The appropriately named Briarcliff Mansion has stood on Briarcliff Road in northeast Atlanta for almost a century.
Once home to Coca-Cola heir Asa "Buddy" Candler Jr. — son of Coca-Cola company founder Asa Candler — the mansion has an interesting past, once housing a zoo and public swimming pool.
Since being sold out of the family in the 1950s, the house has served a range of duties, functioning as a hospital, rehab center, and storage facility. Since 1997, the mansion has belonged to Emory University, a historic institution in itself, known for its stately campus.
But as the building has sat neglected, boarded up, and seldom used — save for a pretty stellar place to capture creepy photos — the irony has not been lost on those trying to goad the university into taking care of the building.
Now, after almost a year of hardcore lobbying, it seems the dialogue is finally getting somewhere.
The Save Briarcliff / Candler Mansion Facebook group has announced that Emory officials will be hosting a community meeting to unveil "exciting plans for restoring the Candler Mansion." According to organizers, the presentation will be held at 6 p.m. next Wednesday (Sept. 28) at Emory’s 1599 Clifton Road Building, first floor conference room 1-C.
We've reached out to the organization to see if any preliminary information regarding restoration plans has been made available and will report back with any updates.
- Save Briarcliff [organization website]
- Emory History Minute: Candler Mansion [YouTube]
- Briarcliff Mansion & Estate [Amy Simone Photography]
- Group Pleads With Emory: Save Neglected Briarcliff Mansion [Curbed]
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