Seen on the left is the Raoul House, designed by New York architect Bradford L. Gilbert, which was located at the northwest corner of Peachtree & Sixth Streets on property now housing a CVS drugstore and a Gordon Biersch Brewery. The Raouls lived there from 1892, when the house was built, until 1914 when they relocated to Lullwater Road in Druid Hills.
According to the 1962 book Peachtree Street, Atlanta, written by William Bailey Williford, the house featured every imaginable accommodation for a wealthy homeowner of the era, such as a carpenter shop, a wine cellar, a cottage for servants, a stable, a small plot of land where the family cow grazed, and Atlanta's first tennis court.
In the 1940s, it was acquired by the Red Cross and used as a bandage rolling and blood donation center. Below is a 1944 photo of the house from the GSU archives.
I was initially unsure of when the house was torn down, but thanks to David Henderson I now know that the AJC reported that the house was heavily damaged by fire on in June1991.
It had been vacant for years and in 1988 the owner applied to have it demolished to make way for a parking lot.
UPDATE: Another correspondent reports that the building was housing a nightclub at the time of the 1991 fire.
Date: 1944
GSU FILE: LBGPF1-156a
Raoul House, Peachtree and Sixth Streets
Date: 10/21/1947
GSU FILE: LBCB005-080a
Date: 03/24/48
GSU FILE: LBT24-145a
According to the previously mentioned book Peachtree Street, Atlanta, the Raoul House remained standing immediately behind the Red Cross building. It looks like you can see parts of it in this photograph.
Date: 04/03/52
GSU FILE: LBGPNS09-155c
Date: 12/17/55
GSU FILE: LBGPF1-009a
