Summerville Park: A Centennial History

By Ouida Word Dickey

Summerville ParkA Centennial History tells the story of
the development of a community on the outskirts of Rome,
Georgia, on the occasion of the neighborhoods 100th
anniversary. Established in 1913 on the northern edge of
Rome, Summerville Park has grown to include over 300 homes.
Designated a Heritage Neighborhood in 2011, Summerville
Park was and is an ideal community in which to raise a family.
This book captures the spirit of the neighborhood through the
stories of the people who have called Summerville Park home.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 12, 2013
• ISBN: 9781483638614

Ouida Word Dickey

DR. OUIDA DICKEY, a native Floridian, served Berry College 43 years in the collective roles of professor and dean and retired as Dean of Academic Services and Professor of Business, Emerita. She is the editor, co-editor, co-author, and author of several books related to Berry College. She has lived on Dodd Street in Summerville Park since moving from the Berry College campus in 1992.

Book preview

Summerville Park—

a Centennial History

Ouida Word Dickey

Copyright © 2013 by Ouida Word Dickey.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2013908445

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

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Rev. date: 08/08/2013

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Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

One Early Rome

Two Development of Summerville Park Addition to Rome

Three Homes in the Community

Four Tolbert Park

Five The Summerville Park Neighborhood Association

Appendix A Age Reports of Houses in Summerville Park by Street

Appendix B Summerville Park Houses, First to Last Built, and Deed Holders as of May 2010

Appendix C New Owners of Summerville Park Properties as of March 2013

Appendix D Abstract of Bylaws The Summerville Park Neighborhood Association

Endnotes

Bibliography

Acknowledgments

Many people helped to make this neighborhood history possible, and to each I extend sincere appreciation. Pat Millican in the Rome-Floyd County Library’s Heritage Room led me to the Index to Deeds in Rome and Floyd County to locate the original plat’s recording as well as subsequent ones. She was supportive through countless searches of city directories and newspaper microfilms.

Several city officials gave me both direction and assistance in gathering information: John Bennett guided me to director of engineering services Aaron Carroll and city surveyor Randall Carver to get a look at early plats comprising the plan for the community, and they provided numerous plat images on CD; Carver read the draft of the text interpreting the plats and development of the subsequent additions to the residential area. William (Bill) McWhorter, chief appraiser of Floyd County, provided electronic deed reports with date of construction of the homes and assisted me with related valuable information. Marshall Plants, GIS manager in the Rome-Floyd County Planning Department, supplied the map of Summerville Park showing the various plats and the chronology of their development. Phil Helton, zoning administrator, provided information on the rezoned areas of the community. Richard Garland, executive director of Rome Parks and Recreation Authority, provided photographs and valuable assistance with the chapter on Tolbert Park.

The following friends and acquaintances in Rome, some of whom never lived in the neighborhood and some who did but do not in 2013, responded to my inquiries about people, places, and things relative to the study, thus adding meaning to the Summerville Park story: Barbara Bridges, Janet Farrar Byington, Charlene Covington, Anne Culpepper, Dr. Randolph and Rebecca Manis Green, Dr. Dan Hanks, Mrs. Laurie Milhollin Hansen, Carol Bowen Hatch, Nan Henson, Lyons Heyman, Ben Lucas, Mark Manis, Kenneth Moyers, Haywood and Stephen Patton, Danny Price, Elizabeth Dodd Trammell, and Lowell Wilkins. Dr. Hanks provided a driving tour throughout the neighborhood with commentary that made gathered information more meaningful. Richard Lester, of General Electric, related information about his testing of the soil in Tolbert Park for polychlorinated biphenyls and clearing it to meet residential standards.

Many neighbors in Summerville Park gave interesting interviews about their homes and their experiences living in the community; and some provided photographs, primarily for the oldest home on each street, or other residences: Jenny Grant on Briarwood Circle; Dr. Sidney and Joann Bell, recent returnees Wayne and Marsha Dempsey, Neill Goff, Harold King, Milton Tippin, and Barbara Triplett on Charlton Street; Kathy Baird on Cilanco Street; Bryan Storey on Colonial Drive; Montine Bartlett, Claire Gardner, and Joan Fuller on Dodd Street as well as Mary Stevens Knowles, former resident of Dodd Street; Linda Lam (now deceased) on Leland Avenue; Jim Manis on Little Dry Creek Road; E. L. (Ed) Yeargan, Jr., on Martha Berry Highway; Leann Goya, Ken and Mary Nance, of Oakwood Street; Carla Greissinger Hyde of Oakwood Street regarding the home at 107 Raymond Avenue; Drs. Eric and Jacqueline McDowell of Robin Street; Helen Cobb Runninger, formerly of Timothy Avenue; Pam Morgan and Julia Dent of Vineland Drive, and Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Blair of Walton Way. Richard King, of 206 Charlton Street, told about his work as a volunteer stream watcher with the Coosa River Basin Initiative and his monthly monitoring of Little Dry Creek in Tolbert Park. Susan Daniel provided the history of Wesley Southern Methodist Church.

Aaron Carroll, Randall Carver, Bill McWhorter, Eric and Jacqueline McDowell, Pat Millican, and Alice Stevens read the full manuscript, as did my daughters, Jennifer and Angela Dickey; and all made helpful suggestions. Jennifer also provided technical assistance and made many of the photographs of the houses and street signs. Senior history majors at Berry College Jessica Cantrell and Kaitlin Pierce provided invaluable research and technical assistance in the development and preparation of the manuscript. Cousin Joel Fletcher helped guide me in the selection of a publisher. To all who assisted along the way, I am deeply indebted.

Introduction

This is the story of a small residential neighborhood of 327 homes nestled in the northwest section of Rome, Georgia, a city of approximately 38,000 population. Like the city, Summerville Park is a multicultural mix of young to old, studying for degrees, pursuing various careers, or enjoying retirement, and representing many career fields—business, education, medicine, industry, and others. It is a congenial neighborhood in which the residents know many of their neighbors and interact on a casual basis as well as in community association meetings.

Providing background from which the subdivision evolved is the first chapter on early Rome. It briefly traces the development of Rome from its establishment in 1834 and identifies some of the residential areas that existed prior to Summerville Park.

The development of the Summerville Park addition to Rome from its establishment in 1913 with the defining and registering of the first plat is discussed in Chapter Two. Thought of as the center of the neighborhood, this plat is followed by eight ensuing ones; and a combination of these plats, with the dates of their addition, forms the map of Summerville Park.

Presented by the seventeen alphabetically ordered streets and avenues in Chapter Three are the homes in the community, time periods of their construction, and additional information on some of the houses, beginning with the oldest house on each street. Interviews with the occupants/owners of these houses provide insights into the homes and the individuals’ experiences living in the community.

In Chapter Four appears the story of Tolbert Park, where children and adults find time for recreational activities on its tennis courts, basketball court, playing fields, and playground; and the community gathers periodically for picnics and the initiation of parades.

An account of the Summerville Park Neighborhood Association (SPNA) appears in Chapter Five. The Association serves as the voice for residents in the community, particularly in matters of family, neighbors, and government, through effective communication, social events, cooperative neighborhood improvements, and dialogue with government officials. As such, it serves as a binding force for a closely knit community.

All houses on each street and avenue are listed in the order of their building (the age reports) in Appendix A. A comprehensive list of all houses in the community in the order of their building (first to last, with deed holders) appears in Appendix B. New owners of thirty-seven of these properties as of March 2013 appear in Appendix C. An abstract of the Bylaws of the SPNA is found in Appendix D.

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