Northwest Marietta Historic District facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Northwest Marietta Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Root House
Location in Metro Atlanta Show map of Metro Atlanta Location in Georgia (U.S. state) Show map of Georgia (U.S. state) Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Roughly bounded by RR tracks, NW along Kennesaw Ave., McDonald St., and Whitlock Ave., Marietta, Georgia
Area	230 acres (0.93 km2)
Architectural style	Late Victorian, Greek Revival, Plantation Plain
NRHP reference No.	75000586
Added to NRHP	June 11, 1975

The Northwest Marietta Historic District is a special area in Marietta, Georgia. It covers about 230 acres, which is like 230 football fields! This district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. This means it's an important place with old buildings that are worth protecting. You can see many different styles of old buildings here, like Victorian, Greek Revival, and Plantation Plain styles.

This historic area is in downtown Marietta. It stretches from McDonald Street, south of Whitlock Avenue, all the way along Kennesaw Avenue to Noses Creek.

Explore Marietta's Historic Buildings

This district is home to many interesting and important buildings. Each one has a story to tell about Marietta's past.

Famous Buildings and Their Stories

Here are some of the most notable buildings you can find in the Northwest Marietta Historic District:

• Kennesaw House (around 1845): This building at 21 Depot Street was once a hotel. It's famous because of the Great Locomotive Chase. In 1862, a group called Andrews' Raiders stayed here. The next morning, they took over a train called The General and started a daring chase! Later, this building was used as a hospital during the Civil War. It even survived a fire!

• NC & StL Passenger Depot (1898): This old train station on Depot Street is another important spot. It shows what train travel was like a long time ago.

• Brumby Chair Factory (around 1879): Located on Church Street, this factory made the very popular "Brumby rocker chair." Imagine chairs made right here in Marietta!

• Glover-Blair-Anderson House (around 1851): You can find this beautiful house at 81 Whitlock Avenue. It's one of the most impressive old homes in Marietta. It was built for a businessman named John Heyward Glover. The house was even restored after a fire in the 1870s, which gave it a fancy Victorian look.

• McLellan-Birney House (around 1870): This house on Church Street at Kennesaw Avenue has a classic look. It was the childhood home of Alice McLellan Birney. She was an American educator who helped start the National Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) in 1897.

• Rogers-Abbott-Fowler House (around 1850): Also on Church Street, this house is in the Greek Revival style. It has a unique two-story porch with columns, which was unusual for Greek Revival homes in Georgia.

• McNeal-Hawkins-Hamrich House (around 1895): This neo-classical style house at 331 Church Street, N.W., has a grand porch with fancy columns.

• Clarke Library Building (around 1893): Located on Church Street at Polk-Lemon Street, this building has a unique octagon shape. It's not every day you see a building with eight sides!

• Root House (around 1840): This simple, old house on Lemon Street is behind the Clarke Library Building. It's a great example of a "Plain Plantation style" home. It's so important that it was listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.

• The Law House (around 1872): You can find this very Victorian-looking house at 60 Polk Street. It has a special roof and detailed wooden trim. The original house here burned down after a battle during the Civil War. Legend says this house is haunted! It's even part of the Marietta Ghost Trolley Tour.

• Gignilliat-Cheek-Griffin House (around 1840): This distinctive home at 243 Kennesaw Avenue looks like an early Victorian house. It has pretty "gingerbread trim" on its eaves and porch.

• Howell-Sessions-Hallman House (around 1848): This large Greek Revival house at 303 Kennesaw Avenue has a two-story porch. It was once used as a Union general's headquarters during the Civil War. Later, it became the Harwood Female Seminary, a school for girls.

• "Tranquilla" or Hansell-Camp-Keller House (1849): This "superb" Greek Revival home at 435 Kennesaw Avenue belonged to Confederate General Andrew J. Hansell. Its design might have been influenced by a famous architect named Willis Ball.

• "Oakton" or Wilder-Ariderson-Goodman House (around 1838): Located at 581 Kennesaw Avenue, this house looks Victorian now. However, it was originally built in the Greek Revival style with circular columns on its front porch.