Decatur Downtown Historic District

Downtown Decatur, about six miles east of Atlanta, grew from the land lot chosen in 1822-1823 as the seat of newly created DeKalb County. The district centers on a courthouse square, where five courthouses have been built since 1823. The granite Beaux Arts courthouse of 1917 now houses the DeKalb History Center. East and south of the square stand one- and two-story brick commercial buildings from the 1910s to the 1950s. Other landmarks include the 1926 Colonial Revival city hall, the 1924 Pythagoras Lodge, the 1935 Stripped Classical post office, and the 1892 Georgia Railroad depot designed by Edmund Lind. Houses, mostly from 1900 to 1928, fill the southeastern quadrant, with the 1830s High House the earliest. Mid-century libraries, churches, a fire station and a high school reflect later growth. The district is recognized for its associations with local government and with the railroad that shaped the town, and for its surviving historic character despite demolition and urban renewal.