History
Inspired By Roman Architecture
Built around 1920 next to the Ansley Golf Club, the building was called The Italian Villa Apartments until World War II, when it was renamed simply The Villa. The building was converted to a condominium in 1979.
Renowned Atlanta architect Philip Trammell Shutze is credited with designing The Villa. Shutze modeled the front of The Villa after the entry to the Cortile of the Chiesa di Santa Cecilia in Trastevere in Rome (at left). Shutze studied the structure while touring Italy as a young man.
Upstairs, Downstairs
The photo at right shows The Villa in 1928. During its early years as an apartment building, The Villa had an upstairs, downstairs arrangement in part, with housekeepers living in eight servants’ quarters with small windows on the ground floor. The housekeepers entered from behind the building and used internal stairwells that led to eight luxury apartment suites on the top two floors.
These downstairs servants did the housekeeping (including cooking) for the upstairs residents. Another 17 units on the top two floors were “non-housekeeping” (without cooking facilities). The owners provided a group dining room and offered meal service for non-housekeeping residents.
Bohemians and Entrepreneurs
When The Villa opened, real estate developer Martin Dunbar and his wife, Ret, lived at and managed the Italian Villa Apartments, which has been home to prominent Atlantans through the years. In 1926, Mr. and Mrs. Edwin P. Ansley, Jr. moved in. Another early resident was Sinclair Jacobs of Jacobs Drug Store, where Coca-Cola was served for the first time on May 8, 1886. (It was Jacobs’ Pharmacy then, and belonged to Sinclair’s father.)
In the latter part of the 20th century, Mary Hataway (Soiree Catering & Events) lived at The Villa, Charles Brewer started internet service provider MindSpring in his Villa apartment, and a Metropolitan Home article featuring Helen Ballard’s home at The Villa (including her dolphin-base table, shown at left) led to the creation of home furnishings company Ballard Designs.
The Villa Today
The Villa community came together in 2019 to launch The Villa’s second century with The Villa 100 Years celebration. The centennial festivities included a symposium on classical architecture at the Ansley Golf Club, tours of The Villa (including private homes), and a Gala Patron Party with dinner al fresco catered by former Villa resident Mary Hataway (see above). Soprano Elizabeth Saliers performed three Italian arias from the Villa lobby, capping off a magical night.
About Philip Trammell Shutze
Columbus native Philip Trammell Shutze (right) started his career with a B.S. in Architecture from Georgia Tech (1908-12). He went on to New York City’s Columbia University (1912-13), and later won the Prix de Rome and a fellowship at the American Academy of Rome (1915-17, 1919-20). Back in Atlanta, he initially served as a draftsman for Neel Reid, as part of the architectural firm Hentz, Reid, and Adler. Notable works include the Swan House, Rhodes House, and East Lake Golf Club Clubhouse.
Learn more about Shutze at the Georgia Encyclopedia, the Atlanta History Center, and The Cultural Landscape Foundation.