Albany District Pecan Growers' Exchange
Why it's listed
Three connected brick buildings at the corner of Roosevelt and Washington Streets in Albany, Georgia, once served as the base of a pecan-marketing cooperative. The oldest is a ca. 1902 warehouse that the Albany District Pecan Growers' Exchange bought in 1922 for grading and shipping. That year it also built a two-story headquarters, designed by architect M.J. Reidy and built by the A.E. Itner Company, with a cold-storage basement and upper floors for shelling and bleaching nuts. A second warehouse followed in 1932. Pecan farming reached southwest Georgia in the 1880s, and after the boll weevil cut cotton production, pecans became the area's leading cash crop. The Exchange, chartered in 1913, grew into one of the country's largest paper-shell pecan handling and bleaching plants. Disease in the trees during the 1940s reduced production and the cooperative failed. The buildings were recognized for their links to agriculture and commerce and as important surviving pecan-industry properties in Albany and Georgia.
Significance in brief: The complex housed a major agricultural cooperative that marketed the Albany area's pecan crop. It is tied to the early-twentieth-century growth of pecan culture in Georgia. The Exchange became one of the largest, best-equipped paper-shell pecan handling and bleaching plants in the country, and the buildings are among the most important surviving properties linked to pecan growing and selling in the state.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 84000979, listed May 10, 1984. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 211-213 Roosevelt Ave., Albany |
|---|---|
| County | Dougherty County |
| Listed | May 10, 1984 |
| Reference number | 84000979 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- |
| Architect / builder | Architect for 1922 building: M.J. Reidy, Albany; Contractor for 1922 building: A.E. Itner Company, Albany |
| Architectural style | Late-Victorian style for the ca. 1902 warehouse; the 1922 headquarters has a streamlined brick commercial design |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed as unoccupied and vacant, in fair condition, on the original site. |
| Acreage | 0.4 |
| Coordinates | 31.58172, -84.15148 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary: it recognises significance and does not restrict what a private owner may do without federal money or permits. It unlocks the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit for income-producing buildings, state credits in many states, and Section 106 review when federal agencies are involved. See what listing means in practice.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 84000979.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.