Cabbagetown (Atlanta)
Encyclopedia
Cabbagetown is a neighborhood in Atlanta
, Georgia
(USA
) located south of Inman Park
, east of Oakland Cemetery, north of Grant Park
and west of Reynoldstown
. It includes Cabbagetown District, a historic district
listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
.
was destroyed after the Battle of Atlanta
and on its site the Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill began operations in 1881. Cabbagetown was built as the surrounding mill town
and was one of the first textile processing mills built in the south. Its primary product was cotton bags for packaging agricultural products. Built during a period when many industries were relocating to the post-Reconstruction South in search of cheap labor, it opened shortly following the International Cotton Exposition
, which was held in Atlanta in an effort to attract investment to the region. The mill was owned and operated by Jacob Elsas, a German
Jewish immigrant. Its work force consisted of poor whites recruited from the Appalachian region of north Georgia
. Elsas built a small community of one and two-story shotgun house
s and cottage-style houses surrounding the mill.
Like most mill towns, the streets are extremely narrow with short blocks and lots of intersections.
At its height the mill employed 2,600 people. A protracted strike in 1914-15 failed to unionize the factory's workforce. For over half a century Cabbagetown remained home to a tight-knit, homogenous, and semi-isolated community of people whose lives were anchored by the mill, until it closed in 1977. Afterwards, the neighborhood went into a steep decline which didn't end until Atlanta's intown
renaissance of the mid-1990s. The mill itself was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
spot. In the early 1990s, for the first time in decades, an actual factory opened up in Cabbagetown. The Colgate Crib Mattress corporation moved onto Pearl Street into an empty factory. The company hired some of the local residents as well as provided summer jobs for some youths. The company is still manufacturing in Cabbagetown today.
Beginning in 1996, the mill itself has been renovated into the nation’s largest residential loft community — the Fulton Cotton Mill Lofts — which houses everyone from artists and musicians to business professionals. In April 1999 a 5-alarm fire severely damaged the east building which was still being renovated and several nearby homes were destroyed. The lofts nevertheless opened the following year. However, a tornado in March 2008
damaged parts of the loft complex and many of the historic homes and businesses in Cabbagetown.
The neighborhood's main festival is Chomp and Stomp, a bluegrass and chili festival that takes place in November. Over the past few years, Chomp and Stomp has included a 5k road race and upwards of 16,000 attendees.
Another explanation is that a train carrying a load of cabbages derailed by the mill adjacent to the neighborhood, and the poor residents quickly accumulated the cabbages, and used them in just about every meal.
A variation of this legend has a Ford Model T
taking a sharp turn at one of the main intersections of Cabbagetown, and flipping over spilling its cargo of cabbages across the street. Someone yelled "Free Cabbages!" and they were soon carted away by the residents.
A third explanation of the name is that a local cab company operating off Memorial Drive gave nicknames to various neighborhoods that they serviced. The mill town was called Cabbagetown (maybe because of the cooking cabbage) and it stuck.
Yet another story involves a neighborhood baseball team.
References in the Atlanta History Center
also show references to the name Pearl Park. Pearl was the daughter of a developer who built houses directly to the east of the mill houses in the area of modern day Pearl Street.
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, Georgia
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
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) located south of Inman Park
Inman Park
Inman Park was planned in the late 1880s by Joel Hurt, a civil engineer and real-estate developer who intended to create a rural oasis connected to the city by the first of Atlanta's electric streetcar lines. The East Atlanta Land Company acquired and developed more than 130 acres east of the city...
, east of Oakland Cemetery, north of Grant Park
Grant Park (Atlanta)
Grant Park refers to the oldest city park in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, as well as the Victorian neighborhood surrounding it.-Park:Grant Park is the fourth-largest in the city, behind Chastain Park, Freedom Park and Piedmont Park...
and west of Reynoldstown
Reynoldstown
Reynoldstown is a historic neighborhood on the east side of Atlanta, Georgia, located between the Cabbagetown and Edgewood neighborhoods, north of Memorial Drive...
. It includes Cabbagetown District, a historic district
Historic district
A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries, historic districts receive legal protection from development....
listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
History
The Atlanta Rolling MillAtlanta Rolling Mill
The Atlanta Rolling Mill was constructed in 1858 by Lewis Schofield and James Blake and soon after, Schofield and William Markham took it over and transformed it into the South's second most productive rolling mill, after the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond, Virginia.Their specialty was re-rolling...
was destroyed after the Battle of Atlanta
Battle of Atlanta
The Battle of Atlanta was a battle of the Atlanta Campaign fought during the American Civil War on July 22, 1864, just southeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Continuing their summer campaign to seize the important rail and supply center of Atlanta, Union forces commanded by William T. Sherman overwhelmed...
and on its site the Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill began operations in 1881. Cabbagetown was built as the surrounding mill town
Mill town
A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories .- United Kingdom:...
and was one of the first textile processing mills built in the south. Its primary product was cotton bags for packaging agricultural products. Built during a period when many industries were relocating to the post-Reconstruction South in search of cheap labor, it opened shortly following the International Cotton Exposition
International Cotton Exposition (1881)
International Cotton Exposition was a World's Fair held in Atlanta, Georgia from October 5 to December 3 of 1881.hThe location was along the Western & Atlantic Railroad tracks near the present day King Plow development...
