was looking at cars or having the car serviced, the salesmen were nice about letting you sit in the various models in the showroom. Two Chevrolet dealers I remember are Tim Timmers and East Point Chevrolet.

The Newsomes are still around. Mr. Newsome's grandson taught my daughter History at Lakeside High School.
Don't forget Leiphart Chevrolet on W.Ponce in Decatur...they filmed the auto showroom scene there for Driving Miss Daisy.

For years we got haircuts at the Candler Hotel Barber Shop in downtown Decatur. Remember how you would walk in and everyone would look up at you then you would take a seat and somehow everyone knew just whose turn it was when the next barber became available. If my brother and I were finished before our father, we would get premission to go next door to Peacock Office Supply to look at the five cent Bic pens. If we had a bit more time, we could go to the dime store. Around the corner on Clairemont was Miller's Books with the thick, frameless glass door that had one pivot point top and bottom instead of hinges, very modern and worth a trip into the store just to be able to push it open. Across the street was the Cake Box Bakery with all of these shelves of decorated cakes. We ordered the cake for my 5th birthday there. I was surprised to learn that underneath the frosting, the display "cakes" were cardboard.

Miller's also had a store for many years at the Toco Hills Shopping Center and at North DeKalb mall, I believe.

Remember how many years, decades maybe, that the Heinz mansion on Ponce de Leon sat vacant and overgrown? I think the name of the house was Rainbow Terrace. It was not until sometime in the 70s or 80s that the story of the place became widely known after it appeared in the magazine section of the Sunday paper. The owner was the conductor of the Atlanta Symphony and he was shot one night by a burgler. His wife never lived in the house again. It was later turned into condos, but one fact about the sheer size of the place remains in my memory. The downstairs hall took nine 9' by 12' rugs to cover the floor.

My father (who grew up in Druid Hills) remembers exploring the empty Rainbow Mansion and finding the bullet holes in the study wall where Mr. Heinz was shot. Rumors always persisted that the shooting was a set-up. His wife was Lucy Candler Heinz, a Coca-Cola heiress.

Also on Ponce de Leon was the fountain in the park designed by Frederick Law Olmstead. I hope that is still there.

Sadly, no

[TakeAhike]

Originally Posted by Librarykid

One big thing I noticed about Lenox Square when it was open to the elements was that it was often so quite that you could hear the fountain as you walked between stores. That is probably because shoppers did not lollygag out in the heat. Once the place was enclosed, the noise was far less pleasant.

Do you remember the sidewalk market that used to be a part of Rich's Harvest Sale when fall produce was sold from wooden wagons and stalls on the sidewalk in front of the Store For Homes?

I remember the people carrying signs that said, "Jim Crow Must Go" outside of Rich's.

I sort of remember that---definitely remember getting hot peanuts from the Peanut Man...

There used to be a fabulous store by the name of House of Denmark on Piedmont, north of Cheshire Bridge. They had an outlet store on the I-85 access road outside of the city.

I remember the House of Denmark---both locations.

We also ate at Evans Fine Food Restaurants with some friends. One was on North Decatur Road at Clairemont Ave. The other was on Candler, south of Glenwood Road.

You can still eat at Evans Fine Food at North Decatur. I did that this summer---still good.

Also on Ponce de Leon was the fountain in the park designed by Frederick Law Olmstead. I hope that is still there.

What great memory for details you have. Have you seen Atlanta lately?

I'm not certain if know which fountain you reference--certainly hope we kept that. The statue of The Phoenix is still here---not many people know this, I think. Certainly not a certain employee of a major communications corporation---that really got me.

The Candler Building, yes--still there. And I haven't checked lately--but we had better still have the large Coca Cola sign that flashed the time. Fingers crossed.

Even in our teens---mid 60's my friends and I were still going downtown to the Roxy, Rialto--and I think the Loew's was still open--to see movies.

I live near N. Druid Hills Rd/I85---I don't think there were other options for movies then. Emory Village and later Toco Hills theater. My mind is struggling to recall.

One of the great highlights of my childhood was 'The Rollerdrum/dome'--I think that was on Ponce de Leon. Skated many Saturday afternoons there--then they built one on I85/North---skated and skated and skated.

[pinetreelover]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

My grandmother wouldn't shop for clothes anywhere but Regenstein's and J.P. Allen. After shopping, it was time to dine at the Frances Virginia Tea Room...all the ladies in their hats and white gloves.
I still have my mother's Frances Virginia Tea Room cookbook.

Millie Coleman's The Frances Virginia Tea Room Cookbook

My family still teases me about how I learned the word "mezzanine" at JP Allen and tried to use it every chance I got. It just sounded soooooooo fancy to shop on the mezzanine level.

[George Chong]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

My grandmother wouldn't shop for clothes anywhere but Regenstein's and J.P. Allen.

Did you or your grandmother ever go to the Chinese restaurant upstairs from J. P. Allen's? That was my maternal grandfather's restaurant.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by George Chong

Did you or your grandmother ever go to the Chinese restaurant upstairs from J. P. Allen's? That was my maternal grandfather's restaurant.

Not that I remember, but my mother's next door neighbors owned the House of Eng restaurant near the corner of 10th and Peachtree. It had to be one of the original Chinese restaurants in the area.

[Diehard44]

My mother was a relatively well know Atlanta TV/radio actress in the '40s and '50s. For a while Rich's had a daily 15 minute TV show that highlighted various departments and products at the store She played the "every day" shopper who was shown each item. I was only 6 or seven at the time so I don't remember the details all that much but I do remember being a cheap (free) extra actor when they got to boys clothing.

At Christmas season she became Mrs. Santa Claus on WAGA Channel 5 once a week sponsored by Economy Auto Stores (I'm pretty sure) where she hawked all their toys. Each show would end with her holding a kitten or puppy from the Atlanta Humane Society that was up for adoption. I also remember that she brought a lot of the kittens home for the family.

I'm pretty positive Lenox opened in 1959. I had a job at their Rich's in the '61 and '62 Christmas seasons as a teen. I was in the Men's department (knit sweaters: $4.95) and my girlfriend worked in the Wrapping department. Remember free wrapping for Christmas!

Camelia Gardens restuarant was about a 1/4 mile south of Collier Road on Peachtree. My folks took me there for many of my early birthdays so I could order a steak that came with one monsterous fried onion ring on top. I remember the pianist who could play almost anything you requested, especially if you added something to his big tip bowl on the piano.

There was an all-night (or at least real real late closing) diner type restuarant just a few doors North of Camelia Gardens at the same time. Does anybody remember the name? There was another one on Ponce near the Plaza.

[antiquesmountainapache]

Oh, I wish my mother was alive. She would remember your mother on TV because she was at home some during the fifties (I was born in 1956). How neat! Yes, I remember the pretty free wrapping.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by Diehard44

Does anybody remember the name? There was another one on Ponce near the Plaza.

That's a stumper, but the Majestic Grill is still next to the Plaza.

[jayster1955]

does anyone know the name of the monster wooden structure restaurant that was up on the hill overlooking 285 and the river

[Ms.MJ]

Cub Foods grocery stores, I loved going shopping there with my mom, lol.
Target on Covington Hwy
K-Mart on wesley chapel
I remember how Flat Shoals Pkwy used to be nothing but trees before they built kroger, publix, walgreens, etc.
Peppermint Music stores