West Hill Chapel in Dalton, Georgia

The Forgotten Chapel: West Hill

West Hill Chapel sits in a quiet spot in West Hill Cemetery in Dalton, Georgia. It is a lovely little structure built in the American Craftsman style of architecture (inspired by English Arts and Crafts). The windows are gothic arches surrounded by cream-colored voissoirs, the stones surrounding each window. Similar trim is used for the cornerstones of the chapel. The diamond-shaped window panes have wavy, watery, old-style glass. Steep corner gables complete the classic look. The high-pitched roof is covered in heavy slate shingles.

Brief History of West Hill Chapel

The chapel was made of native mountain stone. It was built just before World War II. When the war came along, the chapel was abandoned. In fact, it was never consecrated. As time went on, the city began to use the old chapel for storage. They added the metal shed ~ a functional necessity at the time, but also a nasty eyesore. The building endured well, even in neglect ~ a testimony to its original excellent construction. The lantern-style light fixture (above right) turned up unexpectedly ~ a Dalton citizen, having saved it years ago, donated it to the restoration project. The chapel renovation has earned the city of Dalton a Preserve America Designation, awarded for historic preservation and education efforts. The chapel renovation was also featured in an issue of American Cemetery Magazine, a trade journal. The building has become a featured stop in recent cemetery tours that have been conducted by Whitfield-Murray Historical Society. The chapel was also rented out for weddings and other special events.

My Story...

The first time I saw West Hill Chapel, I thought, "What a shame!" It was sadly neglected, surrounded by bulldozers and overgrown with weeds. An ugly, utilitarian metal shed leaned up against one side. Even so, the architectural quality of the chapel was evident. It is one of the most attractive buildings in North Georgia. Located in Dalton, Georgia, it is built of native mountain stone from the surrounding Cohutta Mountains. The arts-and-crafts style architecture gives it both beauty and lasting historic significance. The stone masonry is impressive ~ large, square chunks of brown and rust-colored stone are set off by gray mortar. Gothic-shaped windows are trimmed in white limestone blocks and inset with diamond-shaped wavy glass panes that are criss-crossed with strips of lead.

"How did this little chapel come to be so neglected?" I wondered. Even in its deteriorated state, it served as an unexpected surprise to lovers of classic architecture, who happened to be strolling through West Hill Cemetery. West Hill, with it's quiet paved paths and tree-shaded landscape serves almost as much as a park to local citizens as a cemetery.

One day, while walking in West Hill Cemetery, I happened up on the chapel and found it open. Some men were standing inside it, looking over the interior. "It's a shame this building can't be put to better use than as a tool shed," I said. "I wonder if it couldn't be restored?" I soon learned that, in fact, the chapel was about to be renovated. I had, by accident, run into the man who was about to save the little chapel from becoming a complete ruin.

Renovation of West Hill Chapel

Terry Christie, one of Dalton's aldermen, had discovered the lovely old chapel on his own. He, too, had wondered why the chapel had been forgotten. A bit of research showed that the city of Dalton already owned West Hill Chapel. Christie, a lover of architecture, saw the potential of the chapel. He also saw that the slate roof was in danger of collapsing under its own weight if not preserved immediately. Christie made sure that that didn't happen. He immediately began raising funds for the West Hill Chapel renovation.

Restoring the chapel was no easy or inexpensive task. The mortar had to be repointed. The roof needed support. Interior trim had to be repainted. Throughout the restoration, the integrity of the original arts-and-crafts architectural style had to be maintained. One surprise came when the original light fixture for the chapel turned up unexpectedly. Years before the renovation, a man who lived near the cemetery had spotted the lantern-shaped lamp in a pile of scrap iron and wood that was being discarded from the chapel. Construction workers gave him the scrap metal. He had held onto the light fixture for many years. Later, when he learned that West Hill Chapel was to be restored, he offered to give the lamp to Christie, who gladly accepted the donation. Both men were glad to see the lamp put back into place. It now hangs in its rightful place, in the center of the chapel ceiling. (West Hill Chapel is located in historic West Hill Cemetery on West Cuyler Street in Dalton, Georgia.)

The photos below are in no particular order. The day we met, Mr. Christie kindly allowed me to go in and enjoy the chapel for an hour or so, and take all the pictures I wanted. I believe I was still using my ancient Honeywell-Pentax camera at that time. Everything had to be manually set, and I am no expert at photography. These are among the usable photos I took that day.

