Kennesaw House

Last updated
Historic Kennesaw House KennesawHouse.jpg
Historic Kennesaw House

The Kennesaw House is a three-story historic building in downtown Marietta, Georgia. It houses the Marietta History Center. The building is west of the town square, adjacent to the CSX (originally Western and Atlantic Railroad) tracks.

History

The Kennesaw House was built in 1845, making it one of Marietta's oldest buildings. Intended to be a cotton warehouse, the building was turned into the Fletcher House hotel in 1855 after it was purchased by Dix Fletcher. The Fletcher as it was called was where the Great Locomotive Chase began. While some may claim it started in Big Shanty (now Kennesaw), it began at the Fletcher House. James Andrews, a civilian working with the Union Army, made his way down to Marietta along with disguised Union soldiers in April 1862. On the night of April 11, Andrews and some of the men spent the night at the Fletcher House. A historic reproduction of what the room may have looked like has been re-created at the Marietta Museum of History, in the room that the men supposedly slept. The men, along with their leader James Andrews boarded the train on April 12 with the rest of the passengers. The Kennesaw House was one of the only buildings in Marietta not burned to the ground during William Tecumseh Sherman's Atlanta Campaign, partly because Fletcher was a Mason, and his son-in-law was a Union spy. The building, like many others on the Marietta square was converted to a war hospital for the Confederate Army and later Union Army.

In 1920, the first floor was renovated and converted to retail shops. In 1979, the entire building was renovated. The renovation included removing the white facade from the building to expose the original brickwork while completely demolishing the interior. The few original parts of the building are the wooden staircases and some of the fireplaces. The 1979 renovation saw the top two floors were converted into offices, with the bottom being the Brickworks restaurant. Finally, in 1996, the Marietta Museum of History (now the Marietta History Center) assumed occupancy of the second floor then took over the third floor after the Junior League and Southern Baseball Federation left. Since 2010, the Center occupies the entire building with the first floor containing an event rental space, Museum Store and staff offices. The second floor features the Center's exhibits and gallery spaces. The third floor contains the collections storage and the rest of the staff offices.

33°57′10″N84°33′01″W / 33.95276°N 84.55017°W / 33.95276; -84.55017

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cobb County, Georgia</span> County in Georgia, United States

Cobb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia, located in the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north central portion of the state. As of 2020 Census, the population was 766,149. It is the state's third most populous county, after Fulton and Gwinnett counties. Its county seat is Marietta; its largest city is Mableton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennesaw, Georgia</span> City in Georgia, United States

Kennesaw is a suburban city northwest of Atlanta in Cobb County, Georgia, United States, located within the greater Atlanta metropolitan area. Known from its original settlement in the 1830s until 1887 as Big Shanty, it became Kennesaw under its 1887 charter. According to the 2020 census, Kennesaw had a population of 33,036, a 10.9% increase in population over the preceding decade. Kennesaw has an important place in railroad history. During the Civil War, Kennesaw was the staging ground for the Great Locomotive Chase on April 12, 1862.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marietta, Georgia</span> City in Georgia, United States

Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest of the principal cities by population of the Atlanta metropolitan area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Polytechnic State University</span> Former state university in Marietta, Georgia, United States

Southern Polytechnic State University was a public, co-educational, state university in Marietta, Georgia, United States approximately 20 miles (32 km) northwest of downtown Atlanta. Until 2015, it was an independent part of the University System of Georgia and called itself "Georgia's Technology University."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park</span> Public park and historic Civil War location in Georgia

Kennesaw Battlefield Park preserves a Civil War battleground of the Atlanta Campaign, and also contains Kennesaw Mountain. It is located at 900 Kennesaw Mountain Drive, between Marietta and Kennesaw, Georgia. The name "Kennesaw" derives from the Cherokee Indian "Gah-nee-sah" meaning "cemetery" or burial ground. The area was designated as a U.S. historic district on October 15, 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cobb County Public Library System</span> Public library system in Georgia, USA

The Cobb County Public Library System (CCPLS) is a system of 15 public libraries in Cobb County, Georgia, United States, excluding its second-largest city of Smyrna, which runs its own Smyrna Public Library. CobbCat.org is the online database of all CCPLS holdings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Locomotive Chase</span> 1862 raid during the American Civil War

The Great Locomotive Chase was a military raid that occurred April 12, 1862, in northern Georgia during the American Civil War. Volunteers from the Union Army, led by civilian scout James J. Andrews, commandeered a train, The General, and took it northward toward Chattanooga, Tennessee, doing as much damage as possible to the vital Western and Atlantic Railroad (W&A) line from Atlanta to Chattanooga as they went. They were pursued by Confederate forces at first on foot, and later on a succession of locomotives, including The Texas, for 87 miles (140 km).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Georgia Highlands College</span>

