Head Building - Dahlonega Commercial Historic District - Dahlonega GA
N 34° 31.941 W 083° 59.066
17S E 226080 N 3825230
The Head Building is a contributing building to the Dahlonega Commercial Historic District in downtown Dahlonega GA
Waymark Code: WMWRAK
Location: Georgia, United States
Date Posted: 10/06/2017
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The Head Building stands on the east side of the Dahlonega Commercial Historic District in downtown Dahlonega GA. It is listed as a contributing building, as follows:
From the National Park Service website: (
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"The Dahlonega Commercial Historic District encompasses the contiguous historic commercial and civic buildings in downtown Dahlonega. The district is situated on a low, irregular rise of ground at the center of Dahlonega's circular city limits. Central to the district is the public square, upon which stands the old Federal style county courthouse dating from 1836 or 1838 (now the Gold Museum). City streets, arranged in a rigid gridiron pattern, bisect the square on two sides and enter at right angles at its four corners. Lots along these streets, and around the public square, are rectangular in shape and relatively small in size. Buildings on these lots consist of one or two story wood-framed or brick-masonry structures, densely grouped within the district. The majority of these buildings are commercial and were designed originally as stores, banks, offices and a hotel. Many of the two-story structures historically and presently contained living space on the second floors. The wood-framed structures are freestanding, while most of the .brick: buildings "share party walls. All observe a common setback from the street. The historic buildings around the square date from the mid-nineteenth through the early-twentieth century. Styles of architecture represented in the district include Federal, Italianate, vernacular Second Empire, Victorian Eclectic, and vernacular commercial. Principal exterior building materials are brick and wood; concrete block is used in a few instances. Many of the wood frame structures have full front two-story porches. Most brick structures have flat roofs and prominent cornices. Interiors in the district are finished with wood, plaster and pressed metal. Several non-historic commercial buildings are located in and around the district, and several front facades and storefronts in the district have been remodeled.
Location
The Dahlonega Commercial Historic District, located in Dahlonega, Lumpkin County, Georgia, is an area which includes the old county courthouse and the surrounding historic commercial buildings on the public square."
The Head Building is also marked with a local historic plaque as follows:
"DAHLONEGA STORIES
Doctor Homer Head erected this building in 1910 to house his medical office upstairs and the Bank of Dahlonega on the main floor. The old bank vault and a rare cannonball safe are still visible. The structure is made of concrete blocks molded on the exterior to resemble hewn stone. W. B. Fry, former owner of the Smith House, purchased the property in 1963 for his Dahlonega Loan Company. Since 1986 various businesses have rented the building."