Buford History Before we were here Creek and Cherokee land The earliest means of travel was on Old Federal Road Hog Mountain in Flowery Branch In 1860 Silas King lived on a farm that is now downtown Buford He was the first non ID: 401008
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Slide1
Buford HistorySlide2
Buford HistorySlide3
Before we were here
Creek and Cherokee land.
The earliest means of travel was on Old Federal Road (Hog Mountain in Flowery Branch).
In 1860 Silas King lived on a farm that is now “downtown Buford”. He was the first “non-Indian” to live here. He died before the town of Buford was created. Slide4
How it all began. –
video
Buford began as a railroad settlement shortly after the Civil War when a railroad from Atlanta to Charlotte, NC (Piedmont Airlines Railroad) was built.Slide5
Growth, growth and more growth
Thomas Garner and Larkin Smith divided the downtown Buford area into lots. Some were for churches, schools, streets, and parks.
By 1871 the town was boasting a hotel, a store and an active depot.Slide6
We need to be a city!
In 1872 on August 24
th
, the state legislature granted the city of Buford
its charter. Happy birthday Buford!It was chartered as a mayor-council form of government with W.B. Haygood
its first mayor.Slide7
Original town of Buford
B
A
C
A. Current day Main Street, B – Dollar General, C – Merchant HotelSlide8
Changes, they are a
comin
’
In the 1930’s our town changed our city government from a mayor-council to a council-manager system. A three person commission was elected and had the responsibility for determining general policy and direction with a city manger who had the duty of overseeing daily activities.Slide9
Pictures of Area ChurchesSlide10
Church of God – old buildingSlide11
First Baptist BufordSlide12
First Baptist BufordSlide13
First Baptist BufordSlide14
Buford Methodist
Slide15
Buford Methodist next to the Merchant HotelSlide16
Buford MethodistSlide17
Buford First Methodist TodaySlide18
Presbyterian – 1stSlide19
Presbyterian Church – 2ndSlide20
Presbyterian Church– Present daySlide21
The Allen Brothers pg. 22
Two years after the railroad was complete (1873), Bona Allen began a tannery in Buford.
R.H. Allen (
Bona’s
brother) had already started one here about 6 years earlier.Bona’s dad taught him the art of leather tanning..Slide22
Bona Allen
Washington Allen (
Bona’s
father) opened his tannery in
Dacula.He paid farmers one hide of finished leather for two raw hides delivered to them. Other farmers brought him bark of the black oak in exchange for leather.Slide23
How tanning leather works
1. You soak and lime the hides in pits.
You must
unhair
them by hand.They then soak for a year or longer in vats containing water and brown bark.The grease necessary in tanning leather came from cows.Blacking for harnesses and other black leathers came from iron rust.Slide24
Pictures from the Tannery
In the huge, ground-floor "tanning yard" racks of hides are left soaking in bark liquor for a period of 40 daysSlide25
Pictures from the TannerySlide26
Tanning Vats – where they tanned leatherSlide27
Capus
Nuckles
– soaking hides in limeSlide28
Lime Pits – soak the hides to remove the hairSlide29
Harness Department at Allen Industries. (Mrs. Coffey’s great
grandfather is third from the top left).Slide30
Buford Tanners in 1932 (Mrs. Coffey’s grandfather
is second from top left).Slide31
Drying BuildingsSlide32
Tannery - 1960Slide33
Bona
Nuckles unloading hides.Slide34
Now what?
The leather was sold to cobblers (shoes), harness makers, and other people who used leather.Slide35
Washington Allen – Bona and RH’s father. My name is Jeff.Slide36
R.H. Allen –
Bona’s Brother (aka the “other Allen”Slide37
R.H. Allen
R.H. was the elder brother and was paralyzed. He worked very hard and was beloved by many in Buford. Though he and his brother worked together early in their career this quickly changed. He is sometimes referred to as “the other Allen.”Slide38
Bona AllenSlide39
Allen Family and Homes
Bona Allen and Wife,
Wadleigh
, Victor, Kate, John, Bona Jr., and ClarenceSlide40
Bona Allen Jr. Slide41
John AllenSlide42
Victor AllenSlide43
Bona Jr., Victor and John Q AllenSlide44
Bona Allen home todaySlide45
Bona Allen MansionSlide46
John Espy homeSlide47
Kate Allen
Shadburn’s (
Bona’s
daughter) home -
StonehedgeSlide48
Wadleigh’s
home – torn down Slide49
Bona Allen home – where present mansion stands today
This home was moved from this location to its present location by using horses and logs.Slide50
Bona and Buford
Seven years after he was married (1873) he opened up a tannery in Buford. His wife worked along side of him and was thought to be the “brains” in the family.
By 1930 the Allen industries were one of the largest employers in the state and Buford was the largest city in Gwinnett County!
During the Depression the Allen Industries grew and Buford became known as the “Depression Proof” Town!Slide51
What is a Depression?
During the depression Allen Industries grew to over 2,000 people.
In 1933, 2,200 people worked and the shoe factory was growing!
In 1942, the government leased the shoe factory as a repair plant for military shoes.
The Allen family ran the company for most of the 107 years it existed.Slide52
The End is near.