West Hill Cemetery has paved roads that local citizens use for walking paths. The Confederate section has a monument listing soldiers who died in local hospitals during the Civil War. General location: The front door of the chapel is on the large, gabled end, with the round window above it. If you stand facing that door, the Confederate cemetery is to your right, about 50 feet away. Still facing the main chapel door, look to your left, up the hill: that section has some of the oldest graves in the cemetery and some interesting statues.

Some of Dalton's famous (and infamous) citizens are buried at West Hill Cemetery. Whitfield-Murray Historical Society occasionally offers tours and can provide more information on the people buried there. For lovers of classic arts-and-crafts architecture or those who are interested in the craft of stone masonry, it's well worth stopping by the cemetery just to see the chapel.

The chapel is not open, but one may view the exterior. It is located in West Hill Cemetery in Dalton, Georgia. Here is a link to West Hill Chapel on Google Maps.
Short URL: https://goo.gl/maps/WAcArrj2CaK2

According to the city's website, West Hill Chapel can be leased for events. The lease is available on the City of Dalton website. (This information is current as of February 11, 2019).

City of Dalton, Georgia

https://www.cityofdalton-ga.gov/

Contact information:

City of Dalton

P. O. Box 1205

Dalton, Georgia 30722

Phone: 706-278-9500

Fax: 706-278-8245

I am providing here a deep link to the West Hill Chapel page on the City of Dalton website, but in my experience, these links sometimes break as the government sites update or change hosts.

West Hill Chapel Information

https://www.cityofdalton-ga.gov/index.asp?SEC=29D2DB4D-88DF-472D-BB3F-4B3FAE003508&Type=B_BASIC

This article was first published years ago on my main site, Southern Muse (SouthernMuse.com). I'm in the process of migrating the site to a new host, so I've moved most of the content to my various blogs. This post has been edited slightly from the original article, which covered several pages. 

North Georgia, Featuring Murray and Whitfield Counties

North Georgia, was once part of the Cherokee Nation, and was one of the last places that the Cherokee lived in Georgia. When gold was discovered in Dahlonega (Lumpkin County), Georgia, the State of Georgia became eager to remove the Cherokees from the land. Cherokees were forced from their native land and left Georgia on the Trail of Tears, also known as The Place Where They Cried. As the Cherokee moved out, pioneers of European descent moved in. Citizens ~ many of them speculators ~ bought land and gold stakes cheap in lotteries that took place between 1828 and 1838.

Murray County, Georgia, and nearby Whitfield, were two of the northernmost counties of the state. As those early land lots were resold, homesteaders began to settle Murray County in 1838 to start small farms. It was a rough and wild place, as some early Murray Countians tell of it. The Civil War came in 1865. Murray County did not see battle (beyond a few skirmishes with Yanks who were camped just north of them in Cleveland, Tennessee); but nearby Whitfield and Gordon Counties endured battles, at Tunnel Hill and Resaca respectively ~ the first battles of the Atlanta Campaign. The action quickly by-passed Murray County as Sherman headed further South. After the War, the people returned to farming.

Chatsworth, Georgia, is Murray's county seat. Other towns in Murray include Eton, Crandall, and Cisco, in the northern part of the county. There are quite a few historic communities in Murray, which are not official townships, by Georgia's definition. Those include Spring Place, home of the Chief Vann House, and once the county seat; Ramhurst; and Cohutta Springs, once a thriving watering place, famous for its mineral springs (and now part of Crandall). Many of Murray County's homestead farms were handed down among families for several generations. Only recently have some of those farms been subdivided by developers. Whitfield County developed somewhat differently, as a cottage-tufting industry took hold and grew there. Dalton eventually became "The Carpet Capital of the World."

Self-Published Books by Southern Authors (Some Friends of Mine)

I so rarely post on this, my Southern Muse Journal... I had meant for the blog to be an extension of my website, Southern Muse. Why haven't I added to it? It's complicated. Sometimes I think it's because my southern stories are so personal to me, I shy away from sharing them with the world. 

Anyway... I dropped by today to plug some books of some friends of mine. No, I'm not being mercenary. It just happened to be on my mind. I'm writing a Civil War book myself (about some things that happened in Murray County, Georgia, during the war). My draft is finally in pretty good shape. I'm working on it daily now, and have sent a couple of them out for people to proof.

I called a friend to ask her about her personal experience with self publishing ~ whether there were any scary hidden expenses, and things like that. After talking to her, I felt really good. I decided to add a link from SMJ to her book and some others I've read.

