Brookwood Hills
Encyclopedia
Brookwood Hills is an historic neighborhood located in intown Atlanta, Georgia
, USA, north of Midtown
and south-southwest of Buckhead
. Home to about 1000 people, it was founded in the early 1920s by Benjamin Franklin Burdett and his son, Arthur. The site of the neighborhood is located where some of the bloodiest battles of the American Civil War
took place during the Atlanta Campaign
.
s of its major business districts. It is connected by three entrances to Peachtree Road
, and has no other outlet. Brookwood Hills is bordered roughly by Peachtree on the west, Interstate 85
on the south, the Norfolk Southern train tracks (just south of Peachtree Creek
) to the north, and Clear Creek
to the east.
The Brookwood community, for which Brookwood Hills was named, is located immediately southwest of the southern tip of Brookwood Hills. This is in turn immediately north of the major freeway interchange
called the "Brookwood split", which joins I-75 to the northwest and I-85 to the northeast into the Downtown Connector
to the south.
Because of the recent rapid growth
of metro Atlanta
, developer
s have made constant attempts to build whatever they can near, or inside the neighborhood. Examples of these are:
Because of these pressures of being a big-city community
, the Brookwood Hills Community Club (BWHCC) was created. (This is the reason so many of the above projects were halted). The BWHCC also owns the park
and pool
in the center of Brookwood Hills.
owned by himself and local Thomas Collier. The streets were built in accordance to the hilly terrain
, instead of grid form, as was popular at the time. Mr. Burdett planted oak
saplings during Brookwood Hills' founding, which now stand tall and are the trademark
quality of the neighborhood. The area developed by Benjamin and Arthur Burdett is now registered as the Brookwood Hills Historic District.
In November 2011 the City of Atlanta began a project to repair damaged sidewalks and curbs in front of approximately 50 homes in the neighborhood.
, tennis courts, and basketball
goals. Many neighborhood sponsored events like the Fourth of July parade and the annual Easter egg hunt take place here.
, and is in the school attendance district of:
s in the area include:
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, USA, north of Midtown
Midtown
-In cities:Nepal*Midtown, Kathmandu, NepalUnited States*Midtown, Agoura Hills, California*Midtown Atlanta, Georgia**Midtown , passenger rail station near this area*Midtown Columbus, Georgia*Midtown, Detroit, Michigan...
and south-southwest of Buckhead
Buckhead (Atlanta)
Buckhead is the uptown district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States, comprising approximately the northern one-fifth of the city. Buckhead is a major commercial and financial center of the Southeast, and it is the third-largest business district in Atlanta, behind Downtown and Midtown...
. Home to about 1000 people, it was founded in the early 1920s by Benjamin Franklin Burdett and his son, Arthur. The site of the neighborhood is located where some of the bloodiest battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
took place during the Atlanta Campaign
Atlanta Campaign
The Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater of the American Civil War throughout northwest Georgia and the area around Atlanta during the summer of 1864. Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman invaded Georgia from the vicinity of Chattanooga, Tennessee, beginning in May...
.
Location
Brookwood Hills is located near the heart of Atlanta, only a few miles away from the skyscraperSkyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
s of its major business districts. It is connected by three entrances to Peachtree Road
Peachtree Street
Peachtree Street is the main street of Atlanta. The city grew up around the street, and many of its historical and municipal buildings are or were located along it...
, and has no other outlet. Brookwood Hills is bordered roughly by Peachtree on the west, Interstate 85
Interstate 85 in Georgia
In the U.S. state of Georgia, the major Interstate Highway, Interstate 85, runs northeast-southwest from the Alabama border near West Point, and Lanett, Ala., running through Metropolitan Atlanta, and traveling to the border with South Carolina, where it crosses the Savannah River near Lake Hartwell...
on the south, the Norfolk Southern train tracks (just south of Peachtree Creek
Peachtree Creek
Peachtree Creek is a major stream in Atlanta. It flows for almost due west into the Chattahoochee River just south of Vinings. Like other "Peachtree" names in the area, the name is most likely a corruption of "pitch tree", from the area's many pines and their sticky sap.Peachtree Creek is an...
) to the north, and Clear Creek
Clear Creek (Atlanta)
Clear Creek is a stream in Intown Atlanta that feeds into Peachtree Creek, and eventually into the Chattahoochee River. It is the Creek that played to the Union's advantage in their Civil War victory at the Battle of Peachtree Creek. The apparent start is in Orme Park in Virginia Highland near...
to the east.
The Brookwood community, for which Brookwood Hills was named, is located immediately southwest of the southern tip of Brookwood Hills. This is in turn immediately north of the major freeway interchange
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
called the "Brookwood split", which joins I-75 to the northwest and I-85 to the northeast into the Downtown Connector
Downtown Connector
In Atlanta, Georgia, the Downtown Connector or 75/85 is the concurrent section of Interstate 75 and Interstate 85 through the core of the city. Beginning at the I-85/Langford Parkway interchange, the Downtown Connector runs generally due north, meeting the east-west Interstate 20 in the middle....
to the south.
Because of the recent rapid growth
Urbanization
Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
of metro Atlanta
Metro Atlanta
The Atlanta metropolitan area or metro Atlanta, officially designated by the US Census Bureau as the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state of Georgia and the ninth-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States...
