Atlanta History Center Announces January to June 2015 Long Range Calendar

Fri, Dec 19, 2014 18:43 CET

NEW PERMANENT EXHIBITION:

Mandarin Shutze: A Chinese Export Life

Swan House at the Atlanta History Center

One of Atlanta’s foremost architects and designer of the Atlanta History Center’s 1928 Swan House, Philip Trammell Shutze is esteemed for his design ability. Yet aside from his personal friends, few knew the extent of his private collection of decorative arts. Explore 350 pieces of Shutze’s collection of pottery and porcelain as well as select furniture pieces, many on display for the first time. Must see objects include the boars head tureens and items from the Bow Factory.

This exhibition is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers; available to view daily as part of the Swan House open house experience. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or call 404.814.4000.

TEMPORARY EXHIBITIONS:

Filming The Camps: John Ford, Samuel Fuller, George Stevens – From Hollywood to Nuremberg

On display May 6 – November 20, 2015

Atlanta History Center

Hollywood directors John Ford, George Stevens, and Samuel Fuller created American cinema classics like The Grapes of Wrath, Shane, and The Big Red One. But their most important contribution to history was their work in the U.S. Armed Forces and Secret Services, filming the realities of war and the liberation of Nazi concentration camps. Filming the Camps presents rare footage of the liberation of Dachau with detailed directors’ notes, narratives describing burials at Falkenau, and the documentary produced as evidence at the Nuremberg trials, among other historic material. In addition to this rare footage, the exhibition shows how the violence of World War II and the exposure to the victims of Nazi atrocities caused a complete upheaval in the lives and careers of these three Hollywood directors.

This exhibition is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or call 404.814.4000.

Support: The exhibition, curated by historian and film director Christian Delage, was designed, created, and circulated by the Mémorial de la Shoah (Paris, France), and made possible through the generous support of the SNCF.

We Had Arrived at Georgia: The von Reck Sketchbook, 1736

On display May 2015 – October 2015

Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center

Among the earliest settlers of Colonial America’s thirteenth colony, the Salzburgers from central Europe found a new home in Georgia. Seeking religious freedom, groups of German-speaking Protestants left the principality of Salzburg in present-day Austria. Among them, the young Philip Georg Friedrich von Reck sailed to Georgia, where he documented through words and art what he called “this strange new world.”

Von Reck’s diary and sketchbook – preserved in the Royal Library in Copenhagen – contains over fifty watercolors and sketches of what he observed during his time in the colony, February – October 1736. His travel journal includes detailed drawings of Indians and colonists at work and play, settlements and houses, plants, and animals. Though von Reck’s writings were published in the eighteenth century, his drawings remained unknown until rediscovered in 1977 – yet they are among the earliest representations of the native Creek and Yuchi people in Georgia.

These drawings, accompanied by von Reck's writings, remain important today as not only history, but also as science and as art. As history, they provide a unique glimpse into the state as it looked when the first Europeans settled here. As science, von Reck's natural history drawings represent the earliest records of several plants and animals. The watercolors are especially important for the light they shed on Indian life, detailing their costumes, equipment, houses, and activities. As art, von Reck's drawings endure as fresh, intimate, and alive on the paper as the day they were drawn 280 years in our past.

Organized by Georgia Council for the Arts and Georgia Tourism, and curated by the Atlanta History Center, the exhibition features von Reck’s original sketchbook on display as well as a digital version of the entire sketchbook. The exhibition draws on the permanent collections of the Atlanta History Center and is contextualized by prints, drawings, maps, and publications of a variety of flora, fauna, birds, insects, wildlife, and native inhabitants created by Theodore deBry, Mark Catesby, William Bartram, John Abbot, and Thomas L. McKenny & James Hall. Collectively, these artists advanced the knowledge and understanding of colonial America, in particular Georgia, and provided a larger narrative of how the world learned about, understood, and appreciated the American South in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

This exhibition is free to the public. For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or call 404.814.4000.

American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music

Closes February 28, 2015

Atlanta History Center

Move to the rhythm of American Sabor and discover the diversity, creativity, and innovations of Latin musicians. Celebrate and savor the impact of Latinos in American popular music in a stirring bilingual exhibition. This exhibition explores the musical contributions of U.S. Latinos from the 1940s to the present, while delving into the social history and individual creativity that produced stars like Tito Puente, Ritchie Valens, Celia Cruz, Carlos Santana, and Selena.

Support: Developed by EMP Museum and the University of Washington, and organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services (SITES), American Sabor, its national tour, and related programs are made possible by Ford Motor Company Fund.

Slavery By Another Name: Paintings and Assemblages by Robert Claiborne Morris

Closes March 1, 2015

Margaret Mitchell House

Slavery by Another Name: Paintings and Assemblages by Robert Claiborne Morris is a mixed media art exhibition inspired by the Pulitzer-Prize winning book by Douglas A. Blackmon. Morris began to re-examine his understanding of race in America after reading an early proof of Blackmon’s book, Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II, which explores the little-known practice of leasing African American convicts to private individuals and corporations – a practice that continued in some Southern states until after World War II. Incorporated in Morris’ works are portraits, maps of the slave mines, courageous articles and images published by the Atlanta Constitution, blood money, letters to the Department of Justice pleading for mercy, and implements of bondage and torture ranging from words to ropes, locks, and chains. From a portrait of President Lincoln that incorporates burlap and the tin from the roof of an abandoned sharecropper's shack, to shackles from a slave vessel that sway before the figure of an anonymous worker, this collection of art has helped bring to light this little-explored and less-understood chapter in American history.

This exhibition is free to members; included in the cost of general admission to nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit MargaretMitchellHouse.com or call 404.814.4000.

Confederate Odyssey: The George W. Wray Jr. Civil War Collection

Closes April 26, 2015

Atlanta History Center

To commemorate the Civil War Sesquicentennial, the Atlanta History Center is exhibiting the incredible collection of Confederate artifacts assembled by Atlanta collector George W. Wray Jr. On public display for the first time, this Atlanta History Center collection includes the rarest of the rare: Southern–made uniforms, flags, firearms, bayonets, and small-caliber artillery pieces, many of which are one-of-a-kind items. This exhibition uses these objects to tell the story of how a pre-industrial Confederacy managed to sustain a modern industrial war for four long years.

Discover the amazing personal stories of those who carried or wore these objects into battle. Here you see the blood-spattered coat of a seventeen-year-old Georgia boy killed at the Battle of Chickamauga, the flag carried by Georgia regiment as it advanced into a hail of bullets along what is now Peachtree Street, and a sharpshooter rifle made by a New Hampshire gunsmith who worked for the Confederacy before returning to his native state in 1866. Also on display is the patent model and prototype of George W. Morse’s breech-loading gun, the direct predecessor of all modern firearms.

