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In Vivian Price Saffold’s 1983 book, “A History of the Community and the City of Chamblee,” which celebrated 75 years of the city, there is a 1904 photo of children at Wylie School. The school was located near what is now Embry Hills. The children’s ages are described as from six years old to “as old as the teacher would keep them.”
Students of the Wylie School in 1904, which was located near present day Embry Hills. Photo from Vivian Price Saffold’s “ A History of the Community and the City of Chamblee,” written in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of Chamblee.
There are many names that are familiar to the area’s history. For example, Abbie, Eva and Ethel Warren are in the photo. They are listed among the six children of John and Emma Warren on the 1900 census. Their home was located at what is now 3151 Chamblee Tucker Road. Thanks to Donny Bailey, I can share the link which shows an image of the old home on a 2015 Zillow page. The image also includes the new home that was built on the property.
Abbie Warren was a teacher in DeKalb County for 42 years and Warren Elementary School was named for her.
Roy, Emory, Gertrude, and Betty Chesnut represent that family in the Wylie School photo. Descendant David Chesnut told me his grandfather had a farm just up Chamblee Tucker Road around where I-85 now intersects with the road. David and Linda Chesnut owned the Donaldson-Bannister Farm in Dunwoody from 1975 until 2005.
The Hendersons are also represented by Morgan, Tavie, and Glad Henderson. The Henderson family ran a mill and Henderson Mill Road, Henderson Road, Henderson Mill Elementary and Henderson Middle School are named for that family.
Other names in the photograph include members of the Weed, Britt, Goza, Ross, Nuckolls, Morris, Gulledge, Gay, Miller, and Brooks families.
The family which the school is named for are represented by Eula Wylie, Lola Wylie, Julie Wylie, and Reid Wylie. The Weed and Britt families are listed just after the Wylies on the 1900 census, which lets us know they were neighbors. I also located the Goza family, but it seems certain everyone lived nearby.
The teacher is Mamie Ledford in 1904. She lived in Decatur on Sycamore Street with her husband and in-laws. In a newspaper called The Jeffersonian, Atlanta, 1915, Genie Park is identified as a teacher at Wylie School.
If you have history about any of these families, write to me at pasttensega@gmail.com.