So, here are some of the books written by my friends and relatives. I can recommend all of them, but for different readers, depending on tastes: Two are autobiographical poetry books (DeLoach and Bouladian); one is an artist's book on fabrics (Sibley); Two are books on history ~ two different wars: (Carter and Carter); and the other is a heartwarming true story about love and loss in wartime (King). I haven't yet read Juli's book, but I know her background ~ I can't wait to get hold of the book. I haven't yet finished Carter's book on LCTs, but am enjoying what I've read, so far.

Here are the books (with links to Amazon, where I usually buy): 

Juli Sibley - Earth Friendly Fabric: http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Friendly-Fabric-Design-Sibley/dp/1500844381

Of Young Harris, Georgia; artist, educator.

Philip DeLoach - My World As I See It: http://www.amazon.com/My-World-As-I-See/dp/1451581106/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1424560072&sr=1-1

Of Mount Airy, North Carolina; formerly of Georgia. Poet, artist, dreamer, friend... 

Deborah King - Somewhere in Germany: http://www.amazon.com/Somewhere-Germany-Deborah-G-King/dp/0615164269/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1424560171&sr=1-5&keywords=somewhere+in+germany

Of Dalton, Georgia; niece of a soldier.

Elizabeth Bouladian - Pages from the Heart: http://www.amazon.com/Pages-Heart-Elizabeth-B-Bouladian/dp/1607914689

Poet, family near Chattanooga; originally from Lebanon.

Thomas Carter - Beachhead Normandy: An LCT's Odyssey: http://www.amazon.com/Beachhead-Normandy-An-LCTs-Odyssey/dp/1597977101

Formerly of Crandall, near Chatsworth, Georgia; son of a Navy man who was on an LCT (landing craft).

Robert L. Carter  - Longstreet's Breakthrough at Chickamauga: http://www.amazon.com/Longstreets-Breakthrough-Chickamauga-Accidental-Victory/dp/149617111X

Formerly of Chatsworth, Georgia. Volunteers at Chickamauga National Military Park.

Holiday Tour: Historic Cook-Huff House in Dalton, Georgia

The Cook-Huff House in Dalton, Georgia, has been chosen as Whitfield-Murray Historical Society's Holiday House for 2013. The historic house will be open for tour December 7th and 8th from 2-5 p.m. for the first time in fifteen years. The antebellum home, owned by R.L. Cook, served as the headquarters of Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston from 1863 to 1864 during the Civil War. While there in 1863, General Patrick Cleburne presented a proposal to the leaders of the Army of Tennessee, that the Confederacy should offer slaves their freedom if they agreed to fight for the Confederacy. His plan to arm slaves to fight for the Southern cause was declined.

The Cook-Huff House is located at 314 N. Selvidge Street in Dalton, Georgia. Tickets for the 2013 Holiday House Celebration are fifteen dollars for adults, five dollars for children eleven and under. You may purchase tickets directly from the historical society or pay at the door on the day of the event.

Event:  WMHS Holiday House Celebration 2013

Location: 314 N. Selvidge Street, Dalton, Georgia

Date: Sat., Dec. 7 and Sun., Dec. 8

Time: 2:00 p.m. to 5.00 p.m.

Cost: $15.00 adults; $5.00 children 11 and under

Sponsor: Whitfield-Murray Historical Society

Contact information: 

Whitfield-Murray Historical Society

Phone: 706-278-0217

Bedspreads to Broadloom (book review)

Bedspreads to Broadloom by Deaton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This vintage, non-fiction selection (published in 1993) is of local and regional interest for readers who enjoy reading about the topics of tufting and cottage industry, and lifestyles of the Northwest Georgia region ~ specifically of Dalton (the Carpet Capital of the World), Chatsworth, Eton, Calhoun, and surrounding areas. It would well serve genealogists, whose ancestors worked in tufting in North Georgia, to read this book. As topical non-fiction, it is informative and highly entertaining, up to a point. About halfway through, it does get a little dry, detailing the growth of specific large corporations and their CEOs. The book starts with a description of chenille-tufting beginnings, including a brief biography of youthful entrepreneur, Catherine Evans Whitener, locally credited as being the "first" to revive the folk craft of candlewicking (her own variation of it) in Dalton after the Civil War. It then follows the early-to-mid 20th-century growth of the cottage industry of bedspread tufting that led to innovations in broadbeam and broadloom carpet tufting, documenting specific dates of origin and acquisition of companies.