The exhibition is accompanied by a richly-illustrated full-color catalogue of the Atlanta History Center’s George W. Wray Jr. Civil War Collection, published by the University of Georgia Press.

Wilbur G. Kurtz: History in Gone With the Wind

Closes April 4, 2015

Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center

In recognition of the 75th anniversary of the premiere of the iconic movie Gone With the Wind, the Atlanta History Center presents an exhibition revealing Kurtz’s influence as the film’s historian and technical advisor. Kurtz’s role in Hollywood was to guarantee the historical accuracy of the film’s depiction of Atlanta, Tara, and the Civil War and Reconstruction eras.

This exhibition is free to the public. For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or call 404.814.4000.

FAMILY AND ADULT EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING

Programs and dates are subject to change.

Please call 404.814.4033 to confirm program dates.

January 2015

Bank of America Museums on Us

Saturday and Sunday, January 3 and 4, 2015

The Atlanta History Center is a proud participant in Bank of America’s national Museums on Us program. All Bank of America/Merrill Lynch customers receive free admission to the Atlanta History Center, including the Atlanta History Museum, Centennial Olympic Games Museum, two historic houses, and Goizueta historic gardens, during the first full weekend of every month.

To redeem this offer, visitors must present a valid Bank of America ATM, debit, or credit card, along with a photo ID. Bank of America associates are also eligible for free admission by presenting their current Bank of America Corporate ID card, and a photo ID.

Visit www.bankofamerica.com/museums for more information on other participating institutions across the country.

Three Kings Day, Dia del los Reyes

Sunday, January 4, 2015

1:00 – 5:00 pm

Kick off the New Year with the Three Kings Day Festival held in collaboration with the Mexican Consulate and the Instituto de Mexico. This Latin tradition is celebrated through storytelling, music, live performances, and activities designed for the entire family, including a special visit and photo opportunity with the three kings!

During this annual free admission day at the Atlanta History Center, guests are invited to enjoy the festival and then continue their adventures with a variety of Atlanta History Center offerings from discoveries of signature and traveling exhibitions to historic house experiences and explorations of the beautiful Goizueta gardens. Food and drinks are available for purchase. For more information about this program, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Institutio de Mexico and the Mexican Consulate; and the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

Homeschool Day: The Middle Ages

Monday, January 5, 2015

1:00 – 4:00 pm

The Middle Ages is one of the most romanticized and disparaged time periods in history. From gallant knights to the black plague, homeschoolers sift through the many myths and misconceptions of this not-so-dark age.

The Atlanta History Center offers special monthly programs for homeschool students and their families. Each month explores a different subject through exhibition tours and a variety of activities geared toward kids from toddler to teen.

Admission to Homeschool Days is $8.50 nonmembers; $6.50 children of members; and free for adult members. Discounted rates are available for groups with 10 or more children. For more information, or to make group reservations, please call 404.814.4018, email Homeschool@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com, or visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Homeschool.

Neil Foley, Mexicans in the Making of America

Thursday, January 8, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

According to census projections, by 2050 nearly one in three U.S. residents will be Latino, and the overwhelming majority of these will be of Mexican descent. This dramatic demographic shift is reshaping politics, culture, and fundamental ideas about American identity. Neil Foley, a leading Mexican American historian, offers a sweeping view of the evolution of Mexican America, from a colonial outpost on Mexico’s northern frontier to a twenty-first-century people integral to the nation they have helped build.

Mexicans in the Making of America demonstrates that America has always been a composite of racially blended peoples, never a purely white Anglo-Protestant nation. The struggle of Latinos to gain full citizenship bears witness to the continual remaking of American culture into something more democratic, egalitarian, and truer to its multiracial and multiethnic origins. The lecture also touches upon the influence of Mexicans on popular music in the United States.

Neil Foley holds the Robert H. and Nancy Dedman Chair in History at Southern Methodist University.

This program is held in conjunction with the American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music exhibition.

Admission for all lectures is $5 members, $10 nonmembers, and free to AHC Insiders unless otherwise noted. Reservations are required, please call 404.814.4150 or reserve tickets online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Lectures.

National Dialogues on Immigration

Sunday, January 11, 2015

2:00 – 4:00 pm

Beginning January 2014, twenty museums and historic sites across the country launched the National Dialogues on Immigration Project; a bold, new public initiative to use historical perspective to foster dialogue on immigration issues among people with diverse perspectives and backgrounds through visceral encounters with the past.

The Atlanta History Center, in partnership with the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience, offers three public dialogues on immigration. Participants are taken on a forty-five minute guided tour of the temporary exhibition American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music before participating in a facilitated dialogue that explores Latino immigration and assimilation through the lens of popular culture.

This program is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is required. To register, please email KWhitman@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

Support: This project is made possible with generous support from the National Endowment for Humanities, Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Nathan Cummings Foundation.

Magic Mondays: Music Mayhem

Monday, January 12, 2015

10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Discover the sounds of music! Play with musical instruments, join in on sing-a-longs, and learn favorite dance crazes that will have your tiny tot singing and moving all day.

This monthly program for toddlers and preschoolers (18 months to five years) engages our youngest visitors in activities that introduce them to history in creative ways. Each Magic Monday has a unique theme and includes a guided exploration of one of our award-winning exhibitions, historic houses, or Goizueta gardens, as well as demonstrations, arts and crafts projects, and story time. Join us for another exciting year and connect with old friends while meeting new ones.

Members are admitted for free. Admission is $6.50 adults; $5.50 children. Discounted rates are available for groups with ten or more children. For more information, please call 404.814.4110 or visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/MagicMondays.

Ford Free Admission Weekends: American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music

Saturday & Sunday, January 17 & 18, 2015

In conjunction with the nationally traveling exhibition, American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music, Ford Motor Company Fund presents Free Admission Weekends.

ALL guests receive FREE admission to the Atlanta History Center, including American Sabor. Admission includes access to all History Center exhibitions, interactive experiences and explorations at Smith Family Farm and Swan House, and 22 acres Goizueta gardens.

For more information on free weekend activities, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/AmericanSabor.

Members-Only: Immigration and Family History Research: A Beginner’s Guide to Finding Your Tired, Your Poor, and Your Huddled Masses

Saturday, January 17, 2015

10:30 am – Noon

Most of us have ancestors who came to the United States from somewhere else. Knowing why and how they came can help you locate helpful sources of information. Join Senior Archivist Sue VerHoef for a genealogy program designed to help you find your immigrant ancestors.

This program is free to members only. For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Membership.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day: Free Admission at Atlanta History Center and Margaret Mitchell House

Monday, January 19, 2015

10:00 am – 5:30 pm

Enjoy free admission to the Atlanta History Center and the Margaret Mitchell House in honor of Martin Luther King Day, featuring all-inclusive access to Margaret Mitchell House; award-winning exhibitions in the Atlanta History Museum; Meet the Past experiences at the 1928 Swan House and the 1860 Smith Family Farm; the Centennial Olympic Games Museum; and the Goizueta Gardens.

