The Pace House, which is owned and maintained by the Vinings Historic Preservation Society, in historic Vinings has been nominated for designation on the National Register of Historic Places. The property was constructed sometime between 1865 and 1874 by Solomon Pace who re-built the property after it burned to the ground during the Civil War. It is a three-room, wood-frame Victorian gabled cottage located on the eastern edge of what is currently considered to be the historic village of Vinings. Hardy Pace, father of Solomon Pace, was one of the earliest settlers in the Vinings area. He operated a ferry across the Chattahoochee River for which Paces Ferry Road, West Paces Ferry Road and a host of other area streets, businesses and neighborhoods would eventually be named.
Quick Facts
Constructed sometime between 1865 and 1874.
Located on the eastern edge of what is currently considered to be the historic village of Vinings.
Original owner, Hardy Pace, moved to Georgia in 1809 and operated a ferry across the Chattahoochee River for which Paces Ferry Road, West Paces Ferry Road and a host of other area streets, businesses and neighborhoods, would eventually be named.
Civil War History: Federal forces arrived in the area on July 5, 1864. General Sherman’s troops occupied the area for 11 days. General O.O. Howard, commander of the 4th Corps of the Army of the Cumberland, established his headquarters at the Hardy Pace House, where he remained until moving his troops north for their July 17 crossing at Pace’s Ferry. Vining’s Station and the Pace House continued to serve as locations of Federal activity, which included a Union hospital.
Destruction of Original Property: Hardy Pace’s residence was reportedly burned to the ground, leaving behind on the granite slab stair that remains extant on the west facade of the present-day Pace House, sometime immediately following the taking of Atlanta.
Rebuilt by Solomon Pace, the son of Hardy Pace, and his wife, Penelope on the same spot where the family home had been, with only the granite steps from the Hardy Pace home remaining.
Purchased by Ruth Carter Vanneman, the great-granddaughter of Solomon Pace, in 1952. The house went through a series of owners after the death of Solomon and Penelope Pace’s daughter died in 1907.
Property conveyed to the newly-formed Ruth Carter Vanneman Foundation, also known as the Vinings Historic Preservation Society, upon Mrs. Vanneman’s death in 1992.
Renovations began on the Pace House in 1998, and opened as a special events facility in 1999.
Listed on the Cobb County Register of Historic Places in 2004.
Nominated for designation on the National Register of Historic Places in late 2008. Final approval from the National Park Service is pending.