Bedspreads to Broadloom is a "vanity-press" publication and does have earmarks of community bragging. However, it goes beyond being a brag book to document stories, anecdotes and biographies of local textile pioneers, many of whom had spreadhouses on Old Highway 41 ~ an area once known as "Peacock Alley" for all the peacock-themed bedspreads that hung on spreadlines there. OSHA lovers and haters will both shudder and laugh at anecdotes of low-paid, snuff-spitting grannies and children in mountain cabins, tufting away well past midnight by the light of a kerosene lamp; old men converting chicken houses to spreadhouses so they can sell spreads and tinker around with inventions; and early, rather dangerous innovations in textile-manufacturing methods. It really is a wonderful depiction of what hard-scrabble folks will do to earn their keep during hard times. It is indexed and contains about 245 surnames (not counting names of companies, which would add more). It has a glossary of industry terms.

View all my reviews

Whitfield-Murray Historical Society: New Website!

(Dalton, Georgia, May 30, 2009): Whitfield-Murray Historical Society is now on-line! The historical society finally has a website. The official home page of Whitfield-Murray Historical Society is:

Whitfield-Murray Historical Society
http://www.whitfield-murrayhistoricalsociety.org/

Whitfield-Murray Historical Society is headquartered at Crown Gardens and Archives, 715 Chattanooga Avenue, Dalton, Georgia. The organization researches, maintains, and preserves historical and genealogical data and structures in Whitfield County, Georgia and Murray County, Georgia.

Peacock Alley: A Community Celebration (by Brookwood School)

(Dalton, Georgia): Brookwood School will present a history event to celebrate the history of Dalton's bedspread and carpet industry. "Peacock Alley: A Community Celebration" will feature art, dance, poetry, and music, and community history. "Simple Gifts" was conceived and directed by Sandra Hughes, with musical accompaniment by Paul Byrum and friends. There will also be photography, spoken word poetry, and guitar by Mason Gavin and Nicky Millwood, along with Community conversation, music, art, video, and a living history exhibit. Creative Arts Guild is a partnering organization.

(Historic background): Dalton, known as the Carpet Capital of the World, is known for the manufacture of tufted carpet. The industry had its beginnings in a humble cottage bedspread industry that started with one handmade bedspread, tufted by Catherine Evans (who later became Catherine Evans Whitener). Evans' bedspreads became so popular with tourists, that Evans devised a folk method of transferring the patterns to speed up the process. Local families sold the spreads to tourists along highway 41, who enjoyed buying them off of spreadlines. One favorite motif was the colorful peacock: hence the nickname, "Peacock Alley," for old U.S. 41. "Simple Gifts," an excerpt from a dance and drama tribute to Catherine Evans Whitener, will be a highlight of the exhibit. Evans was honored by being inducted into Georgia Woman of Achievement in 2001.

(Dates, Location, Information):
This event will be held on Friday, May 1, 2009 at 6:30 pm at First Presbyterian Church, 510 S. Tibbs Road, Dalton, Georgia. For more information, visit the Brookwood School website: http://www.bkwdschool.org/

Art Shows have been disappointing...

Art shows in Dalton, Georgia, were disappointing this year. The Creative Arts Guild Festival 2007 had quite a few jewelers (handmade artisan jewelry). There were few painters and only a couple of sculptors and potters.

The decline might be natural, since jewelry probably sells better than the other arts and crafts in North Georgia. I doubt if many people have the budget or taste for fine arts.

The Patrons Purchase and Exhibition (indoor component of the Creative Arts Guild Festival) was a great disappointment. It's usually a very good show, packed with excellent pieces, of reasonably good quality for a small city. This year, it was dull. It reminded me of an amateur show. There were only a handful of paintings worth looking at, and those took the awards. (Usually, there are many good pieces, and only a few awards ~ so it would be a hard show to judge! Not this year, though.)

Dalton's Church of Latter-Day Saints Service Project at Archives

Dalton, Georgia. Last Saturday, Dalton's Church of Latter-Day Saints performed a service project at Crown Gardens and Archives in Dalton. A large group of church members ~ men, women and children ~ arrived at 7:30 a.m., bringing lawn equipment and cleaning products. They trimmed the hedges and holly bushes, cut down weeds, vines and small trees that had overgrown the creek and cleaned out the gutters (some of which even had small trees growing in them). Their work made a dramatic difference. The entrance is now easily visible. Some visitors have commented that they didn't even know the archives was there until the bushes were cleared away. They also cleaned inside the museum, vacuuming, dusting, polishingj, and organizing the storage room. Crown Gardens and Archives is the headquarters for Whitfield-Murray Historical Society.