For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

Sarah Addison Allen, First Frost

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

Sarah Addison Allen, beloved author of Garden Spells, returns with a luminous story of the trouble with hanging on too long, and the magic that happens when you finally let go.

Autumn has finally arrived in the small town of Bascom, North Carolina, heralded by a strange old man appearing with a beat-up suitcase. He has stories to tell, stories that could change the lives of the Waverley women forever. But the Waverleys have enough trouble on their hands. Quiet Claire Waverley has started a successful new venture, Waverley’s Candies, but it’s nothing like she thought it would be, and it’s slowly taking over her life. Claire’s wild sister Sydney, still trying to leave her past behind, is about to combust with her desire for another new beginning. And Sydney’s fifteen-year-old daughter Bay has given her heart away to the wrong boy and can’t get it back.

Sarah Addison Allen is the New York Times bestselling author of Garden Spells, The Sugar Queen, The Girl Who Chased the Moon, The Peach Keeper, and Lost Lake. She was born and raised in Asheville, North Carolina.

Celebrate the launch of First Frost with a complimentary champagne and dessert reception.

Tess Gerritsen, Die Again

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

Detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles are back—and they’re going into the wild to find a killer. Die Again is the latest heart-pounding thriller in Tess Gerritsen’s New York Times bestselling series, the inspiration behind TNT’s hit show Rizzoli & Isles.

When Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles are summoned to a crime scene, they find a killing worthy of the most ferocious beast—right down to the claw marks on the corpse. But only the most sinister human hands could have left renowned big-game hunter and taxidermist Leon Gott gruesomely displayed like the once-proud animals whose heads adorn his walls. Did Gott unwittingly awaken a predator more dangerous than any he’s ever hunted?

Tess Gerritsen is a physician and an internationally bestselling author. She gained nationwide acclaim for her first novel of medical suspense, the New York Times bestseller Harvest. She is also the author of the bestsellers The Keepsake, The Bone Garden, The Mephisto Club, Vanish, Body Double, The Sinner, The Apprentice, The Surgeon, Life Support, Bloodstream, and Gravity. Tess Gerritsen lives in Maine.

February 2015

Homeschool Day: Coming to America

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

1:00 – 4:00 pm

Whether they came on the Mayflower or through Ellis Island, America has always been made up of many cultures. Explore the challenges immigrants faced upon the arrival to their new home and learn about their contributions to making this country the important melting pot it is today.

Héctor Fernández L'Hoeste, Ph.D., Cumbia!: Scenes of a Migrant Latin American Music Genre

Thursday, February 5, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

Cumbia is a musical form that originated in northern Colombia and then spread throughout Latin America and wherever Latin Americans travel and settle. It has become one of the most popular musical genres in the Americas. Its popularity is largely due to its stylistic flexibility as it absorbs and mixes with the local musical styles it encounters. Known for its appeal to workers, the music takes on different styles and meanings from place to place, and even, as the contributors to this collection show, from person to person. Cumbia is a different music among the working classes of northern Mexico, Latin American immigrants in New York City, Andean migrants to Lima, and upper-class Colombians, who now see the music that they once disdained as a source of national prestige.

The contributors to this collection look at particular manifestations of cumbia through their disciplinary lenses of musicology, sociology, history, anthropology, linguistics, and literary criticism. Taken together, their essays highlight how intersecting forms of identity – such as nation, region, class, race, ethnicity, and gender – are negotiated through interaction with the music.

Héctor Fernández L'Hoeste is Professor in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Director of the Center for Latin American and Latino/a Studies at Georgia State University. He is coeditor, with Deborah Pacini Hernandez, and Eric Zolov, of Rockin' Las Américas: The Global Politics of Rock in Latin/o America.

This program is held in conjunction with the American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music exhibition.

Bank of America Museums on Us

Saturday and Sunday, February 7 and 8, 2015

Visit www.bankofamerica.com/museums for more information on other participating institutions across the country.

Struggles and Strides

Saturday, February 7, 2015

11:00 am – 4:00 pm

Commemorate Black History Month with a day of activities, special museum theatre performances, and guest lectures that explore the African American experience from the Great Migration to the Civil Rights Movement.

This program is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

National Dialogues on Immigration

Sunday, February 8, 2015

2:00 – 4:00 pm

This program is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is required. To register, please email KWhitman@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

Support: This project is made possible with generous support from the National Endowment for Humanities, Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Nathan Cummings Foundation.

Magic Monday: Heart Pumping Fun

Monday, February 9, 2015

10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Get your body warmed up for some heart pumping Valentine’s Day games. Play fun games from a Hearty Relay Race to a Catch My Heart game.

This monthly program for toddlers and preschoolers (18 months to five years) engages our youngest visitors in activities that introduce them to history in creative ways. Each Magic Monday has a unique theme and includes a guided exploration of one of our award-winning exhibitions, historic houses, or Goizueta Gardens, as well as demonstrations, arts and crafts projects, and story time. Join us for another exciting year and connect with old friends while meeting new ones.

For the Love of Stories: Powerful Love Stories from StoryCorps Atlanta

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

6:00 PM Reception; 7:00 PM Program

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with the Atlanta History Center and StoryCorps Atlanta. Listen to stories that show how the universal power of love builds resilience, hope, and strength in difficult and challenging circumstances.

This program highlights immigrant, LGBTQ, and African American StoryCorps recordings as well as other program pieces that all connect with the theme of love. Wine and cheese reception precedes the program.

This program is free and open to the public. Reservations recommended at 404.814.4150 or online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

Richard Zoglin, Hope

Wednesday, February 11, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

Born in 1903, and until his death in 2003, Bob Hope was the only entertainer to achieve top-rated success in every major mass-entertainment medium, from vaudeville to television and everything in between. He virtually invented modern stand-up comedy. His tours to entertain US troops and patriotic radio broadcasts, along with his all-American, brash-but-cowardly movie character, helped to ease the nation’s jitters during the stressful days of World War II. But he became a polarizing figure during the Vietnam War, and this book sheds new light on his close relationship with President Richard Nixon during those embattled years.

Hope is both a celebration of an entertainer whose vast contribution has never been properly appreciated, and a complex portrait of a gifted but flawed man, who, unlike many Hollywood stars, truly loved being famous, appreciated its responsibilities, and handled celebrity with extraordinary grace.

Richard Zoglin has spent more than thirty years as a writer and editor for Time and is currently the magazine’s theater critic. His book Comedy at the Edge: How Stand-Up in the 1970s Changed America is considered the definitive history of that seminal era in stand-up comedy. Zoglin is a native of Kansas City, Missouri, and currently lives in New York City.

