School of Social Work Building – UGA 33 (1883, 2009; Category 1). The School of Social Work Building is located at 279 Williams Street immediately adjacent to the North Oconee River. It was historically referred to as the Athens Factory, or Old Mill, a composite of two brick buildings joined in the shape of an “L.” The smaller of the two, which is located parallel and adjacent to the river, was known as the wool building, while the larger building, which is connected to the wool building at a right angle, was known as the cotton building. They were once part of a larger complex of related industrial structures that included a picker house, stone warping house, dye houses, boiler rooms, and warehouses that have been demolished.
Both buildings were constructed during the mid- to late nineteenth century. The combined structure, referred to as the Athens Factory, was individually listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The nomination notes the following regarding the composition of the buildings:
The wool building is a three-story structure measuring some 75 feet by 60 feet. The ground floor is enclosed by massive masonry foundation walls with irregularly-cut stone on the exterior and brick on the interior. Beneath the ground floor runs the millrace; above it are the two upper stones. These upper floors are enclosed by thick, load-bearing masonry walls consisting of brick throughout. The interior of the building is subdivided into the various partitionless floor levels by timber construction consisting of square columns or posts, and lintels, heavy joists, and thick planks. Simple, multi-paned double-hung windows, set into large rectangular openings topped by flat brick arches, are spaced evenly across the walls at each of the three floor levels. A low-pitched (nearly flat) roof with widely-spaced projecting rafter ends covers the building. At the north end, the roofline is hidden behind a stepped parapet. Only the central section of this parapet is a part of the original wool building; the lower flanking sections, most of the top floor, and the low-pitched roof itself date from a subsequent enlargement of the original third floor story.
The cotton building . . . is similar to the wool building in nearly every respect. It is proportioned differently, however, being slightly longer, not quite as wide, and four stories high. The cotton building also has a principal entrance at the west end of the north side; this entrance, at the third-floor level, is housed in a short, square, projecting tower and features a round-headed double doorway set under a segmental brick arch. Changes in brickwork and fenestration indicate that the original cotton building, like the original wool building, was subsequently enlarged, at least once and maybe twice: the building has been lengthened to the west, and the one story expanded into a full fourth floor. A four-and-a-half-story square tower formerly adjoined the west end of this building.
A brick-enclosed elevator shaft, built in the early twentieth century, occupies the inner angle of the “L” where the cotton and wool buildings come together. Diagonally across from it, at the outer angle of the “L,” is a structure which housed the turbine and, later, a generator. The turbine was located at the level of the millrace, which runs under the wool building; the generator was situated above it, more or less at the first-floor level.
In 2009, the University of Georgia renovated the building to house the School of Social Work. Today, the 37,000-square-foot building consists of a small complex of brick industrial structures with large double-hung windows. Renovations included the addition of a modern entrance structure and adapted spaces for small-group classrooms, lecture halls, student lounge, and faculty offices. The building nonetheless possesses a high degree of historic integrity and is assessed as a Category 1 resource.
Landscape Resources
As part of the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the former textile mill property, the University of Georgia has created a contemporary landscape at the entrance into the building that features terraced green space edged by walls and stairs, shade trees at the entrance of the building, and a deck at the rear of the building that overlooks the river.
Other landscape features associated with the property include a large paved parking area to the north of the building, a smaller lot near the entrance, and paved walks that connect the building with Williams Street and the parking facilities.
There are also trees along the river margin, and open space near the intersection of Williams and Oconee streets. The landscape is generally contemporary.
