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Piedmont Driving Club Records

 Collection
Collection number: ahc.MSS409

Scope and Content

The bulk of the records are invitations and announcements. The invitations include dinner dances with music by Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, and Tommy Tucker, among others. Invitations for seasonal parties, including the annual Halloween Ball with presentation of the debutantes, and Christmas and Valentine's Day parties are also included. Other invitations feature After the Opera suppers, dancing classes, and a variety of other themed parties. Announcements include information about administrative policies and changes, meeting notifications, and advance notifications of events. The records also contain annual reports (1952-1998), yearbooks (1909-1990s), programs, and records from the Centennial Subcommittee regarding the planning of the centennial celebration and Jack J. Spalding's written history of the club (1937-1969). Correspondence from 1959 related to construction on the building and the ballroom. Newspaper clippings cover topics such as the architecture, events at the club. and controversies regarding business deals being conducted on the grounds. Also included is the application file for Michael Russell, the first African American member of the club. There is also a scrapbook of photographs and news clippings of "Active Founders."

Dates

  • 1907-1998

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright law. (Title 17, U.S. Code) Permission for use must be cleared through the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center. Licensing agreement may be required.

Administrative/Biographical History

The Piedmont Driving Club in Atlanta, Georgia is a private country club whose mission is to "provide and maintain a proper place for enjoyment, social intercourse, pleasure and recreation for its members and their families." It was established in 1887 at a Chamber of Commerce meeting when James Kingsbery and 100 other men agreed to jointly purchase Benjamin Walker's 190 acre tract of land in present day Midtown for $38,000. The Walker home stood as the orgininal club house, but as club membership grew, additions were made including the dining terrace, designed by member, Philip T. Shutze, and a ball room designed by members of the Atlanta firm Hentz, Reid, and Adler. The club has hosted a variety of dignitaries including President Taft; Governor Joseph Terrill; President Cleveland; opera singers: Enrico Caruso and Geraldine Farrar; and Jimmy and Rosalind Carter. The Club's roster has included Coca-Cola president Robert Woodruff, historian Franklin M. Garrett, and United States Attorney General Griffin Bell. Both the Atlanta Debutante Club and the Atlanta Junior League were organized there in 1911 and 1916, respectively. A press party for the premier of Gone With the Wind was also held at the club. The Nine O'Clocks, a social organization, hosts its annual costume ball there each New Year'' Eve.

Extent

1.75 linear ft. (4 document cases)

Language

English

System of Arrangement

Alphabetical according to titles supplied by staff

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Dr. Crawford F. Barnett, Jr., 1979 (1979.249); Natalie Cohen, 1979 (1979.321); and Sheffield Hale, 2009 (2009.153).

Description Control

Collection reprocessed in 2011.

Title
Piedmont Driving Club Records
Status
Completed
Author
Finding aid prepared by Laura Starratt
Date
February 2011
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository

Contact:
130 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta GA 30305
404-814-4040