In 1969, the tannery was sold to Tandy Corporation out of Fort Worth, Texas and remained its owner until the tannery burned in December, 1981.
Mobile Oil company purchased most of the Allen property and have sold it to neighborhoods, churches and other industries that now support our economy. Slide53
Go Wolves – Buford City Schools
Buford’s first school was small, log building that met only three months each summer. 25 students attended.
In 1884 the “Old Academy” was built. Slide54
Buford AcademySlide55
Old Academy Classes
First Class
– Orthography (spelling), Reading and Penmanship – cost $8.00
Second Class
– English Grammar, Geography, Composition, Arithmetic (math), Exercises in Original Composition and Declamation – $10.00Third Class – Rhetoric, Logic, Moral Philosophy, Natural Philosophy, Algebra, Plain and Solid Geometry, Plain Trigonometry, Surveying, Latin and Greek - $15.00
Fourth Class
– Analytical Geometry, Calculus, Spherical Trigonometry, Astronomy, Mechanics, Mental Philosophy, Political Economy, Chemistry, and Evidences of Christianity - $20.00Slide56Slide57
Go Wolves!
African American children could attend school in the basement of the Academy until a permanent structure was built on Gwinnett street.
The first graduating class was in 1903!Slide58
Go Wolves
In 1906 the 4
th
Buford School was built near the center of town (across the tracks). Slide59
Buford Public Schools Slide60
Buford Public School and AuditoriumSlide61
1922 Basketball TeamSlide62
1951 BHS Football TeamSlide63
Go Wolves – to a new school!
In 1950, the Bona Allen school was built, and it became BHS (by city gym).
The African American school moved to Bona Road (still there). Slide64
Bona Allen SchoolSlide65
School Integration
Began in 1969
Buford City Schools and
Grenard
Watson school became one!Buford Elementary, Grenard Watson – Middle School, Bona Allen school – High SchoolNew school colors – Green from Buford High and Gold from Grenard Watson.
Pg. 196Slide66
Alma Mater -
music
On the city’s northern border
Reared against the sky,
Proudly stands our dear old high scholAs the days go by.Forward ever be our watchwordConquer and Prevail,
Hail to thee, oh, Buford High School
Dear old Buford, Hail!Slide67
Buford Fight Song
We are the Wolves from the woods,
We are the team that has all the goods.
Glory, honor to her name
Proudly your courage we’ll proclaim.We may lose, but we’ll never quit.We’ve go the spirit; we’ve go the grit.Glory, honor to her nameWe are the Buford Wolves.
Rah, rah, rah!Slide68
Interesting People or EventsSlide69
Shoemakers
Formed in the 1930s as a semi pro team from Buford
The Allen’s had a contract with Spalding to make baseballs and mitts and thought it would be good publicity to have a team.
In 1933 they won 56-61 games.
For publicity they would drive the “World’s largest shoe” around the town to begin the game.Slide70
Shoemakers
If a teammate hit a homerun they won a pair of shoes.
If another team could beat them that team all won shoes.
They won the 1938 semi-pro World Series.
The Allen’s kept the trophy and the players kept the money.1st night game on June 8, 1937 – 2,500 people there. Slide71
ShoemakersSlide72
ShoemakersSlide73
Boots
PoffenburgerSlide74
Gerald
McQuaig
Where have you seen his name in Buford
?Slide75
Giant ShoeSlide76
Giant ShoeSlide77
Myrtle (
Myrt) Powers
She won $23,000 on a game show by answering correctly a question about baseball.
October 12 was celebrated as “
Myrt Powers” day!Appeared on other tv shows and won up to 57,000. Travelled all over the world.
Pg. 177Slide78
Bonnie Rowe
He was a daredevil who did acrobatics on airplanes.
He lived in Buford and would often parachute into his yard.
He was killed in 1932 when he lost his grip and fell off the plane.
Pg. 148Slide79
Buford Dam
Nestled in the foothills of the Georgia Blue Ridge Mountains lies Lake Lanier, one of America’s favorite lakes.
Over 7.5 million people a year choose to visit Lanier. With over 692 miles of shoreline, the lake is well known for its aqua-blue colored water, spectacular scenery and variety of recreational activities.
Constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the 1950’s, Lake Lanier is a multi-purpose lake that provides for flood protection, power production, water supply, navigation, recreation and fish and wildlife management.
Lake Lanier is one of 464 lakes in 43 states constructed and operated by the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers. It has won the best operated lake of the year award in 1990, 1997 and 2002.Slide80
The building of Buford
Dam
began
on Wednesday, March 1, 1950.Slide81
The Building of Buford DamSlide82
More photos
Sidney Lanier (whom Lake Lanier is named after)Slide83
Buford Dam Images
Taken by Chelsea Cook
The
dam gates, lifted at 2:55 p.m., below the Buford Powerhouse release nearly 388 million gallons of water every day to maintain a minimum flow for the Chattahoochee River and Lake Lanier.
The Buford Dam is home to about 12 goats, which were purchased to maintain the vegetation on the rocky landscape surrounding the powerhouse in a cost-efficient way.Slide84
Buford Dam Links
Buford Dam
Video
Newspaper Article
History of Lake Lanier ArticleArticle on Lake Lanier’s historyArticle on Buford Dam’s history