Laney-Walker North Historic District (Additional Documentation)

Laney-Walker North is a densely built neighborhood of about 125 acres in Augusta, Georgia, laid out on a strict grid of small, narrow lots. Most buildings are one-story wood cottages, mixed with shotgun and double-pen houses, Victorian homes, brick churches, corner stores, a bank and industrial remnants, dating from the mid-19th century to 1935. Development began after the Georgia Railroad arrived in 1833 and the Augusta Canal was built in 1845-47, drawing Irish laborers and later Chinese workers who opened groceries and laundries. Segregation policies in the early 20th century turned the area into the city's principal Black neighborhood, with its own banks, insurance company, professionals and churches. Among its landmarks are the 1922 Penny Savings Bank building, the 1915 Tabernacle Baptist Church, and the homes of Rev. Charles T. Walker and educator Lucy C. Laney. The district was listed for its social history, architecture, commerce, industry, religion and education.