Tag: history

Titanic artifacts are brought to the surface, cleaned off, and delivered to an anonymous storage facility in northern Atlanta whose exact address is kept secret. They are some of thousands of artifacts salvaged from the remains of the RMS Titanic.

As Democrats attempt to flip the state for a second presidential election, many don’t know that the Democratic Party once dominated politics in Georgia, though in a very different form. For most of the 20th century, much of the South embraced the party, whose ideological identity—like that of its foil, the Republicans—was forged by the deepest conflicts in American history. It was progressive Republicans who pushed for an end to slavery, while Democrats espoused a conservative commitment to the status quo. But over the last 100 years, the nation’s two major political parties have effectively swapped sides. Here’s how it happened.

Rachel Bomeli stood on the roof of the Fox Theatre and knew something was off. Renovations for the “Onion Dome” that crowns the building were almost underway, and Bomeli, the vice president of facility operations, compared the current dome to a photograph of the original. Somewhere in the Fox’s 95-year history, someone had taken creative liberties.

It was 50 years ago this month—April 8, 1974—that Henry Aaron hit his 715th career home run off pitcher Al Downing in Atlanta, breaking Ruth’s 39-year record. When he finally reached that summit, it seemed less a cause for celebration for Aaron than reason for a long sigh of relief: The chase was finally over.

It may be hard to imagine today, when gridlock traffic is synonymous with Atlanta, but riding public transit was once the norm. Here, a brief look at the city's former streetcar system and why Atlanta's public transit had such a decline.

Nettie Washington Douglass, descendant of three legendary Black Americans, was born under the heavy mantle of history. Through the Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives, her family is now linking their ancestors’ stories to the most pressing issues of today.

The Atlanta University Center has shaped generations of leaders—for the nation and for their home city. Atlanta would be nothing like it is today without it.

Morris Brown College has made many comebacks in its nearly 140-year history. This may be the biggest one yet.

Just west of the futuristic origami that is Mercedes-Benz Stadium, some of Atlanta’s most richly historic buildings stand abandoned on a hilltop like oversize, graffiti-strewn headstones in a forgotten cemetery. One gate of the tall chain-link fence surrounding some of these Vine City properties is bent dramatically outward, as if a velociraptor escaped. But just beyond that, a deep-red billboard stands like a beacon of hope, reading: “Master Plan Development Underway . . . Details Coming Soon.”

The legacy of historically Black sororities and fraternities dates back to the start of the 20th century. Four sororities and five fraternities, known collectively as the “Divine Nine,” make up the National Pan-Hellenic Council. Each of these organizations has its own colors, symbols, and calls that you’ll hear often during social gatherings, but all were established with the core value of uplifting the Black community through education, economic empowerment, and social change.