Gabrielle Zevin, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

Thursday, February 12, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

A.J. Fikry, the irascible owner of Island Books, has recently endured some tough years: his wife has died, his bookstore is experiencing the worst sales in its history, and his prized possession – a rare edition of Poe poems – has been stolen. Over time, he has given up on people, and even the books in his store, instead of offering solace, are yet another reminder of a world that is changing too rapidly. Then an unexpected delivery arrives at the bookstore. It’s a small package, but large in impact, and it gives A.J. a second chance at life and love.

Gabrielle Zevin’s enchanting novel is a love letter to the world of books – an irresistible affirmation of why we read, and why we love. Zevin is the author of eight novels, including Elsewhere and, most recently, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, which is a New York Times Best Seller, a #1 Indie Next Pick, and a #1 LibraryReads Selection.

Alan Lightman, The Screening Room

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

From the acclaimed author of the international best seller Einstein’s Dreams, here is a stunning, lyrical memoir of Memphis from the 1930s through the 1960s that includes the early days of the movies and a powerful grandfather whose ghost remains an ever-present force in the lives of his descendants.

Alan Lightman’s grandfather M.A. Lightman was the family’s undisputed patriarch: it was his movie theater empire that catapulted the Lightmans to prominence in the South, his fearless success that both galvanized and paralyzed his children and grandchildren. In this moving, impressionistic memoir, the author chronicles his return to Memphis in an attempt to understand the origins he so eagerly left behind forty years earlier.

Alan Lightman is the author of six novels, including the international best seller Einstein’s Dreams and The Diagnosis, which was a National Book Award finalist. He is also the author of two collections of essays and several books on science. A theoretical physicist as well as a writer, he has served on the faculties of Harvard and MIT, where he was the first person to receive a dual faculty appointment in science and the humanities. He lives in the Boston area.

This is a free event in partnership with The Bitter Southerner and A Capella Books, as part of The Bitter Southerner’s Read Well Book Club. Reservations are recommended. Please call 404.814.4150 or reserve seats online at MargaretMitchellHouse.com/Lectures.

Aiken Lecture: Tom Chaffin, Giant’s Causeway: Frederick Douglass’s Irish Odyssey and the Making of an American Visionary

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

In 1845, seven years after fleeing bondage in Maryland, Frederick Douglass was in his late twenties and already a celebrated lecturer across the northern United States. The recent publication of his groundbreaking Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave had incited threats to his life, however, and to place himself out of harm's way he embarked on a lecture tour of the British Isles, a journey that would span seventeen months and change him as a man and a leader in the struggle for equality.

In the first major narrative account of a transformational episode in the life of this extraordinary American, Tom Chaffin chronicles Douglass’s 1845-47 lecture tour of Ireland, Scotland, and England. Drawn from hundreds of letters, diaries, and other primary-source documents – many heretofore unpublished – this far-reaching tale includes vivid portraits of personages who shaped Douglass and his world.

Tom Chaffin is Research Professor of History at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, for which he directs the multi-volume series Correspondence of James K. Polk. He lives in Atlanta and is the author of, among other books, Sea of Gray: The Around-the-World Odyssey of the Confederate Raider Shenandoah and Pathfinder: John Charles Frémont and the Course of American Empire.

Support: The Aiken Lecture Series is supported by the Lucy Rucker Aiken Foundation.

Kate Alcott, A Touch of Stardust

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

When Julie Crawford leaves Fort Wayne, Indiana for Hollywood, she never imagines she'll cross paths with Carole Lombard, the dazzling actress from Julie's provincial Midwestern hometown. Although the young woman has dreams of becoming a screenwriter, the only job she's able to find is one in the studio publicity department of the notoriously demanding producer David O. Selznick – who is busy burning through directors, writers, and money as he begins filming Gone With the Wind. Although tensions run high on the set, Julie finds she can step onto the back lot, take in the smell of smoky gunpowder and soft rustle of hoop skirts, and feel the magical world of Gone With the Wind come to life. Her access to real-life magic comes when Carole Lombard hires her as an assistant and invites her into the glamorous world she shares with Clark Gable – who is about to move into movie history as the dashing Rhett Butler.

In the ever-widening scope of this story, Julie is given a front-row seat to not one, but two of the greatest love affairs of all time: the undeniable on-screen chemistry between Scarlett and Rhett, and, off-screen, the deepening love between Carole and Clark.

Kate Alcott is the author of The Dressmaker and The Daring Ladies of Lowell.

March 2015

Bank of America Museums on Us

Saturday and Sunday, March 7 and 8, 2015

Visit www.bankofamerica.com/museums for more information on other participating institutions across the country.

Members-Only: Family Game Night

Saturday, March 7, 2015

6:00 – 9:00 pm

Put on your thinking caps and join us for an evening of family fun featuring games like history themed Pictionary, charades, and more. You’ll also enjoy one of our favorite history games: Stump the Historian. Try your hand at tripping up our historians; if you’re successful, you win a prize!

This program is free to members only. For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Membership.

Magic Monday: Egg Hunt on the Smith Family Farm

Monday, March 9, 2015

10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Celebrate springtime on the farm during our annual egg hunt. Join the search for colorful eggs hidden throughout Smith Family Farm to win prizes. Participate in fun and games like the peep toss, doing the bunny hop, and creating spring crafts. Hop on by and visit the Easter Bunny!

This monthly program for toddlers and preschoolers (18 months to five years) engages our youngest visitors in activities that introduce them to history in creative ways. Each Magic Monday has a unique theme and includes a guided exploration of one of our award-winning exhibitions, historic houses, or Goizueta Gardens, as well as demonstrations, arts and crafts projects, and story time. Join us for another exciting year and connect with old friends while meeting new ones.

Homeschool Day: Conflict in Vietnam

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

1:00 – 4:00 pm

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the U.S. ground war in Vietnam. Go beyond the protest and explore the war through the eyes of those who lived it. Meet veterans, go on patrol, and learn about the legacy that shaped this critical and controversial era of U.S. history.

Citizens and Soldiers

Saturday, March 14, 2015

11:00 am – 4:00 pm

Learn what it was like during the Civil War from multiple perspectives – the soldiers on the field, the families on the home front, and the enslaved. Experience home front activities, encampments, reenactments, and demonstrations on our 1860s Smith Family Farm, and enjoy tours of our award-winning Civil War exhibition, Turning Point: The American Civil War.

This program is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

New Voices Series: Jamie Kornegay in conversation with Susan Rebecca White, Soil

Monday, March 16, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

Join the Margaret Mitchell House for the first in a series of free events designed to showcase new voices in fiction. Jamie Kornegay is an independent bookseller and debut novelist, his first book, Soil, is a darkly comic novel about an idealistic young farmer who moves his family to a Mississippi flood basin, suffers financial ruin, and becomes increasingly paranoid he’s being framed for murder.

