Means Street Historic District

Means Street is a narrow lane northwest of downtown Atlanta, lined with large brick warehouses and factories set close to the street and backing onto the rail line. The 8.5-acre district also takes in two commercial buildings on Marietta Street. W. B. Bass laid out the street in 1869. Standard Oil began oil storage and a cooper shop there around 1888, and furniture, buggy and candy manufacturers followed in the early 1900s. Loading docks facing the railroad survive, along with some stone walls and a stretch of cobblestone paving. On Marietta Street, the 1921 H.B. Davis Building, later the Hotel Roxy, and a c.1930 five-and-ten-cent store reflect the merchants who dominated that corridor. The district was listed for its architecture, commerce, industry, and community planning. It is one of the best-preserved remnants of the Marietta Street industrial corridor, most of which has been lost. Many buildings now serve as offices, lofts, studios and an arts center.