Old Fourth Ward

The Old Fourth Ward ( commonly abbreviated as O4W) is one of the City of Atlanta’s oldest neighborhoods. Originally settled in the early 1800’s, development really began soon after the Civil War as Atlanta was being revived and rebuilt from ashes. O4W’s name originated from the political districts in Atlanta (originally there were 5 Wards) and is the only one to retain its name as districts replaced wards in the 1950’s. Today, Old Fourth Ward stretches from Piedmont Avenue and Downtown on the west to the eastside Beltline trail, Poncy- Highland and Inman Park on the east; Freedom Parkway and Ponce de Leon border it to the north and historic Oakland Cemetery and Grant Park are located along the south border. Before the last decade, O4W’s main attractions were historical attractions- MLK, Jr. Historic site, Ebenezer Baptist Church and the Sweet Auburn District.
In the 1890’s O4W’s main thoroughfare, Boulevard, was described as “one of the most desirable residence streets in the City”. However at the same time, ½ mile away the terrible slums of Buttermilk Bottoms languished; and after the Great Atlanta Fire of 1917, most of the Old Fourth Ward, including Boulevard fell to crime, slums and drug activity- the Old Fourth Ward was no longer a desirable location.
Even though the Atlanta Civic Center (1967) and the Georgia Power Building (1981) replace the Buttermilk Bottoms slums earlier, gentrification really began in the early 2000’s spurred on by the Atlanta Beltline development and the City Council’s strategy to revitalize the corridor. In 2011 the Historic Fourth Ward park was dedicated consisting of 17 acres of new greenspace, a 2 acre lake, playground, state-of-the-art splash pool, outdoor theater, athletic fields and skate park. As condos, apartments, retail and restaurants spring up throughout O4W, it has, again, become one of the most sought after and vibrant areas of the City. The close proximity to Downtown and the Beltline, the walkable neighborhoods and the many cultural offerings now define the area as a premier location.
While visiting one of the historic sites, Ponce City market or one of the many neighborhood restaurants, bars or retail shops be sure to look for the world famous street art along Decatur Street, Edgewood Avenue and the Eastside Beltline Trail.