Drawing on elements of classic Southern noir, dark comedy, and modern dysfunction, Soil is about the gravitational pull of one man’s apocalypse and the hope that maybe, just maybe, he can be reeled in from the brink.

Jamie Kornegay lives in the Mississippi Delta, where he moved in 2006 to establish an independent bookstore, Turnrow Book Co. Before that he was a bookseller, events coordinator, and radio show producer at the famous Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi. He studied creative fiction under Barry Hannah at the University of Mississippi.

This program is free and open to the public, though reservations are recommended. Please call 404.814.4150 or reserve seats online at MargaretMitchellHouse.com/Lectures.

Atlanta Goes Hollywood! Members Guild Luncheon

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

The Members Guild of the Atlanta History Center celebrates their annual luncheon with Atlanta Goes Hollywood!, chaired by Patti Dickey. Guests have the full celebrity experience as they enjoy hearing about the television and film industry in Georgia. PNC Wealth Management is the presenting sponsor of this fun luncheon and proceeds support educational activities of the Atlanta History Center.

For more information, please contact Katherine Hoogerwerf at KHoogerwerf@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or 404.814.4102.

Frye Gaillard, Journey to the Wilderness: War, Memory and a Southern Family’s Civil War Letters

Thursday, March 19, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

In Journey Into the Wilderness award-winning author Frye Gaillard reflects on the Civil War and the way we remember it, through the lens of letters written by his family members, including great-great grandfather, Thomas Gaillard, and Thomas’s sons, Franklin and Richebourg, both of whom were Confederate officers. As Gaillard explains in his deeply felt introductory essay to the book, he came of age in a Southern generation that viewed the war as a glorious lost cause. But as he read through family letters collected and handed down, he confronted a far more sobering truth.

Frye Gaillard is writer in residence at the University of South Alabama and the award-winning author of more than twenty books, including Cradle of Freedom: Alabama and the Movement That Changed America, winner of the Lillian Smith Award, Watermelon Wine, and The Books That Mattered: A Reader's Memoir.

Lisa See, China Dolls

Sunday, March 22, 2015

4:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

Lisa See has garnered international acclaim for her great skill at rendering the intricate relationships of women and the complex meeting of history and fate. In her new novel, China Dolls See turns her attention to San Francisco. The year is 1938 and a world’s fair is preparing to open on Treasure Island, a war is brewing overseas, and the city is alive with possibilities. Three young women from very different backgrounds meet by chance at the exclusive and glamorous Forbidden City nightclub. The girls become fast friends, relying on one another through unexpected challenges and shifting fortunes. When their dark secrets are exposed and the invisible thread of fate binds them even tighter, they find the strength and resilience to reach for their dreams. But after the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor, paranoia and suspicion threaten to destroy their lives, and a shocking act of betrayal changes everything.

Lisa See is the New York Times bestselling author of Dreams of Joy, Shanghai Girls, Peony in Love, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Flower Net (an Edgar Award nominee), The Interior, and Dragon Bones, as well as the critically acclaimed memoir On Gold Mountain. The Organization of Chinese American Women named her the 2001 National Woman of the Year. She lives in Los Angeles.

Tickets are $20 members; $25 nonmembers. Ticket includes program admission and a paperback copy of China Dolls. Reservations are required, please call 404.814.4150 or reserve tickets online at MargaretMitchellHouse.com/Lectures.

History Matters: Tomorrow is Another Day

Friday, March 27, 2015

7:30 pm

Many people would agree that Margaret Mitchell’s novel, Gone With The Wind, is a literary classic and that the subsequent film adaptation is one of the most beloved motion pictures of all time. Others might say that both the book and film are examples of a problematic tradition when it comes to the representation of gender, race, and history in popular culture.

Tomorrow is Another Day is a fictional exploration of the day before the Atlanta premiere of the movie Gone With the Wind. Meet the novelist Margaret Mitchell and learn about her life and creative process as they collide at the intersection of gender, race, and memory. This thought provoking play encourages audiences to think about Margaret Mitchell and her seminal work in new ways.

Following each performance a talkback with the actors and staff facilitators discusses the themes and ideas the play illuminates, and the significance of the movie during its 75th anniversary.

Tickets are $15 for members, $20 for nonmembers. Call 404.814.4150 or reserve tickets online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/MuseumTheatre.

A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words: Collecting, Identifying, Preserving, and Sharing your Family Photographs and Videos

Saturday, March 28, 2015

10:30 am – 12:30 pm

Not sure what to do with that box of old photographs under the bed or those grainy VHS tapes behind the TV? Family photographs and videos present unique challenges to the family historian. While these materials can provide additional information about the lives of our ancestors and open a window on the past, they can also be difficult to organize, challenging to preserve, and nearly impossible to identify. Join Senior Archivist Sue VerHoef for this program designed to help you work with these visual souvenirs of days gone by.

Tickets are $10 for members and $15 for non-members. Reservations are recommended. Please call 404.814.4150 or reserve a ticket online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Genealogy. For more information about program content, call 404.814.4042 or visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Genealogy.

History Matters: Tomorrow is Another Day

Saturday, March 28, 2015

2:00 pm

Following each performance a talkback with the actors and staff facilitators discusses the themes and ideas the play illuminates, and the significance of the movie on its 75th anniversary.

Tickets are $15 for members, $20 for nonmembers. Call 404.814.4150 or reserve tickets online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/MuseumTheatre.

April 2015

An Evening with Sara Gruen, At the Water’s Edge

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

In this new novel from the author of Water for Elephants, Sara Gruen again demonstrates her talent for creating spellbinding period pieces. At the Water’s Edge is a gripping and poignant love story about a privileged young woman’s personal awakening as she experiences the devastations of World War II in a Scottish Highlands village.

Madeline Hyde, a young socialite from Philadelphia, reluctantly follows her husband and their best friend to the tiny village of Drumnadrochit in search of a mythical monster—at the same time that a very real monster, Hitler, wages war against the Allied Forces. What Maddie discovers—about the larger world and about herself—through the unlikely friendships she develops with the villagers, opens her eyes not only to the dark forces that exist around her but to the beauty and surprising possibilities.

Sara Gruen is the #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Water for Elephants, Ape House, Riding Lessons, and Flying Changes. Her works have been translated into forty-three languages and have sold more than ten million copies worldwide. She lives in western North Carolina with her husband and three sons, along with their dogs, cats, horses, birds, and the world’s fussiest goat.

Tickets are $30 members; $35 nonmembers. Ticket includes program admission, light refreshments, and a copy of At the Water’s Edge. Reservations are required, please call 404.814.4150 or reserve tickets online at MargaretMitchellHouse.com/Lectures.

A Cappella Books is the official bookseller for this program, and will have additional Sara Gruen books available for purchase at the event.

