{"nrhp_refnum":"05001598","name":"Tyler, Mary Elizabeth, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"2887 Howell Mill Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Atlanta","county":"Fulton County","state":"GA","lat":33.83395194800005,"lon":-84.41729803799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2006-01-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Social History","Other","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Classical Revival-style single-family house at 2887 Howell Mill Road in Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, built in 1921 for Mary Elizabeth \"Bessie\" Tyler, with a caretaker's cottage and a later garage.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is nationally significant in social history as the home of Tyler, who helped revive the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s through a recruitment and fee system that funded the house. It is also significant at the state level in women's history, because Tyler succeeded as a businesswoman in a field dominated by men. It is further listed for its Classical Revival architecture.","narrative":"This Classical Revival house on Howell Mill Road in northern Atlanta was built in 1921 on a rise above Peachtree Creek. Its exterior features a two-story portico with colossal Corinthian columns, a wraparound one-story porch, a leaded fanlight entrance and weatherboard siding. A small caretaker's cottage dates from the same year. Its owner, Mary Elizabeth \"Bessie\" Tyler, ran the Southern Publicity Association with Edward Young Clarke. Their work recruiting members for the Ku Klux Klan in the early 1920s earned them a fortune, and Tyler used that money to build the house, which served as a showplace for the organization. The property is recognized for its link to the Klan's revival, for Tyler's unusual success as a businesswoman in the 1920s, and for its architecture. Later owners changed the interior and added wings, a garage and a pool, yet the house retains its historic look, framed by mature trees and a broad front lawn.","period_of_significance":"1921-1924","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Classical Revival","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Still used as a single dwelling; the interior has been altered and additions made over the decades, but the house keeps its historic exterior appearance.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:43.243977-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/05001598.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93208372","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q134321149"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/fulton-county/tyler-mary-elizabeth-house-05001598/"}