Club Times - June 2021

In 2023, Atlanta Athletic Club will celebrate its 125th anniversary. The club was founded in 1898 by a group of 65 Atlanta businessmen who enjoyed playing sports and camaraderie. This article is the second in a series entitled “125 Years: The Legacy of Atlanta Athletic Club.” The purpose of the series is so that members may become familiar with the history and heritage of the great club they belong to. Building a Club in the Age of the Amateur Athelete

Determining the location of the Atlanta Athletic Club’s first facility was an easy decision, as most of the members worked downtown and desired a club within walking distance of their offices. Joel Hurt, one of the club’s charter members, opened the first clubhouse at 56 Edgewood Avenue, a street away from Five Points in the heart of the city, in April 1899. He leased it to the new club for five years, and the board immediately purchased $1,600 worth of new athletic equipment. The renovated building, which included

a gymnasium, lounge, administrative offices, locker rooms, and showers, was remembered as relatively spartan by today’s standards. During this period, the Industrial Aid Association (Life Insurance Company of Georgia), the Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Atlanta Steel Hoop Company (Atlantic Steel), and Georgia Electric Light Company (Georgia Power) were founded, and many of the executives of these companies joined the AAC. By 1901, membership reached seven hundred. To accommodate the members’ growing interest in tennis, two courts were constructed on a vacant lot next to the Edgewood building. The club’s expanding membership quickly outgrew the first building, and the officers began to search for a new site. Unable to find a suitable existing structure, they elected to build a new facility. In 1901 the club purchased a vacant lot on Auburn Avenue, with the support of Asa G. Candler, who made a generous donation to the club. Burton Smith and the officers of the club hired architects Bleckley and Tyler to design the new building and opened it on November 27, 1902, at 37–39 Auburn Avenue, a site it would occupy for nearly a quarter of a century. “The second building, much larger than the first, included four tennis courts, a swimming pool, basketball and handball courts, an indoor track, pool tables, a locker room, and shower facilities,” explained former AAC president and club historian Bill O’Callaghan. “It reflected the growth in the numbers of members and the activities of members.” One of the most notable features was the addition of sectional double bowling alleys. But the installation of a telephone The Carnegie Building