Dalton, Ga: Wedding at the Archives

Saturday was a first for me... we had a wedding at the Crown Gardens and Archives. Actually, the wedding was on the grounds, part of the Crown Loft apartments next door. They only rented our room for the reception. Our meeting room is very pretty, and the front parlor can be used for some individual pictures. It has an old-fashioned charm--though we could use some new carpet. Everyone loved the look of the place, said we have character. We had a little bit of cleaning to do, beforehand--character and cobwebs go together!

(Crown Gardens and Archives is located in Dalton, Georgia. Dalton is in the North Georgia region).

Presidential Seal in Carpet

Ya can't get away from carpet! Then again, why would you want to? On a trip to Plains, Georgia, the women at the welcome center showed us the Presidential Seal, made of carpet. They were proud that it had actually hung in the oval office during Jimmy Carter's administration, so that it was seen in each presidential address. They mentioned that the carpet was made by a mill in or near Dalton, Georgia (I believe it may have been Calhoun or White, but I've forgotten the plant name). They said they would really like to have a duplicate one made, but didn't know if the mill was still in business.

Most of the smaller mills are either out of business or are now owned by one of the larger mills, Shaw, Mohawk or Beaulieu.

A bit of trivia, I suppose, but interesting to those of us in the Carpet Capital of the World...

Old Rome Road and a question...

I never know what questions will come into the archives. Today's question was about Old Rome Road, a short local road outside of Dalton, in Whitfield County, Georgia. The researcher said that her mother remembered it as the main road. She wanted to know if Rome Road was the old name for Highway 41. It's difficult to find road names on the 1908 map ~ if there are any. Community names are there, and I think some of the smaller roads have names. The caller said that this had been the main road going through Five Springs years ago.

Even though I haven't located a "Rome Road" on an old map yet, it occurred to me that road names follow a pattern. Here, most road names that have a town name in them are main roads that lead to the town. Five Springs Road leads to Five Springs Community. Cleveland Highway (Highway 71) leads to Cleveland (Tennessee). In Chatsworth, part of US Route 76 is called "Dalton Highway" (leading to Dalton); in Dalton, the same thoroughfare is called "Chatsworth Highway" (main highway leading to Chatsworth). Parts of "old Highway 411" or "Old Dug Gap Road" still exist. It makes sense, then, that the main road leading South out of Dalton would have been called "Rome Road" or "Rome Highway."

To test this theory, I searched the 'Net and found that Sugar Valley and Calhoun have roads called "Old Rome-Dalton Road." Rome, Georgia, has an "Old Dalton Road." This seems to support the idea that the main highway (now 41) was probably called locally, "Old Rome Road," and a segment of it still bears the name. I can't be sure of it, and would like to find it so designated on an old map. I'm going to recheck the 1908 map (road names aren't always apparent on it, though every other landmark is well marked). If anyone has information on this, we would appreciate it!

Historic Preservation in Dalton, Georgia

Dalton, Georgia: Quick update from the archives... Crown Gardens and Archives was closed for about two hours today to allow Whitfield-Murray Historical Society to set up a table at a local Historic Preservation event that took place at Dalton Green (park). The importance of historic preservation was discussed. Dalton has a large area of Civil War battlements that still exist, including Rocky Face Ridge, a large tract of which has been purchased and is now out of danger of development. There was a nice lunch and had some great entertainment (some funny imitations of the Blues Brothers and a great Patsy Cline act)!

Organizations/Participants:
Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
North Georgia Regional Development Center
City of Dalton
Whitfield-Murray Historical Society
Mary Jane Mohr (local author)
(Other groups and participants/complete list not available).

The remainder of the day at the archives was pretty busy, with a couple of researchers and several calls. A woman brought by a beautiful old chenille spread to show us. It is supposed to be one of the Gone-With-The-Wind spreads. It is not known whether the spread was actually used in the movie, or was sold as a souvenir around the time that the movie was released. The spread was gorgeous, as chenille bedspreads go, with a lovely basket-and-vine design. More research would have to be done to find the origin of the spread, and the owner is going to continue to research it. The archives does own one of the actual spreads used in the movie, Gone With the Wind. (Dalton is in North Georgia.)