Atlanta Preservation Center

Summerhill is one of Atlanta’s most historically significant neighborhoods, established by formerly enslaved people after emancipation. Its story spans segregation, entrepreneurship, the civil rights movement, and the community leaders and organizations that held it together through decades of change. When the neighborhood was reshaped for the 1996 Olympic Games, the torch and cauldron that remained became part of Summerhill’s identity and its path forward.

Now, Georgia State University has announced plans to move the Olympic flame cauldron to Centennial Olympic Park. For two years, community leaders have been asking for it to stay. We stand with them. Historic neighborhoods deserve a meaningful voice in decisions that shape their future, and the Olympic Torch should remain where history placed it, in Summerhill.

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The Atlanta Preservation Center is pursuing a National Register of Historic Places listing for the Poncey-Highland Historic District 🏡

This neighborhood has been shaping Atlanta for over a century. Developed largely between 1905 and 1940 along historic streetcar lines and corridors like Ponce De Leon and North Highland Avenue, Poncey-Highland is home to one of the city’s richest collections of early-twentieth-century residential architecture. Six structures in the area are already individually listed on the National Register.

The neighborhood’s history goes beyond its buildings. In the 1960s and 70s, Poncey-Highland residents organized against urban renewal plans, and that fight led to the creation of Atlanta’s Neighborhood Planning Unit (NPU) program, giving communities a direct voice in local government decisions.

A district listing would recognize the full neighborhood: its architecture, its planning, and the community history it carries. We are excited to share more as this effort moves forward.

Summer’s here and so is a fresh lineup of APC events 🌿 This month, explore Atlanta’s history through walking tours, neighborhood deep dives, and stories you won’t find in any guidebook.

Whether you’re a longtime preservation lover or just looking for something different to do this summer, there’s something for you.

All events require registration. Comment “EVENTS” and we’ll send you the full June lineup and signup details!

We were honored this week to receive an official proclamation from the Atlanta City Council recognizing May as Historic Preservation Month in the City of Atlanta.

The proclamation highlights the essential role preservation plays in shaping a thriving, livable, and equitable city. It recognizes Atlanta’s historic buildings, neighborhoods, and cultural landmarks as vital parts of our shared identity and acknowledges the importance of protecting them for future generations.

We are deeply grateful to Council Member Collins for arranging the Proclamation and to the Atlanta City Council for this recognition and for their continued support of preservation efforts across the city.

APC Board Members Megan Hodgkiss and Kendra Waters proudly accepted the proclamation on behalf of the Atlanta Preservation Center. As Kendra Waters shared, “This public recognition is a continued reminder that preservation happens in many different ways throughout the city.”

Historic preservation is not just about buildings. It is about memory, culture, community, and the stories that connect us to Atlanta and to one another.

South View Cemetery has been telling Atlanta’s story since 1886 and is now one step closer to being listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Founded by six men who were born enslaved, South View holds the stories of more than 80,000 people whose lives shaped Atlanta and far beyond. From civic leaders and faith leaders to families whose names may not be widely known, this is a place where history lives in every direction.

For generations, South View has carried stories that are too often left out of the broader narrative. Generations of lives, leadership, and legacy are preserved within these grounds. This designation helps bring long overdue visibility to those histories and to the community that has cared for them for more than 140 years.

We are proud to celebrate this moment and the continued work of South View Cemetery to honor, share, and protect a place that holds so much of Atlanta’s story.

May is National Historic Preservation Month 🏛️ What better way to celebrate than getting out and exploring Atlanta with the Atlanta Preservation Center?

From hidden gems to local favorites, this month’s tours take you through some of the city’s most iconic neighborhoods and landmarks. It is the perfect way to experience the stories, spaces, and history that make Atlanta what it is.

Plus, join us for a FREE tour of the Grant Mansion on Thursday, May 28 ✨ Home to APC and one of the oldest houses in the city, it is always a favorite.

All events require registration. Comment “events” and we’ll send you the full lineup and details to sign up!

Tucked into the landscape and filled with light, the May Patterson Goodrum House stands as one of Atlanta’s most beautiful expressions of classical design.

Designed in 1929 by Philip Trammell Shutze, this home was considered his favorite work and a defining moment in his career. Its design earned national recognition upon completion and reflects the refined balance, proportion, and elegance that made Shutze one of America’s foremost classicists.

What makes the Goodrum House especially remarkable is the seamless relationship between architecture and landscape. Inspired by Italian Renaissance villas, the gardens were designed as a natural extension of the home, shaping views, movement, and light. Inside, delicate color choices, hand-carved details, and bright, thoughtful interiors bring warmth and softness to the classical form.

From its floral plasterwork to its carefully restored interiors, the Goodrum House is a study in beauty, craftsmanship, and the enduring power of design.

The Majestic Diner has been a constant in Atlanta for nearly a century. First opened in 1929 by Greek immigrants, it expanded to its current location in 1939 as one of the original tenants of Briarcliff Plaza and has served generations of Atlantans ever since.

While restaurants and buildings around it have changed, closed, or been rebuilt, the Majestic has remained open, still Greek owned and grounded in simplicity. It has adapted with care but never lost its identity. No trends, no reinventions. Just a steady rhythm of regulars, families, and late-night visitors finding comfort in a familiar place.

The recognizable neon sign still glows along Ponce. Its slogan, “Food That Pleases”, still rings true. And its presence reminds us that preservation is not always about landmarks or headlines. Sometimes, it is about keeping the doors open and the coffee hot.

One of the only diners of its kind still operating in Atlanta, the Majestic Diner remains not just a place to eat but a part of the city’s living memory.

Atlanta started as a railroad town, and Brookwood Station is the last remaining passenger train station in the city.

Officially named Peachtree Station by the Southern Railway, it opened at 12:01 a.m. on March 17, 1918. Just forty minutes later, Train No. 36, the United States Fast Mail, arrived and began a century-long connection between Atlanta and the rail lines that built it.

Designed in the Italian Renaissance style, the station served growing neighborhoods like Ansley Park and Brookwood Hills with a convenient stop outside the downtown terminals.

Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, Brookwood proves that functional architecture can still be timeless. Over 100 years later, it continues to connect Atlanta to cities across the Southeast and Northeast through Amtrak’s Crescent Line.

Wrapping up their semester with a visit to the Grant Mansion 📚✨
We were happy to welcome students from Georgia State University’s Master of Historic Preservation program this week. As part of their final class in Intro to Historic Preservation, students explored the Grant Mansion, learned about preservation easements with Easements Atlanta, and heard from our Executive Director about what it means to protect Atlanta’s past for the future.