The Ponce de Leon Court Historic District consists of a single

cul-de-sac A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac (, from French for 'bag-bottom'), no through road or no exit road, is a street with only one inlet or outlet. The term "dead end" is understood in all varieties of English, but the official terminology ...

located immediately east of downtown

Decatur, Georgia Decatur is a city in, and the county seat of, DeKalb County, Georgia, which is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. With a population of 24,928 in the 2020 census, the municipality is sometimes assumed to be larger since multiple ZIP Codes in ...

. The street is accessed off of

East Ponce de Leon Avenue Ponce de Leon Avenue ( ), often simply called Ponce, provides a link between Atlanta, Decatur, Clarkston, and Stone Mountain, Georgia. It was named for Ponce de Leon Springs, in turn from explorer Juan Ponce de León, but is not pronounced ...

, a historic road that runs east from

Atlanta, Georgia 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 ...

through Decatur. Historic

Decatur Cemetery The Decatur Cemetery is a historic graveyard within the City of Decatur, Georgia. History The Decatur Cemetery is the oldest burial ground in the Atlanta metropolitan area, and it is believed to have been used even before Decatur's 1823 incorp ...

is located to the north, and affluent Glynnwood Estates, developed in 1927, and Glenwood school border Ponce de Leon Court on the east. Ponce de Leon Court is a local historic district in the city of Decatur, and was listed in the Georgia Register of Historic Places in June 2010. It was listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on November 2, 2011. The single-street district includes approximately 26 parcels, and was based on a subdivision plat developed by John L. Womack in the 1920s. Womack reportedly wanted homes on this street to remind him of the tropics, so he planted both palm trees and banana trees. The palm trees flourished, but the banana trees died.
" ''Atlanta Journal Constitution, 23 FEB 1995" ''Retrieved: 18 August 2008. In the twenty-first century, residents successfully reintroduced banana trees on the north end of the street thanks to a change in the

microclimate A microclimate (or micro-climate) is a local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas, often with a slight difference but sometimes with a substantial one. The term may refer to areas as small as a few squ ...

. The Womack family still owned property on the court when it was designated a historic district. The closely spaced homes on the narrow street are within walking distance of downtown Decatur, and were constructed in an era when developments did not plan adequately for the automobile. The sense of scale and detail created a strong sense of community, and resulted in this street being recognized as a unique asset in Decatur. Ponce de Leon Court primarily includes 1920s-era

American Craftsman American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. Its ...

bungalows, but also has a few historic multi-family homes. Both the single- and multi-family structures, as well as historic palm trees, have remained largely intact from the era when they were built. The street consists entirely of homes. There are no churches, businesses, or apartment blocks.

References

* Clark, Caroline McKinney. ''The story of Decatur, 1823-1899''. Dekalb Historical Society (1996). * Meeting Minutes, Decatur City Commission, February 21, 2006. * Price, Vivian. ''Historic DeKalb County: An Illustrated History'' (Georgia Heritage Series). Historical Publishing Network (2007).

Notes

External links

godekalb.com article

Decatur Metro article
{{national Register of Historic Places Neighborhoods in DeKalb County, Georgia Decatur, Georgia Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Georgia (U.S. state) National Register of Historic Places in DeKalb County, Georgia