I’ve always admired this well-maintained house but have never known its history. I would guess it dates to the 1870s or 1880s.
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Central Hallway Farmhouse, Irwin County
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Craftsman Farmhouse, Irwin County
I made this film photograph in 2005 and the house was demolished by 2010. It was located just inside Irwin County on Evergreen Road.
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Dr. Robert A. Hingson House, Circa 1914, Ocilla
I was honored to know Dr. Hingson and his wife Gussie, through a family connection, and was truly awed by the man’s genius, even when I was a teenager. Gussie was a lifelong friend of an older cousin, and I have many letters and Christmas cards they exchanged over the years.
The New York Times noted in their obituary of Dr. Hingson in 1996: Robert Andrew Hingson [was] a pioneer in the field of public health who made important contributions to anesthesia for safer, easier childbirth and to mass immunizations with the ”jet” injection…[his] fame was assured well before this relief work. His invention of continuous caudal — posterior — anesthesia and perfection of lumbar epidural anesthesia to prevent pain in childbirth earned him worldwide recognition.
Both techniques are credited with reducing maternal and infant mortality around the world. Dr. Hingson began epidural and jet injections as a fledgling physician when he was the director of anesthesia at the United States Marine Hospital on Staten Island from 1941 to 1943.
His jet injector speeded mass inoculations against many diseases, without needles or syringes. Hundreds of people could be inoculated in an hour, making the injector a vital tool in eradicating small pox.
In 1962 Dr. Hingson led a team that immunized a million people against smallpox in Liberia. In 1967 his foundation vaccinated 846,000 people against smallpox in Costa Rica and immunized people there against epidemics of measles and polio…
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A. T. Fuller House, 1955, Ocilla
Mr. Fuller’s grandson, Richard Owens, notes that the home was designed by prominent architect William Frank McCall, Jr., who was working for the Macon firm of W. Elliott Dunwoody at the time.
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Central Hallway Farmhouse, Irwin County
The owner of this property told me the house was over a hundred years old. The porch roof and front gable may be later additions.
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Vernacular Farmhouse, Irwin County
I’ve made many photographs of this house over the past 20 years. It hasn’t changed much in all those years, but looks like its days are numbered.
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Tornado Damage & Cleanup, Mystic
On 17 December 2019 around 11:45 AM, an EF-2 tornado touched down near Mystic, with sustained winds up to 125 mph. It traveled northeast from Mystic into Ben Hill County, doing significant damage on Old Whitley Road, Vo-Tech Drive, Lake Beatrice and Pine Level Church Road.
The damage in Mystic was concentrated around the campus of the old Mystic High School (later known as Irwin Academy and Grace Christian Academy), which has recently been serving as a church.
The main building is still standing but sustained serious damage, especially to the roof. Hopefully, it can be saved.
Other structures on the property didn’t fare as well and will likely have to be razed.
Most of the focus now is on cleanup and an amazing amount of work has been done in the week since the tornado.
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Hay & Stock Barn, Irwin County
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Tenant Farmhouse, Irwin County
I’ve been photographing this wonderful tenant house for nearly 15 years. It’s a great example of a once-common form.
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Griffin Farmhouse, Irwin County
This farmhouse was a landmark on Old Valley Grove Church Road. The photograph dates to 1996 and the house was razed by 2007. Owned by Otto Griner, it was home for many years to the Roberts and Griffin families.
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Vernacular Farmhouse, Irwin County
This was located on Snapdragon Road.. The photograph dates to 2001.
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New Valley Grove Baptist Church, Irwin County
This photograph dates to 2000. The church, located off Five Bridge Road, was razed by 2007. There is still a cemetery at the site.
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William Hardeman Paulk House, Irwin County
This huge Folk Victorian was located at the corner of Orchid and Violet Roads, off the Lax Highway. The photograph dates to 2001 and the house was gone before 2008, I believe. Thanks to Debbie Paulk Mixon, granddaughter of W. H. Paulk, for the identification.
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Crystal Lake, July 1940, Irwin County
These snapshots were made by Frances Trammell McCormick in July 1940. This early pavilion (above) was quite different from the two that followed. It was an open-air shelter and likely held a concession stand. [I have a download of another snapshot from the same era of a much more elaborate structure which was identified as being at Crystal Lake but I’m having trouble confirming it; it seems unlikely that there would have been two large pavilions at the site around the same time].
The edge of the pavilion is visible at the extreme left of this photograph, made from the lake. A small wooden structure, likely a diving platform, is also visible. I believe there are cars parked near the shoreline.
Shoreline from the lake
Boaters passing a wooden slide
Water skier
A couple walking on the beach, with the slide visible to the left
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Irwinville Farms Tobacco Barn, 1930s, Irwin County
For many years an old wagon sat beside this iconic barn, surrounded by trees. I think I have a photo of the wagon somewhere but never got a good shot of the barn. I had just noted the loss of another Irwinville Farms barn I’ve photographed for many years when this came into view, as if to make up for that loss.
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Purvis Farmhouse, Irwin County
This is one of the first vernacular farmhouses I ever photographed [this photo dates to 1999]. I believe it may have originally been a dogtrot, but I can’t confirm that. Rodney Gray writes: This home belonged to my grandmother Annie Purvis Gray’s brother, Richard Purvis. He had two sons who lived there and it now belongs to Glenn Purvis.
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Fountain’s Grocery, Irwin County
This has been identified as Fountain’s or Fountain’s Grocery. It has been slightly relocated from its original location.
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Robinson’s Grocery, Irwin County
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Folk Victorian House, Ocilla
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Abandoned Tenant Farmhouse, Irwin County
This photograph was made in 2010. The house has been gone for many years.
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