, developer
Land development
Land development refers to altering the landscape in any number of ways such as:* changing landforms from a natural or semi-natural state for a purpose such as agriculture or housing...
s have made constant attempts to build whatever they can near, or inside the neighborhood. Examples of these are:
- Building a MARTAMetropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit AuthorityThe Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority or MARTA is the principal rapid-transit system in the Atlanta metropolitan area and the ninth-largest in the United States. Formed in 1971 as strictly a bus system, MARTA operates a network of bus routes linked to a rapid transit system consisting...
station inside of the neighborhood. (stopped) - An industrial parkIndustrial parkAn industrial park is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development...
on the other side of Clear Creek. - Extending W. Peachtree into and through the neighborhood. (stopped)
- Highrise apartments in residents' backyards.(mostly stopped)
Because of these pressures of being a big-city community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
, the Brookwood Hills Community Club (BWHCC) was created. (This is the reason so many of the above projects were halted). The BWHCC also owns the park
Park
A park is a protected area, in its natural or semi-natural state, or planted, and set aside for human recreation and enjoyment, or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. It may consist of rocks, soil, water, flora and fauna and grass areas. Many parks are legally protected by...
and pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
in the center of Brookwood Hills.
History and development
Brookwood Hills was the creation of the Burdett family. Benjamin first created the neighborhood on the Battlefield of Peachtree CreekBattle of Peachtree Creek
The Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought in Georgia on July 20, 1864, as part of the Atlanta Campaign in the American Civil War. It was the first major attack by Lt. Gen. John B. Hood since taking command of the Confederate Army of Tennessee. The attack was against Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's...
owned by himself and local Thomas Collier. The streets were built in accordance to the hilly terrain
Terrain
Terrain, or land relief, is the vertical and horizontal dimension of land surface. When relief is described underwater, the term bathymetry is used...
, instead of grid form, as was popular at the time. Mr. Burdett planted oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
saplings during Brookwood Hills' founding, which now stand tall and are the trademark
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
quality of the neighborhood. The area developed by Benjamin and Arthur Burdett is now registered as the Brookwood Hills Historic District.
In November 2011 the City of Atlanta began a project to repair damaged sidewalks and curbs in front of approximately 50 homes in the neighborhood.
Brookwood Hills Community Club
The hub of the community is the Brookwood Hills Community Club, which includes a park, pool, two pavilionsPavilion (structure)
In architecture a pavilion has two main meanings.-Free-standing structure:Pavilion may refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in...
, tennis courts, and basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
goals. Many neighborhood sponsored events like the Fourth of July parade and the annual Easter egg hunt take place here.
Notable Current and Past Residents
- Vern YipVern YipVern Yip is an American interior designer based in Atlanta, Georgia. He periodically appeared on TLC's Trading Spaces through its fourth season, and was known for frequently including silk, candles and flowers in the rooms he designed. He is one of the panel of judges on HGTV's Design Star...
- Kathryn StockettKathryn StockettKathryn Stockett is an American novelist. She is known for her 2009 debut novel, The Help, which is about African American maids working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi during the 1960s.-Career:...
- Robert Shaw (conductor)Robert Shaw (conductor)Robert Shaw was an American conductor most famous for his work with his namesake Chorale, with the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Shaw received 14 Grammy awards, four ASCAP awards for service to contemporary music, the first Guggenheim Fellowship...
- Ed HelmsEd HelmsEdward Paul "Ed" Helms is an American actor and comedian known for his work as a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, as Andy Bernard on the US version of the sitcom/mockumentary The Office and for his role as Dr. Stu Price in The Hangover films.- Early life :Helms was born and raised...
- Patrik StefanPatrik StefanPatrik Štefan is a Czech retired professional ice hockey player who was drafted 1st overall by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft...
Public
Brookwood Hills is covered by Atlanta Public SchoolsAtlanta Public Schools
Atlanta Public Schools is a school district based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. APS is run by the Atlanta Board of Education with interim superintendent Erroll Davis...
, and is in the school attendance district of:
- E. Rivers Elementary School
- Sutton Middle School
- North Atlanta High SchoolNorth Atlanta High SchoolNorth Atlanta High School is a high school of approximately 1,100 students in Buckhead, an upscale area of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The school is a part of Atlanta Public Schools....
Private
Popular private schoolPrivate school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
s in the area include:
- Woodward AcademyWoodward AcademyWoodward Academy is an independent, co-educational college-preparatory school for grades Pre-Kindergarten to 12 located in College Park, Georgia, within the Atlanta metropolitan area...
- The Westminster SchoolsThe Westminster SchoolsThe Westminster Schools is a private school in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Founded in 1951 and tracing its origins to 1878, Westminster has the largest endowment of any non-boarding school in the United States...
- The Lovett SchoolThe Lovett SchoolThe Lovett School is a coeducational, kindergarten through twelfth grade independent school located in north Atlanta, Georgia.-History:In September 1926, Mrs. Eva Edwards Lovett, an innovative educator who emphasized the development of the whole child, officially began The Lovett School with 20...
- Pace AcademyPace AcademyPace Academy is a K-12 college preparatory private school, located at 966 West Paces Ferry Road in the Buckhead area of Atlanta, Georgia. Pace has approximately 1040 students.-History:...
- Christ the King Catholic School
- The Galloway SchoolThe Galloway SchoolFounded by Elliott Galloway in 1969, The Galloway School is a private, co-educational day school dedicated to offering a well rounded academic program for children ages 3 through grade 12.-History:...
- Holy Innocents' Episcopal SchoolHoly Innocents' Episcopal SchoolHoly Innocents' Episcopal School is a fully accredited, college-preparatory day school for 3-year-old through 12th-grade students located in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1959, the school offers boys and girls a program based on the Episcopal education tradition of inclusion, exploration and respect...
- Marist SchoolMarist School (Georgia)Marist School is an independent private Roman Catholic college preparatory school located in the Brookhaven area of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States, north of the city of Atlanta...
- Atlanta International SchoolAtlanta International SchoolAtlanta International School is a private primary and secondary school located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The more common name for Atlanta International School is AIS. AIS is based on the International Baccalaureate Programme...