Rhodes Hall
Encyclopedia
Rhodes Memorial Hall, commonly known as Rhodes Hall, is a historic house museum located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was built as the home of furniture
magnate Amos Giles Rhodes
, proprietor of Atlanta
-based Rhodes Furniture
. The Romanesque Revival house occupies a prominent location on Peachtree Street
, the main street
of Atlanta, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
castle
s that Rhodes admired on a trip to Europe in the late 1890s. Architect Willis F. Denny
designed the unique home with Stone Mountain
granite, incorporating medieval Romanesque, Victorian, and Arts and Crafts designs as well as necessary adaptations for an early 20th-century home. After two years of construction, the house was completed in 1904.
windows that rise above a carved mahogany
staircase. The three-panel series depicts the rise and fall of the Confederacy
from Fort Sumter
to Appomattox
, and includes medallion portrait
s of over a dozen Confederate heroes.
when it was built, Rhodes Hall is a prime example of the fascination that new technology
held for Atlantans at the turn of the century. Over 300 light bulbs light the entire house. The house also had electric call buttons in most rooms as well as a security system.http://www.georgiatrust.org/historic_sites/rhodeshallhistory.htm Among the materials used to build the home, the mahogany was from the West Indies and the exterior granite
was brought over in 500-pound (227 kg) blocks in wagons from Stone Mountain
, located about 25 miles (40.2 km) east of Atlanta.
Although Rhodes Hall is now surrounded by commercial buildings and heavy traffic, it has survived damage due to careful historic preservation
and restoration
efforts. After the death of Rhodes and his wife, their children deeded the house to the U.S. state of Georgia, with a restriction that it be used for "historic purposes". It was used to house the Georgia State Archives from 1930 to 1965. After the Archives moved to a more modern building, Rhodes Hall continued to provide archive services as a branch.
In 1983 Rhodes Hall was transferred to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, which undertook a long-term restoration program. The main stair and windows, which had been moved to the new Archives, were brought back and re-installed in 1990.
From 1984 to 1992, the house was a haunted house
attraction every year for Halloween
, prior to renovation
and conversion to museum.
. There are house tours on Tuesdays (from 11 - 3, the last tour starts at 2) and on Saturdays (from 10 - 2, the last tour starts at 1). Group tours can be given on other days with advance arrangement. The Museum is also available for rentals including weddings, receptions, corporate events, cocktail gatherings, and birthday parties.Special Events Contact
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
magnate Amos Giles Rhodes
Amos G. Rhodes
Amos Giles Rhodes was an Atlanta, Georgia furniture magnate. He was born in 1850 in Henderson, Kentucky. In 1875 he came to Atlanta as a laborer for the L & N Railroad. In 1879, he began a small furniture company which would grow into a large furniture business and make Rhodes a "pillar of the...
, proprietor of Atlanta
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...
-based Rhodes Furniture
Rhodes Furniture
The Rhodes Furniture Company was a retail furniture company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Beginning with a single store in downtown Atlanta the company expanded throughout the United States.-History:...
. The Romanesque Revival house occupies a prominent location on Peachtree Street
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...
, the main street
Main Street
Main Street is the metonym for a generic street name of the primary retail street of a village, town, or small city in many parts of the world...
of Atlanta, and is listed on the 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...
.
Inspiration
Rhodes Hall is a Romanesque Revival 9000 square feet (836.1 m²) house inspired by the RhinelandRhineland
Historically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
s that Rhodes admired on a trip to Europe in the late 1890s. Architect Willis F. Denny
Willis F. Denny
Willis F. Denny was an architect active in Atlanta, Georgia around the turn of the twentieth century. He was the architect of Rhodes Hall and the Kriegshaber House , bothlisted on the National Register, as well as the demolished Piedmont Hotel .-External links:*...
designed the unique home with Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain is a quartz monzonite dome monadnock in Stone Mountain, Georgia, United States. At its summit, the elevation is 1,686 feet amsl and 825 feet above the surrounding area. Stone Mountain granite extends underground at its longest point into Gwinnett County...
granite, incorporating medieval Romanesque, Victorian, and Arts and Crafts designs as well as necessary adaptations for an early 20th-century home. After two years of construction, the house was completed in 1904.