Georgia Highlands College is a public college in northwest Georgia. It has locations in Floyd County, Cartersville, Marietta, and Dallas and serves the northwest parts of Georgia, as well as parts of east Alabama and southeast Tennessee. A member of the University System of Georgia, the college was originally a community college and has since expanded to also offer bachelor degrees in healthcare management, logistics and supply chain management, dental hygiene, criminal justice, and an RN-BSN program. Students are now being accepted into a bachelor's of health science degree launched in 2020 and an associate's entrepreneurship pathway launched in 2021. Between 5,700 and 6,100 students are enrolled at GHC in any given semester, representing 49 different countries. In 2020, the college had a record high number of graduates and an economic impact of over $181 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennesaw Mountain</span> Mountain of the Appalachians in Cobb County, Georgia, United States

Kennesaw Mountain is a mountain between Marietta and Kennesaw, Georgia in the United States with a summit elevation of 1,808 feet (551 m). It is the highest point in the core metro Atlanta area, and fifth after further-north exurban counties are considered. The local terrain averages roughly 1,000 feet AMSL.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midway University</span> Private Christian liberal arts university in Midway, Kentucky, United States

Midway University is a private Christian university in Midway, Kentucky. Related by covenant to the Christian Church, it enrolls approximately 1,900 students earning two-year and four-year degrees as well as master's degrees. Midway was the only women's college in Kentucky until 2016 when it began admitting male undergraduate students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta</span> Diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States

The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, with jurisdiction over middle and north Georgia. It is in Province IV of the Episcopal Church and its cathedral, the Cathedral of St. Philip, is in Atlanta, as are the diocesan offices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Marietta</span> Battle of the American Civil War

The Battle of Marietta was a series of military operations from June 9 through July 3, 1864, in Cobb County, Georgia, between Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. The Union forces, led by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, encountered the Confederate Army of Tennessee, led by Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, entrenched near Marietta, Georgia.

<i>The Texas</i> (locomotive) United States historic place

Western & Atlantic Railroad #49 "Texas" is a 4-4-0 "American" type steam locomotive built in 1856 for the Western & Atlantic Railroad by Danforth, Cooke & Co., best known as the principal pursuit engine in the Great Locomotive Chase, chasing the General after the latter was stolen by Union saboteurs in an attempt to ruin the Confederate rail system during the American Civil War. The locomotive is preserved at the Atlanta History Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennesaw State University</span> Public university in Cobb County, Georgia

Kennesaw State University (KSU) is a public research university in the state of Georgia with two campuses in the Atlanta metropolitan area, one in Kennesaw and the other in Marietta on a combined 581 acres (235 ha) of land. The school was founded in 1963 by the Georgia Board of Regents using local bonds and a federal space-grant during a time of major Georgia economic expansion after World War II. KSU also holds classes at the Cobb Galleria Centre, Dalton State College, and in Paulding County (Dallas). The total enrollment exceeds 45,000 students making KSU the third-largest university by enrollment in Georgia.

The Alliance Center is a complex in Atlanta, Georgia. Its tallest building is the 478-foot, 40-floor Paramount at Buckhead. It also includes the 22-floor One Alliance Center, and the 30-floor Two Alliance Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McMillan Hall</span> United States historic place

McMillan Hall is a building on the campus of Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania, United States. Built in 1793, it is the only surviving building from Washington Academy. It is the eighth-oldest academic building in the United States that is still in use for its original academic purpose and is the oldest surviving college building west of the Allegheny Mountains.

West Midtown, also known as Westside, is a colloquial area, comprising many historical neighborhoods located in Atlanta, Georgia. Once largely industrial, West Midtown is now the location of urban lofts, art galleries, live music venues, retail and restaurants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marietta Confederate Cemetery</span> War cemetery in Cobb County, Georgia, United States

Marietta Confederate Cemetery is a large Confederate cemetery located in Marietta, Georgia, adjacent to the larger Marietta City Cemetery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northwest Marietta Historic District</span> Historic district in Georgia, United States

The Northwest Marietta Historic District is a 230-acre (93 ha) historic district in Marietta, Georgia that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. It includes Late Victorian, Greek Revival, Plantation Plain, and other architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LaFortune Student Center</span> Building in Indiana, United States

The LaFortune Student Center serves as one of two student centers at the University of Notre Dame. Commonly known as "LaFortune" or "LaFun," it is a 4-story building of 83,000 square feet that provides the Notre Dame community with a meeting place for social, recreational, cultural, and educational activities. The building also houses restaurants from national restaurant chains. As of 2008, LaFortune employs 35 part-time student staff and 29 full-time non-student staff and has an annual budget of $1.2 million. Many businesses, services, and divisions of The Office of Student Affairs are found within.