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Before Atlanta’s West Midtown was an award-winning dining and shopping destination, the area was known as Blandtown.
One of the first post-Civil War black settlements around Atlanta, Blandtown was named after former slave Felix Bland. Felix had been given property from his former owner, but lost ownership in the 1870s after failing to pay taxes. The land was then sold and developed into a residential area.
With railroad access and available jobs, Blandtown grew into a thriving community that supported a school, health clinic and churches, until rezoning caused the start of the neighborhood’s decline in the 1950s.
– Caroline Parsley, The 100 Companies