GEORGIA

Bartow County.

• Adairsville. Robert Saxon built an octagon house of concrete and gravel. It was actually located two miles north of Adairsville on the east side of U.S. Highway 41 at the county line in Gordon Co. Mr. Saxon moved to Gordon Co. in 1850 from South Carolina. The octagon house unfortunately had a short existence due to General Sherman's march through Georgia. A battle between the confederates and northern forces on May 17, 1864 took place on Saxby's land. The concrete walls of the octagon home, designed for permanency as a dwelling, were caught in the gunfire. Nothing was left but ruins. "My father drew the architectural plans himself," said Miss Mamie Saxon. "It was a beautiful structure of octagonal design, two stories, each showing the same floor plan - that of four large rooms with double windows and four small, triangular rooms arranged to preserve the octagonal contour. These latter served as front and rear entrances, butlers' pantries, and stairway landings. The concrete walls were a foot or more in thickness. The chimney, which was located in the center of the house, contained eight fireplaces".
  
  

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  1856	June 2, 1864

  
  
  Sources: brief mention. Ellen Puerzer.
  Entered: June, 2001.
  Updated: May, 2010
  Updated: September, 2011
  Updated: August, 2013
  Updated: May, 2016
  Updated: December, 2018

Bulloch County.

• Statesboro-Westside. Octagon house. Located at 15 Fred Blitch Lane This 2-story octagon house was built circa 1875 by John L Southwell. He was overseer of the sheep farm owned by Judge Peter W Meldrim. 1904 the Foy manufacturing who then owned the plantation, sold the house to brothers J.G. and J.D. Blitch. JD bought out his brother and it became his residence. Today it is owned by Fred G. Blitch III and is located 9 miles west of Statesboro, Ga. The house had a wide verandah across the front and an unusually tall cupola surrounded by 4 chimneys.
  
  GPS coordinates: 32.462559, -81.923662
  
  
  
  

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  	Satellite - upper left corner.

  
  
  Source: Ellen Puerzer.
  Entered: July, 2009.
  Updated: April, 2013

Camden County.

• Mariana. Octagon house. An octagon-rectangle hybrid. Built between 1811 and 1821.
  Source: Dale Travis.
  Entered: October, 2002.

Chatham County.

• Tylee Island. Octagon house. Nothing else known.
  Source: Wayne Sanford.
  Entered: October, 2003.

Clarke County.

• Athens. The general T.R.R.Cobb Octagon house. The original rectangular section was built about 1830. Located at 194 Prince Street, the house was moved to Stone Mountain in the 1980s, and sat deteriorating for 20 years. In about 2003 the Watson_Brown Foundation paid to move the house back to Athens, and to restore it. The house now sits at 175 Hill Street, about 200 yards from its original location.
  
  Given the rectangular house as a gift by his father-in-law, Joseph H. Lumpkin, as a wedding gift in 1844 when marrying Lumpkin's daughter, Marion McHenry Lumpkin, large octagon structures were added to opposite sides of the house in the 1850s. The result is the house shown in a recent
  
  photograph.
  
  of the house, which has been restored to it's orginal colors using microscopic analysis of the original paint.
  
  Sources: Dale Travis. Shanon Hays, program coordinator for the T.R.R.Cobb museum.
  Entered: August, 2001.
  Updated: May, 2007.
• Athens. Octagon building. On UGA campus. Torn down in the 1950s or earlier.
  Source: John Seawright.
  Entered: June, 2001.

Muscogee County.

• Columbus. Octagon house. Built about 1860. Located at 527 First Avenue. The most famous Georgia octagon has to be May's Folly. It was built circa 1831 as a small rectangular cottage at 527 First Avenue by Julia (daughter of governor John Forsyth) and her husband, Alfred Iverson who occupied it until he moved to DC 1857 when it was sold to Mrs. Savanna G. Faber .
  
  In September 25, 1862, the house was sold to Mr. Leander May, trustee for Hannah P. May, by Mrs. Faber for a price of $400. He created this octagon house. In May 11, 1865, it was sold to Mrs. Catherine Flynn . Just after the Civil War, the house was sold by Mrs. Flynn to Michael Barschall. Fannie Barschall cut her name on a window pane in the dining room with a diamond ring. The birdseye map of 1885 shows it with greenhouse behind.. Sanborn maps of 1900-1907 suggests the matching octagon additon making it a double octagon house was added later than 1907. These also show the greenhouse and not a double octagon.
  
  In 1875 the house was sold to Captain Thomas Jefferson Bates and in 1911 to George L. Sheram. The Historic Columbus Foundation, Inc., purchased the house from Freer Sheram King, granddaughter of George L. Sheram, on June 5, 1967. This colorfully painted structure still stands and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Of particular interest is it’s original 1860s exterior. The double front doors have sidelights and the porch has Victorian elements. The chimney pierces the roof in place of a cupola.
  
  

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  	1900	1907
  2018 - part 1	2018 - part 2

  
  
  Sources: HABS GA-294. Ellen Puerzer.
  Entered: June, 2001.
  Updated: June, 2010
  Updated: March, 2013
  Updated: July, 2013
  Updated: January, 2014
  Updated: September, 2016
  Updated: October, 2016
  Updated: March, 2018
  Updated: October, 2018
• Columbus. Double octagon house. The center structure was built in 1844 for Hanson Scott Estes. The Italianate wings - the octagon structures - were added in 1868 by Lloyd Guyton Bowers.
  
  

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  Source: Ellen Puerzer.
  Entered: July, 2009.

Polk County

• Rockmart Jake Davitte built an octagonal house circa 1900 which is called the round house. It was the first cement house in Ga. A door in each wall led to the outside verandah before remodeling took place. 4 rooms per floor, all identical and all with fireplaces. 438 Jones st.
  
  The home was owned by Farist Beardon in 1990 and his DIL Geraldine Duke open a florist shoppe there in 1991. It was filled with antiques and originally Mrs Duke sold flowers and antiques. She and her husband also resided there on the first floor. It recently closed. It is extant but it's use is unknown but appears in poor shape.
  
  

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  Source: Ellen Puerzer.
  Entered: October, 2014.
  Updated: July, 2017

Rabun County.

• Clayton. Octagon house. Two story. Flat pitched roof and a high cupola.
  Source: Dale Travis.
  Entered: August, 2002.
• Tiger. Octagon house. Located on old US-441.
  Source: Dale Travis.
  Entered: August, 2002.

Talbot County.

• Prattsburg. Octagon house. Simeon Parker Plantation. octagonal wings (called flankers) were added connected via the long porch.by John Parker in 1856 when he inherited. House was built in 1830s. The house has been in the Parker family for the last 100 years or so, and still was up to about 1990. Talbot County. The wing on left was the music room and the one on the right was a bedroom. Photos from 1976.
  
  

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  Music room - right side

  Parker house

  Left side -from front.

  
  
  Sources: Julian Bethel. Ellen Puerzer.
  Entered: June, 2001.
  Updated: August, 2013

Thomas County

• Thomasville Octagon house. Reportedly built in 1886.
  
  

  Left click on the images below for larger versions.

  
  
  Source: Joseph Reed
  Entered: January, 2023.