MidTown (Columbus, Georgia)

The Dinglewood Historic District is a small, residential neighborhood comprising the c. 1859 Dingle wood house; early 20th –century residences; a privately owned, central, circular park; and a city-owned park. The district developed around Dinglewood, the two-story, Italianate-style house designed for Colonel Joel Early Hurt. The 30-acre (120,000 m²) estate was subdivided in the early 20th century, and sixteen houses were constructed between 1917 and 1951. Common house styles in the district include Georgian, Bungalow, Ranch, Colonial Revival, English Vernacular Revival, and Spanish Colonial Revival.[4]

Dinglewood House (1429 Dingle wood Drive), a two-story, Italianate-style, Georgian house that was designed for Colonel Joel Early Hurt by Columbus architects and builders Barringer and Morton in 1858. Hurt spared no expense when building his home. He even installed private water and gas works on the property. Located on either side of the Dinglewood House are two c. 1858 houses reportedly built for the craftsman who constructed the Dinglewood House.

The development of The Peacock Woods-Dimon Circle Historic District began in 1922. John Flournoy's Peacock Woods subdivision comprises the northern half of the district and Samuel Kelly Dimon's Dimon Circle subdivision, the southern portion. Flournoy, a prominent and prolific Columbus developer, hired the nationally acclaimed landscape architect Earle S. Draper to design Peacock Woods as a picturesque neighbourhood with curving streets and park-like settings. Dimon Circle was subdivided from Dimon's family property in 1922. Additional lots were added to the development in 1928. The center of the district (known as Rock Park) was developed by Charles Frank Williams and the southwest portion (known as Wynnton Heights) was subdivided by Hezikiah Land. The district includes a broad range of architectural styles including Colonial Revival, Craftsman, English Vernacular Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival and one 1954 California Ranch.[4]

The history of the District begins with the founding of Columbus and with the city's most famous antebellum mansion, St. Elmo, built circa 1830. Another smaller antebellum house, Highland Hall, dating from the 1850s, is also within the District. Both structures are listed in the National Register, and they illustrate the area's original use as a setting for suburban estates prior to the American Civil War. Today, the Weracoba / St. Elmo Historic District is a vibrant multi-use residential, recreational, educational, and commercial area with a strong sense of community among its residents. Its canopy of mature hardwood trees shelters the city's- and one of the state's-largest and most intact 1920s/1930s concentration of middle-class Craftsman Bungalow, Tudor Revival, Classical, and Mission Revival style homes. Of the 440 surviving houses in the District, 85% were constructed by 1941.[4]

An early 20th century streetcar suburb—continued to develop through the mid-1950s. In the 1880s, a streetcar line was constructed along Wildwood Avenue to serve the Wynnton area. Owner of the streetcar line and the Muscogee Real Estate Company, John Francis Flournoy, built his own Queen Anne estate here as he developed the Wildwood Circle subdivision. Sale of lots along the streetcar line peaked from 1918 to 1925. Also within this district—at 1519 Stark Avenue—is the childhood home of Carson McCullers (1917–1967) the renowned novelist and playwright. Some of the architectural styles in this district include Colonial Revival, English Vernacular Revival, Mission/Spanish Revival, and Craftsman.[4]

An example of an early- to mid-20th-century residential neighborhood developed from antebellum estates and in response to the streetcar line which ran along the southern and eastern boundaries of the district. The evolution of Wynnton Village spans over 150 years from its antebellum estates, to its village center developed in the mid-19th century, to the beginning of streetcar suburbs in the 1890s, to intense residential development from 1919 through the 1940s and then serving as a prime location for multi-family dwellings for World War II-era Fort Benning officers. Architectural styles vary from early examples of Greek and Gothic Revival to popular early 20th century styles including Craftsman, Colonial Revival and English Vernacular Revival.[4]

An example of an early- to mid-20th-century residential neighbourhood developed from several antebellum estates. In 1834, Colonel William L. Wynn purchased 100 acres (0.40 km²) of land located on a rise east of downtown Columbus, just beyond the city limits. Wynnton Road was an important thoroughfare that also served as the early property line that divided Wynn's land from John Woolfolk's land (portions of which were later sold to Joel Early Hurt, builder of Dinglewood, among others). During the 1920s, a majority of the district was purchased and developed by Lloyd G. Bowers who hired nationally acclaimed landscape architect Earle S. Draper to design a picturesque neighbourhood. Draper's signature style of curvilinear streets and park-like settings can also be seen in the Peacock Woods-Dimon Circle Historic District and in the 1920s expansion of the village at the Bibb Mill (located outside of MidTown). With the incorporation of the larger Wynnton area into the city limits in the mid-1920s, residential construction boomed; a second peak in building occurred in the 1940s.[4] Some of the architectural styles in this district include Greek Revival, Neoclassical Revival, Colonial Revival, Craftsman, English Vernacular Revival, Mediterranean Revival and Post Modern.