, which was held in Atlanta in an effort to attract investment to the region. The mill was owned and operated by Jacob Elsas, a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Jewish immigrant. Its work force consisted of poor whites recruited from the Appalachian region of north Georgia
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...
. Elsas built a small community of one and two-story shotgun house
Shotgun house
The shotgun house is a narrow rectangular domestic residence, usually no more than 12 feet wide, with doors at each end. It was the most popular style of house in the Southern United States from the end of the American Civil War , through the 1920s. Alternate names include shotgun shack,...
s and cottage-style houses surrounding the mill.
Like most mill towns, the streets are extremely narrow with short blocks and lots of intersections.
At its height the mill employed 2,600 people. A protracted strike in 1914-15 failed to unionize the factory's workforce. For over half a century Cabbagetown remained home to a tight-knit, homogenous, and semi-isolated community of people whose lives were anchored by the mill, until it closed in 1977. Afterwards, the neighborhood went into a steep decline which didn't end until Atlanta's intown
Intown Atlanta
Intown Atlanta is a term very frequently used in metro Atlanta to designate an area containing parts of the City of Atlanta and bordering communities...
renaissance of the mid-1990s. The mill itself was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
Rebirth
Lately, Cabbagetown is an area of tremendous growth sparked by an influx of artists in the 1980s, including Panorama Ray who operated a photo gallery on the main drag, Carroll Street. Since his death in 1997, Carroll Street has become the home of some popular restaurants and makes a great people watchingPeople watching
People watching or crowd watching is the act of observing people and their interactions, usually without their knowledge. This differs from voyeurism in that it does not relate to sex or sexual gratification...
spot. In the early 1990s, for the first time in decades, an actual factory opened up in Cabbagetown. The Colgate Crib Mattress corporation moved onto Pearl Street into an empty factory. The company hired some of the local residents as well as provided summer jobs for some youths. The company is still manufacturing in Cabbagetown today.
Beginning in 1996, the mill itself has been renovated into the nation’s largest residential loft community — the Fulton Cotton Mill Lofts — which houses everyone from artists and musicians to business professionals. In April 1999 a 5-alarm fire severely damaged the east building which was still being renovated and several nearby homes were destroyed. The lofts nevertheless opened the following year. However, a tornado in March 2008
2008 Atlanta tornado outbreak
The 2008 Atlanta tornado outbreak was a tornado outbreak that affected the Southeastern United States on March 14–15, 2008.A tornado caused widespread damage across downtown Atlanta, including to the CNN Center and to the Georgia Dome, where the 2008 SEC Men's Basketball Tournament was postponed...
damaged parts of the loft complex and many of the historic homes and businesses in Cabbagetown.
The neighborhood's main festival is Chomp and Stomp, a bluegrass and chili festival that takes place in November. Over the past few years, Chomp and Stomp has included a 5k road race and upwards of 16,000 attendees.
Origins of the name
There are a few explanations as to how the neighborhood received its name. One is that the mostly transplanted poor Appalachian residents (largely of Scots-Irish descent) who worked in the nearby Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill, would grow cabbages in the front yards of their shotgun houses, and one could distinctly smell the odor of cooking cabbage coming from the neighborhood. This term was used originally with derision by people outside the neighborhood, but it soon became a label of pride for the people who lived there.Another explanation is that a train carrying a load of cabbages derailed by the mill adjacent to the neighborhood, and the poor residents quickly accumulated the cabbages, and used them in just about every meal.
A variation of this legend has a Ford Model T
Ford Model T
The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Company from September 1908 to May 1927...
taking a sharp turn at one of the main intersections of Cabbagetown, and flipping over spilling its cargo of cabbages across the street. Someone yelled "Free Cabbages!" and they were soon carted away by the residents.
A third explanation of the name is that a local cab company operating off Memorial Drive gave nicknames to various neighborhoods that they serviced. The mill town was called Cabbagetown (maybe because of the cooking cabbage) and it stuck.
Yet another story involves a neighborhood baseball team.
References in the Atlanta History Center
Atlanta History Center
The Atlanta History Center is a history museum located in the Buckhead district of Atlanta, Georgia. The Museum was founded in 1926, and currently consists of 12 exhibits. There are also historic gardens and houses located on the grounds, including the Swan House and Tullie Smith Farm...
also show references to the name Pearl Park. Pearl was the daughter of a developer who built houses directly to the east of the mill houses in the area of modern day Pearl Street.