Bank of America Museums on Us

Saturday and Sunday, April 4 and 5, 2015

Visit www.bankofamerica.com/museums for more information on other participating institutions across the country.

Homeschool Day: Reconstruction

Thursday, April 9, 2015

1:00 – 4:00 pm

Robert E. Lee’s surrender marked the close to the bloodiest war the nation has ever seen. Though the bullets stopped flying, tension between the North and the South was still high. Discover the conspiracy to topple the U.S. government, planned by John Wilkes Booth, and be there for the final surrender between General Sherman and General Johnson. Learn about the often overlooked period of Reconstruction and why it was so difficult for the country to heal.

Elson Lecture: Louis Masur, Lincoln’s Last Speech: Wartime Reconstruction and the Crisis of Reunion

Thursday, April 9, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

What did Abraham Lincoln envision when he talked about "reconstruction?" Assassinated in 1865, the president did not have a chance to begin the work of reconciling the North and South, nor to oversee Reconstruction as an official postwar strategy. Yet his final speech, given to thousands gathered in the rain outside the White House on April 11, 1865, gives a clear indication of what Lincoln's postwar policy might have looked like – one that differed starkly from what would emerge in the tumultuous decade that followed.

Louis P. Masur is Distinguished Professor of American Studies and History at Rutgers University. He is the author of many books, including, most recently, The Civil War: A Concise History and Lincoln's Hundred Days: The Emancipation Proclamation and the War for the Union.

Support: The Elson Lectures feature scholarly addresses by our nation’s prominent historians and are made possible with generous funding from Ambassador and Mrs. Edward Elson.

Members-Only: Petting Zoo Preview at Sheep to Shawl

Saturday, April 11, 2015

9:30 am – 10:30 am

Before the front doors open for our popular annual family festival, Sheep to Shawl, join us at Smith Family Farm for a special members-only hour with the gentle animals from the Little Red Barn Petting Zoo. Members of all ages enjoy getting their hands on a miniature Scottish Highlander cow, donkey, horse, goat, alpaca, sheep, and many more adorable animals. Light refreshments and kid-friendly crafts available before the public program starts at 10:30 am.

This program is free to members only. For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Membership.

Sheep to Shawl

Saturday, April 11, 2015

10:30 am – 4:30 pm

Guests experience the process of cloth making though demonstrations and activities ranging from sheep shearing and dying to spinning and weaving. Gather the entire family for a full day of fun that also includes open hearth cooking, blacksmithing, candle making, and much more at Smith Family Farm.

This program is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

Magic Monday: When I Grow up

Monday, April 13, 2015

10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Want to be a firefighter, teacher, or a mailman? Meet some of these professionals and practice some of their day-to-day jobs.

This monthly program for toddlers and preschoolers (18 months to five years) engages our youngest visitors in activities that introduce them to history in creative ways. Each Magic Monday has a unique theme and includes a guided exploration of one of our award-winning exhibitions, historic houses, or Goizueta Gardens, as well as demonstrations, arts and crafts projects, and story time. Join us for another exciting year and connect with old friends while meeting new ones.

Livingston Lecture: Jonathan Schneer, Ministers at War: Winston Churchill and his War Cabinet

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

In May 1940, with France on the verge of defeat, Britain alone stood in the path of the Nazi military juggernaut. Survival seemed to hinge on the leadership of Winston Churchill, whom the King reluctantly appointed Prime Minister as Germany invaded France. Churchill's reputation as one of the great twentieth-century leaders would be forged during the coming months and years, as he worked tirelessly first to rally his country and then to defeat Hitler. But Churchill, regarded as the savior of his nation, and of the entire continent, could not have done it alone.

As prize-winning historian Jonathan Schneer reveals in Ministers at War, Churchill depended on a team of powerful ministers to manage the war effort as he rallied a beleaguered nation. Selecting men from across the political spectrum – from fellow Conservative Anthony Eden to leader of the opposing socialist Labor Party Clement Attlee – Churchill assembled a War Cabinet that balanced competing interests and bolstered support for his national coalition government. The group possessed a potent blend of talent, ambition, and egotism.

Jonathan Schneer is a professor of history at Georgia Tech. The author of The Balfour Declaration, which won the 2010 National Jewish Book Award, Schneer lives in Decatur, Georgia.

Support: The Livingston Lectures are made possible with generous funding from the Livingston Foundation of Atlanta.

Swan House Ball

Saturday, April 18, 2015

For the past 29 years, Atlantans have gathered every spring at the Atlanta History Center’s Swan House for one of the Southeast’s most anticipated events – the Swan House Ball. This year’s Swan House Ball, chaired by Mary Katherine Greene and Maggie Staton, honors Louise Staton Gunn and the Cherokee Garden Club, and Pat Hartrampf and the Peachtree Garden Club.

For more information, please contact Katherine Hoogerwerf at KHoogerwerf@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or 404.814.4102.

Support: Presenting sponsor of the 2015 Swan House Ball is Atlantic Trust.

May 2015

Bank of America Museums on Us

Saturday and Sunday, May 2 and 3, 2015

Visit www.bankofamerica.com/museums for more information on other participating institutions across the country.

Elson Lecture: John Ferling, Whirlwind: A History of the American Revolution

Monday, May 4, 2015

8:00 pm

Location: Atlanta History Center

Whirlwind is a fast-paced and scrupulously told one-volume history of the American Revolution. Balancing social and political concerns of the period and perspectives of the average American revolutionary with a careful examination of the war itself, Ferling has crafted the ideal book for armchair military history buffs, a book about the causes of the American Revolution, the war that won it, and the meaning of the Revolution overall. Combining careful scholarship, arresting detail, and illustrative storytelling, Whirlwind is a unique and compelling addition to any collection of books on the American Revolution.

John Ferling is professor emeritus of history at the University of West Georgia. He is the author of many books on American Revolutionary history, including The Ascent of George Washington; Almost a Miracle, an acclaimed military history of the War of Independence; and the award-winning A Leap in the Dark. His most recent book on American history is Jefferson and Hamilton: The Rivalry That Forged a Nation.

Support: The Elson Lectures feature scholarly addresses by our nation’s prominent historians and are made possible with generous funding from Ambassador and Mrs. Edward Elson.

Elizabeth Berg, The Dream Lover

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

7:00 pm

Location: Margaret Mitchell House

In The Dream Lover we meet Aurore Dupin as she is leaving her estranged husband, a loveless marriage, and her family’s estate in the French countryside, to start a new life in Paris. There, she renames herself George Sand and pursues her dream of becoming a writer, embracing an unconventional and even scandalous lifestyle.

Illuminated by the story of the loves, passions, and fierce struggles of a woman who defied the confines of society, The Dream Lover, features many of Sand’s famous lovers and friends, including Frederic Chopin, Gustave Flaubert, Franz Liszt, Eugene Delacroix, Victor Hugo, Marie Dorval, Alfred de Musset, and more. Considered one of the most gifted geniuses of her time, Sand welcomes fame as she fights to overcome heartbreak and prejudice, the pain of her childhood, and the disturbing relationships with her mother and daughter.

