Kirkwood (Atlanta) - History

History

Prior to the Civil War, much of the property that now comprises Kirkwood belonged to the Kirkpatrick family. Another portion belonged to the Dunwoody family. The name Kirkwood was derived from a blending of the two family names.

Kirkwood traces its beginnings to residential development begun in the 1870s. While no one would consider Kirkwood a suburb of Atlanta today, an early tour book described it as an “area of beautiful suburban villas.” Kirkwood was an early streetcar suburb of Atlanta. By 1910 streetcars provided express service to and from Atlanta three times daily, and street cars continued service along some streets including Kirkwood Road until the early 1950s.

Kirkwood was incorporated as an independent municipality in 1899. Governed beginning in 1899 by its own city council and mayor, the town boasted its own water system, school systems and fire department. The former Kirkwood School is a handsome building from this period, located on Kirkwood Road just north of Bessie Branham Park. Individually nominated to the National Register of Historic Places, the primary building on the property’s south side was originally designed by John Francis Downing, the son of the noted Atlanta architect W. T. Downing. Both buildings now comprise the Kirkwood Lofts apartments as a result of a $1 million renovation in 1997.

The streetcar line followed Woodbine Ave NE and Wade Ave NE to the current intersection of Hosea L. Williams Dr NE and Rogers St NE. From there the streetcar line followed Hosea L. Williams Dr NE eastbound into Downtown Kirkwood. The streetcar line merged onto Oakview Rd NE and continued east to Decatur.