Five Points (Atlanta)

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Not to be confused with Little Five Points.

The Five Points intersection, looking northwest

Five Points is an area of Atlanta, Georgia, United States, the primary reference for the downtown area. The name refers to the convergence of Marietta Street, Edgewood Avenue, Decatur Street, and two legs of Peachtree Street (the Southern leg was originally Whitehall Street, a section of Whitehall was renamed as an extension of Peachtree Street to give businesses South of Five Points the cachet of a Peachtree Street address). Though Five Points is usually considered by Atlantans to be the center of town, the origin of the street-numbering system lies two blocks southwest, at the intersection of Peachtree and Alabama Streets.

[edit] History

Prior to the arrival of white settlers, Five Points was the intersection of two Creek Indian trails, the Pitch Tree (corrupted to Peachtree) Trail and the Sandtown Trail. In 1845, George Washington Collier opened a grocery store at what is now Five Points, and the store later served as Atlanta's first post office in 1846.

In 1848, Five Points served as the location of Atlanta's first mayoral election. Moses Formwalt became Atlanta's first mayor, defeating Jonathan Norcross.

In 1875, Atlanta's drinking water system began with the construction of three artesian wells at Five Points. The system delivered water to Atlanta's residents via wooden pipes.

[edit] Modern era

In the 1940s and 1950s, Five Points represented the central hub of downtown Atlanta. The downtown Rich's department store near Five Points became a common gathering point for Atlanta's residents prior to urban sprawl, white flight, and the development of shopping malls. The highlight of many Atlanta residents' childhoods was riding the Pink Pig (a small elevated train with enclosed cars, molded and painted to look like a pig) around the Great Tree Christmas Tree atop the Rich's building.

Today, the Five Points station is MARTA's largest, where its north-south and east-west lines intersect. The station, however, is actually one block south of the famous Five Points intersection. To the east extends the campus of Georgia State University. To the northeast is Woodruff Park. To the northwest lies the Fairlie-Poplar district. Just southeast lies Underground Atlanta, a shopping center built underneath Atlanta's viaduct system.