Elizabeth Berg is the author of many bestselling novels, including Open House, an Oprah’s Book Club selection, Talk Before Sleep, The Pull of the Moon, Tapestry of Fortunes, The Last Time I Saw You, Home Safe, The Year of Pleasures, and Dream When You’re Feeling Blue. Her novels Durable Goods and Joy School were selected as ALA Best Books of the Year. She divides her time between Chicago and San Francisco.

Homeschool Day: History of Medicine

Friday, May 8, 2015

1:00 – 4:00 pm

The history of medicine is filled with stories of inexplicable illnesses, dubious diagnoses, and curious "cures." Explore Native American herbal remedies, 19th century snake oils, life-changing medical advancements, historic pandemics, and bizarre medical treatments. The weird, the gross, and the questionable – we have the cure for what ails you!

Magic Monday: Little Sprout

Monday, May 11, 2015

10:00 am – 1:00 pm

Try your hand at becoming a gardener and learn how to take care of plants. Planting seeds, making flower crafts, and playing games, little ones get to start diggin’ the dirt.

This monthly program for toddlers and preschoolers (18 months to five years) engages our youngest visitors in activities that introduce them to history in creative ways. Each Magic Monday has a unique theme and includes a guided exploration of one of our award-winning exhibitions, historic houses, or Goizueta Gardens, as well as demonstrations, arts and crafts projects, and story time. Join us for another exciting year and connect with old friends while meeting new ones.

Military Timeline

Saturday, May 23, 2015

11:00 am – 4:00 pm

Spend the day traveling the military timeline from the Revolutionary War to current conflicts. Meet veterans who share personal stories and memorabilia from wartime and living history interpreters that engage visitors of all ages. Also enjoy self-guided tours of Veterans Park using smartphones to access recordings of stories shared by those who served the United States Armed Forces.

This program is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

June 2015

Atlanta History Center Summer Camp 2015

Session themes announced in January 2015.

June 1 – 5
June 8 – 12
June 15 – 19
June 22 – 26

History comes to life as AHC summer campers explore the past through games, historic simulations, performances, crafts, and hands-on activities throughout our exhibitions, historic houses, and Goizueta gardens. The museum is our playground! With fun new themes each week, such as pioneer life, science fiction, and villains of history, campers enjoy a variety of immersive camp experiences all summer long.

For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/SummerCamp.

Margaret Mitchell House Summer Writing Camp 2015

Session themes announced in January 2015.

June 1 – 5
June 8 – 12
June 15 – 19
June 22 – 26

Margaret Mitchell House writing camps provide an opportunity for youth to discover the power and excitement of writing while honing their skills in a fun, interactive environment. With 10-15 participants per camp, each young author receives individual attention while learning how to create meaningful prose through a variety of techniques, like stream-of-consciousness writing, games, journaling, free verse poetry, and other forms.

For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/SummerCamp.

Bank of America Museums on Us

Saturday and Sunday, June 6 and 7, 2015

Visit www.bankofamerica.com/museums for more information on other participating institutions across the country.

Juneteenth

Saturday, June 20, 2015

11:00 am – 4:00 pm

This two day family program focuses on the appreciation and commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. Guests explore the themes of freedom and family history through activities and crafts.

This program is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

Juneteenth

Sunday, June 21, 2015

Noon – 4:00 pm

This family program focuses on the appreciation and commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. Guests explore the themes of freedom and family history through activities and crafts.

This program is free to members; included in the cost of general admission for nonmembers. For more information or to purchase admission tickets, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Family.

Support: Funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of Fulton County Arts Council.

Finding Billy Yank and Johnny Reb: Researching your Civil War Ancestor

Saturday, June 27, 2015

10:30 am – Noon

As we observe the sesquicentennial of the end of the Civil War, many are curious about the role their own ancestors played in this critical event in United States history. Join Senior Archivist Sue VerHoef for a program that offers tips, techniques, and effective strategies for researching your Civil War ancestors. Skill level: Intermediate.

GENERAL INFORMATION

ABOUT THE ATLANTA HISTORY CENTER:

Founded in 1926, the Atlanta History Center is an all-inclusive, thirty-three-acre destination featuring the Atlanta History Museum, one of the nation’s largest history museums; two historic houses, the 1928 Swan House and the 1860 Smith Family Farm; the Centennial Olympic Games Museum; the Kenan Research Center; the Grand Overlook event space; Chick-Fil-A at the Coca-Cola Café, a museum shop, and the 22 acre Goizueta Gardens with paths and the kid-friendly Connor Brown Discovery Trail.

In addition, the History Center operates the Margaret Mitchell House located in Midtown Atlanta. For information on Atlanta History Center offerings, hours of operation and admission call 404.814.4000 or visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

ADMISSION/HOURS:

The all-inclusive general admission allows access to the Atlanta History Center, including the Atlanta History Museum, the Centennial Olympic Games Museum at the Atlanta History Center, the 1860s Smith Family Farm, the 1928 Swan House, and the Goizueta Gardens. Atlanta History Center admission including sales tax is $16.50 for adults, $13.00 for students 13+ and seniors 65+, $11.00 for youth 4 -12, and FREE for children 3 and under and Atlanta History Center members. The Atlanta History Center is open Monday – Saturday, 10 am – 5:30 pm and Sunday, Noon – 5:30 pm (ticket sales stop at 4:30 pm daily).

The Atlanta History Center is proud to be a CityPass destination. Purchase a CityPass on site and receive admission to six famous Atlanta attractions for one low price! For more information, please visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

Special events facilities at the Kenan Research Center include the Woodruff Auditorium, a theater-style auditorium seating 400, and the Draper Members Room, perfect for a 120-person seated dinner. The Atlanta History Center is closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, the Atlanta History Center is open Noon – 5:30 pm on Martin Luther King Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day and Columbus Day.

The Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center is open Wednesday – Saturday, 10 am – 5 pm. The Research Center is closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.

Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center

(Atlanta History Center, McElreath Hall)

Wednesday – Saturday; 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

The Kenan Research Center’s archives and special libraries collections comprise the research component of the Atlanta History Center’s study, exhibition, education, and public program activities. Housed in McElreath Hall on the Atlanta History Center’s Buckhead campus, the holdings contain resources for the study of Atlanta and Southern regional history and culture, including 34,000 volumes and 15,000 cubic feet of historic photographs, prints, maps and architectural drawings, business records, private papers, and documents, as well as 7,700 microfilm rolls of newspapers, Atlanta city directories and census records. Admission to the Kenan Research Center is free to the public, attracting such researchers as genealogists, educators, scholars, historic preservationists, print and broadcast media, popular and academic authors and students from grade school to postgraduate studies. The Research Center staff answers more than 13,000 reference requests a year, assisting private individuals, nonprofit institutions and commercial firms. Through the research facilities, individuals and media can purchase copies of historic photographs, prints, maps, and other archival images. Terminus, the Research Center public access catalog, can be accessed online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com. Researchers can quickly find information due to the expanded space and division of rooms devoted to special interests including:

Decorative Arts: The Philip T. Shutze and Harvey M. Smith collections of design and decorative arts resources.

