The Herndon Building was a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distri ...

in the

Sweet Auburn Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones, ...

Historic District of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, located across

Auburn Avenue Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Au ...

from the

Odd Fellows Building and Auditorium The Odd Fellows Building and Auditorium, located at 228—250 Auburn Avenue, N.E. in the Sweet Auburn Historic District of Atlanta, Georgia, are historic buildings built in 1912 and 1913, respectively, as the headquarters of the District Grand Lod ...

. Begun in 1924 and completed the following year, it was a three-story L-shaped brick building, "easily recognized by the large H located on the front facade of the building".Frank J. J. Miele, John Sprinkle, and Patti Henry (November 1999) , National Park Service and It was used as a

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

building by several different

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...

people, including a

doctor's office A doctor's office in American English, a doctor's surgery in British English, or a doctor's practice, is a medical facility in which one or more medical doctors, usually general practitioners (GP), receive and treat patients. Description Doct ...

and a

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links heal ...

. Vacant and collapsing (shown on Google Maps and Street View), it was already under consideration to become a

condemned property A condemned property or a condemned building is a property or building that local (usually municipal) authorities have closed, seized, or placed restrictions on for various reasons, including public safety and public health, in accordance with lo ...

when it was seriously damaged in the

2008 Atlanta tornado The 2008 Atlanta tornado outbreak was a destructive and deadly tornado outbreak that affected the Southeastern United States on March 14–15, 2008. The most infamous tornado of the outbreak occurred on March 14 when an isolated but str ...

. It was

demolished Demolition (also known as razing, cartage, and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down of buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a ...

in late April 2008 as a direct result of this. The 2008 tornado also passed very close to the

Herndon Home The Herndon Home is a historic house museum and National Historic Landmark at 587 University Place NW, in Atlanta, Georgia. An elegant Classical Revival mansion with Beaux Arts influences, it was the home of Alonzo Franklin Herndon (1858-1927), ...

, west of the Herndon Building. The Butler Street

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

owns the property, and is located to the southwest of it just across Jesse Hill Jr. Drive. The YMCA has not announced any plans for the vacant Herndon Building site. The Herndon Building was one of three

contributing properties In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...

in the historic district which were associated with the life of

Alonzo Herndon Alonzo Franklin Herndon (June 26, 1858 Walton County, Georgia – July 21, 1927) was an African-American entrepreneur and businessman in Atlanta, Georgia. Born into slavery, he became one of the first African American millionaires in the Unit ...

. The

Atlanta Life Insurance Company The Atlanta Life Financial Group was founded by Alonzo Herndon in Atlanta, Georgia. Born into slavery, he started in Atlanta as a young barber, eventually owning three shops. He became Atlanta's richest African American and a highly successful ...

Building and the Rucker Building are the other two.

References

External links

Herndon Building pictures at HABS
1924 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Buildings and structures demolished in 2008 Office buildings in Atlanta Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site and Preservation District Office buildings completed in 1925 Historic district contributing properties in Georgia (U.S. state) Demolished buildings and structures in Atlanta {{GeorgiaUS-NRHP-stub