Flat Rock, Georgia facts for kids

Flat Rock is a historic African American community in DeKalb County, Georgia. It is located within the city of Stonecrest, as well as the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area. Flat Rock is believed to be one of the oldest African American settlements in DeKalb County. In 1820, the area rested along the border of Creek and Cherokee Nation hunting grounds when it was settled during the Georgia Land Lottery. In 1865, after the end of the Civil War, the era of reconstruction provided opportunity for former enslaved people to stay in the area to build schools, churches, and civic organizations and create the tight knit African American Flat Rock Community. The community has continued to live in the area and have experienced the Black Codes, Jim Crow and the Great Migration. The area currently houses the Flat Rock Archives, which specialize in preserving African American rural history in Georgia.

History

The oldest known record of Flat Rock is found on an 1822 map. Flat Rock is not noted on any maps after 1865, likely because of the growing nearly town of Lithonia. The community continued to exist and was never incorporated. The community began as an African American settlement likely due to the surrounding slave-holding farms. After emancipation, former slaves had no means to move elsewhere. Some of the first families were the Bryant, Ford, Henderson, Holt, Reid and Waites families. The Flat Rock post office was the only government presence in the community until its closure in 1900. Flat Rock was the location of the area's first churches that welcomed both black and white members.

During the Great Migration, Flat Rock resident, T.A. Bryant Sr. saw the need to keep the community together by encouraging others to stay in Flat Rock. He purchased 45 acres for $600 and sold it in pieces to family members and others so they could stay in the area. In an interview for NPR, Henry Louis Gates stated that "[Bryant] was trying to give them a stake in the South, a reason to stay, 'cause they were not going to own property in Pittsburgh, Detroit or Cincinnati, in Philadelphia or New York."

Flat Rock remained isolated until the 1940s. Telephone and electricity lines reached the community during the War Years, but man roads remained unpaved even until the 1980s.

Flat Rock Archives

The Flat Rock Archive in Stonecrest, Georgia

The Flat Rock Archive, located in Stonecrest, Georgia, is currently working to preserve the African American story in this area. One example is that after looking at the Lyon family that lived in the area, the archive concluded that in 1860, the Lyon farm had three slave houses located on the knoll east of the main house. According to Slave Schedules of 1860, the Lyons family had seventeen slaves. One of these slaves is identified as Mary Lyon, who had a son by the name of Thee Lyon.

The Flat Rock Archive strives to preserve African American rural history in Georgia and is located in the home built by T.A. Bryant Sr., and donated by Reverend T.A. Bryant, Jr. The archive was established as a museum and resource to genealogical and historic research, as well as a heritage tourism site. In addition to preserving and cataloging artifacts, records, and oral histories related to the slaves, former slaves, and descendants in the community, the Flat Rock Archive maintains the nearby Flat Rock Historic Cemetery as a part of their mission.

Significant sites

The Flat Rock Archives consists of a variety of historic sites, most of which are connected by the paved, multi-use Arabia Mountain PATH trail. All of these sites are located within the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area.

The T. A. Bryant, Sr. House & Homestead

The T. A. Bryant, Sr. House and surrounding homestead are a centerpiece of the Flat Rock Archives and key to the story of the Flat Rock Community. The House was built in 1917. After Bryant, Sr. bought the land subsequently sold or leased small parcels off to other members of the Flat Rock community. In doing so, Bryant, Sr. gave people a stake in the South and kept the people of Flat Rock together.

The Historic Flat Rock Cemetery

The Historic Flat Rock Cemetery is an important part of the Flat Rock community, with numerous people from throughout the community's history buried at the historic cemetery site. A list of interred can be found on the Flat Rock Archives website. This list only includes those that have been definitively placed in the cemetery. There are many more that do not have historical records.

Unidentified Fieldstone grave. Photo is a Footstone of an unidentified grave located within the Historical Flat Rock Cemetery. Material is Lithonia, Georgia, granite.

In 2008, Dr. Jeffrey Glover of Georgia State University organized a cemetery mapping project with his Fall Archaeological Methods course students. Glover's class worked with the local Flat Rock community and the Greater Atlanta Historical Society (GAAS) to clear the overgrowth from the cemetery. After the clearing, students documented the graves using standardized forms, digital cameras, and some stone rubbings. The graves were then mapped using a total station to create accurate GPS points within the cemetery. The project documented 202 graves total and of those 107 were unidentified fieldstones.

Lyon House

Built in the 1820s by former British soldier Joseph Emmanuel Lyon, the Lyon House and homestead are key to Flat Rock's beginnings: people were enslaved here. The Lyon House underwent a stabilization effort in 2019-2019 and today is a part of Flat Rock tours.

Flat Rock Church

The Flat Rock Church was an important meeting place for the community for decades. While it is no longer standing, a new church has been built on the site and archaeologists and historians with the Flat Rock Archives are working to preserve its role in the community.

Notable residents and descendants