Genealogy: The genealogy and family history collections contain resources for tracing family history throughout Georgia and the South.

Military History: The Beverly M. DuBose Jr. and Thomas S. Dickey resources on the Civil War and military ordnance.

Southern Gardens: The Cherokee Garden Library composed of publications and rare books on gardening, botany, landscape design and agriculture.

MEMBERSHIP:

Members play a crucial role in supporting Atlanta's history. Become a member and receive unlimited free admission to both of the Atlanta History Center’s campuses, experience exclusive sneak previews, engage in the real stories of the South, and enjoy a host of additional privileges. Our memberships

accommodate individuals, couples and families. For more information, please call 404.814.4101 or email to Membership@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com.

FAMILY REUNIIONS:

The Atlanta History Center and Margaret Mitchell House offer a great location for groups big and small. Among the variety of engaging activities, your group experiences stories of African American life in the South through permanent and traveling exhibitions; revisit Olympic glory with interactive displays in the Centennial Olympic Games Museum; discover the traditions of Southern culture in Shaping Traditions: Folk Arts in a Changing South; and explore Atlanta's past through tours of 3 historic houses and 6 beautiful Goizueta gardens. Trace your family's heritage through a wealth of resources available for free at our Kenan Research Center. Complete your visit with “one of a kind” Atlanta souvenirs available in our museum gift shop.

Enjoy special group tour discounts for groups of 20 or more adults or ten or more children, great picnic areas, on-campus dining from Chick-fil-A, bus accommodations, and free parking. In addition, we are conveniently located near a variety of Atlanta hotels offering shuttle services. For more information, please call 404.814.4062 or visit online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/GroupTours.

GROUP TOURS:

Specialized guided tours and self-guided tours are available for groups of 20 or more adults or ten or more children. Enjoy special great picnic areas, on-campus dining from Chic-fil-A, bus accommodations and free parking. To schedule a group or school group tour, or for more information about school groups, please call 404.814.4062 or visit online at AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/GroupTours.

ACCESSIBILITY:

The Atlanta History Center and McElreath Hall are accessible to people with disabilities. Paved and unpaved pathways through the Atlanta History Center's Goizueta Gardens lead to Swan House and Smith Family Farm. Large‑print reading materials are available for some exhibitions in the Atlanta History Center. Video presentations at the Atlanta History Center are subtitled in English.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES:

One of the most valuable components of the Atlanta History Center experience, volunteer docents bring the collections and signature offerings to life for visitors. Men and women, 18 years and up, of all backgrounds, guide school groups, local visitors and tourists every day through the Swan House, the Smith Family Farm and the Atlanta History Center. Other volunteer opportunities include assisting at the admissions desk or in the Museum Shop, hosting various special events and helping in the membership office. As preparation, volunteers are given hands-on training and attend enrichment sessions. If you would like more information about Atlanta History Center volunteers, please call 404.814.4115.

FACILITY RENTAL:

The Atlanta History Center & Margaret Mitchell House are ideal for wedding ceremonies and receptions, rehearsal dinners, corporate events, award dinners, lectures and presentations, fundraisers, birthdays, graduation celebrations and mitzvahs, or any other special occasion. For information about the Atlanta History Center visit AtlantaHistoryCenter.com/Rentals, contact at SpecialEvents@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com or call 404.814.4090. For information about the Margaret Mitchell House visit MargaretMitchellHouse.com/Rentals, contact at SpecialEvents@MargaretMitchellHouse.com or call 404.814.2076.

DIRECTIONS TO THE MUSEUM:

By car:

FROM NORTH OF ATLANTA GOING SOUTH ON I-75:

Take I-75 South to the West Paces Ferry Road exit (#255). At the end of the exit ramp, turn left onto West Paces Ferry Road. Go approximately 2.7 miles. The Atlanta History Center will be on your right.

FROM NORTH OF ATLANTA GOING SOUTH ON I-85:

Take I-85 South to the Cheshire Bridge/Lenox Road exit (#88). At the end of the exit ramp, turn right onto Lenox Road. Go approximately 1.9 miles until Lenox intersects with Peachtree Road. (Landmark: Lenox Square Mall) Turn left onto Peachtree Road. Go approximately two miles. At the intersection of Peachtree, Roswell and West Paces Ferry Roads, turn right onto West Paces Ferry Road. Go through two traffic lights. The Atlanta History Center will be on your left.

FROM SOUTH OF ATLANTA GOING NORTH ON I-75 (OR FROM DOWNTOWN):

Take I-75 North to the West Paces Ferry Road exit (#255.) At the end of the exit ramp, turn left onto Northside Parkway. At the very next light, turn right onto West Paces Ferry Road. Go approximately 2.7 miles. The Atlanta History Center will be on your right.

FROM SOUTH OF ATLANTA GOING NORTH I-85:

Take I-85 North. (I-85 and I-75 come together in downtown Atlanta.) When I-85 and I-75 split, follow I-75. Take I-75 North. Then follow the directions listed above as "From South of Atlanta going North on I-75."

FROM DOWNTOWN ATLANTA WITHOUT TAKING THE INTERSTATE:

Go north on Peachtree Street (towards Buckhead). After approximately six miles, you will see a stone cathedral (St. Phillip's) that looks like it's in the middle of the road. Turn left onto Andrews Drive immediately before the cathedral. (Peachtree Road will curve sharply to the right at this point.) Stay on Andrews Drive for almost one mile. The Andrews Drive entrance to the Atlanta History Center is the last driveway on the right. If you get to the intersection of the West Paces Ferry and Andrews, you can turn right and the Atlanta History Center main entrance will be on your right.

FROM 400 GOING SOUTH:

Take the Buckhead/Lenox exit. Turn right at the end of the exit ramp. At the second red light, turn left onto Piedmont Road. Turn right onto Peachtree Road. Go about one mile and turn right onto West Paces Ferry Road. After the second light, the Atlanta History Center will be on your left.

By public transportation:

MARTA:

Take the MARTA train to the Buckhead Station; transfer to the #110 bus; exit bus at Peachtree and Roswell Road. Make a right on West Paces Ferry Road and proceed two blocks. History Center is located on the left.

FREE PARKING:

Access to the Atlanta History Center’s parking deck is free for all guests. The deck is located near the West Paces Ferry Road and Andrews Drive entrances.

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