Victorian architecture
Known as Le Rêve or "The Dream", Rhodes Hall is one of the finest intact expressions of late Victorian architectural design in Atlanta. The grandest feature of the interior is a magnificent series of stained and painted glassStained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows that rise above a carved mahogany
Mahogany
The name mahogany is used when referring to numerous varieties of dark-colored hardwood. It is a native American word originally used for the wood of the species Swietenia mahagoni, known as West Indian or Cuban mahogany....
staircase. The three-panel series depicts the rise and fall of the Confederacy
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
from Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter is a Third System masonry coastal fortification located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort is best known as the site upon which the shots initiating the American Civil War were fired, at the Battle of Fort Sumter.- Construction :...
to Appomattox
Battle of Appomattox Courthouse
The Battle of Appomattox Court House, fought on the morning of April 9, 1865, was the final engagement of Confederate States Army General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia before it surrendered to the Union Army under Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, and one of the last battles of the American...
, and includes medallion portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
s of over a dozen Confederate heroes.
Characteristics
The house cost Rhodes $50,000 to build in 1904. Wired for electricityElectricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
when it was built, Rhodes Hall is a prime example of the fascination that new technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
held for Atlantans at the turn of the century. Over 300 light bulbs light the entire house. The house also had electric call buttons in most rooms as well as a security system.http://www.georgiatrust.org/historic_sites/rhodeshallhistory.htm Among the materials used to build the home, the mahogany was from the West Indies and the exterior granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
was brought over in 500-pound (227 kg) blocks in wagons from Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain is a quartz monzonite dome monadnock in Stone Mountain, Georgia, United States. At its summit, the elevation is 1,686 feet amsl and 825 feet above the surrounding area. Stone Mountain granite extends underground at its longest point into Gwinnett County...
, located about 25 miles (40.2 km) east of Atlanta.
Although Rhodes Hall is now surrounded by commercial buildings and heavy traffic, it has survived damage due to careful historic preservation
Historic preservation
Historic preservation is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance...
and restoration
Building restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
efforts. After the death of Rhodes and his wife, their children deeded the house to the U.S. state of Georgia, with a restriction that it be used for "historic purposes". It was used to house the Georgia State Archives from 1930 to 1965. After the Archives moved to a more modern building, Rhodes Hall continued to provide archive services as a branch.
In 1983 Rhodes Hall was transferred to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, which undertook a long-term restoration program. The main stair and windows, which had been moved to the new Archives, were brought back and re-installed in 1990.
From 1984 to 1992, the house was a haunted house
Haunted attraction
A haunted attraction is a form of entertainment that simulates the experience of entering a haunted location that might be inhabited by ghosts, monsters, criminals, humorous characters, and other such creatures...
attraction every year for Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
, prior to renovation
Renovation
Renovation is the process of improving a structure. Two prominent types of renovations are commercial and residential.-Process:The process of a renovation, however complex, can usually be broken down into several processes...
and conversion to museum.
House Museum
Rhodes Hall is used as both a historic house museum and as the offices of the Georgia Trust for Historic PreservationGeorgia Trust for Historic Preservation
The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation is the country's largest statewide, nonprofit preservation organization with more than 8,000 members...
. There are house tours on Tuesdays (from 11 - 3, the last tour starts at 2) and on Saturdays (from 10 - 2, the last tour starts at 1). Group tours can be given on other days with advance arrangement. The Museum is also available for rentals including weddings, receptions, corporate events, cocktail gatherings, and birthday parties.Special Events Contact
Rhodes Center
In 1937, the Rhodes Center, Atlanta's first shopping center, was built on the north, west and south sides of Rhodes Hall (photo, p.5). Only the south building remains.External links
- Rhodes Memorial Hall at Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
- Fulton County listings at National Register of Historic Places
- Rhodes Memorial Hall, National Park Service Atlanta
- Rhodes Memorial Hall, Atlanta Urban Design Commission