Winecoff Furniture Restored
Dresser Recovered From The Winecoff Hotel |
Canton, Georgia
All best,
Allen B. Goodwin
Dresser Recovered From The Winecoff Hotel |
This Winecoff Hotel Room Is Believed To Be The Bridal Suite |
Dear Mr. Goodwin,
I just finished your book this weekend. I plan to reread it. It is REAL! It breaks your heart on one hand but makes you marvel at the human spirit on the other. I love the fact that the little boy whose father threw him to safety became a doctor like his dad had been. Thanks again for your book.
Belinda Seaman
Canton, Ga.
Dear Mr. Goodwin:
The book arrived today and is FABULOUS! Thank you so
much for signing
it. It's a present for my brother and I know he's going to
love it.
Thank you again.
Sincerely,
Sheryl Aumack
Ms. Aumack,
Thanks for the kind words and all best to you and your brother.
Allen
Mr. Goodwin,
I gave the book to my brother last night and he was over the moon, and your
signing it made it so much more special. Lately, due to rising gasoline costs he
has to take two buses and a train to get to work in another county and uses the
time to catch up on his reading. He does enjoy non-fiction, and in particular,
books on "disasters" (poor term, I know) especially when they are as thorough a
work as yours (really cover the history of the "situation" as well the the event
itself and the aftermath). I often read these after he does (he never tells me
anything that would spoil the reading) and I find I am enjoying these tomes as
well as I feel I learn many things as well, historically and on a personal level
with those that were involved.
Thank you again and wishing you all the
very best in the future.
Sheryl Aumack
Westchester, CA
I was living in Atlanta at the time of the Winecoff fire. My Grandfather, Paul Fleming, heard about it on the radio and went to volunteer.
You see, he had only retired shortly before from being an Assistant Chief of the Atlanta Fire Department and thought he could be a volunteer that knew how to help.
Although he liked to reminisce about his past in the fire department, he never talked about that day. Apparently, it was all too much even for an experienced man like him.
My mother was rather protective and I was only 6 years old so she wouldn’t have talked about it to me at the time.
At one time, my grandfather’s assignment had been inspecting buildings for fire violations. Mom said he once commented about the central staircase in that hotel. He said he worried about it because, if a fire ever got started, it would act like a chimney to carry the fire upwards and also block the escape route for about everyone.
Unfortunately, there was little that he could do about it except point out the problem because it was an existing building. Apparently, his concern was born out when the actual event occurred.
Paul Bowen
Manassas, Virginia
Dear Mr. Goodwin,
I was in the first grade living on Georgia Avenue, in what is today the parking lot of Turner Field at the time of the fire. I was 10 days short of my 8th birthday. There was a fire station about two blocks away on Central Avenue and fire sirens at night was not unusual. I recall how they went on for hours and the next morning we learned of the fire. My parents and I, like most of Atlanta, went to downtown to see the hotel.
I recall we took the trolley to town and there were thousands of people staring up at the building and the sheets were still hanging out of the windows. The smell was bad.
One thing I will never forget, is in the alley behind the hotel and the Mortgage Guarantee Building were trash cans filled with bloody sheets. That I remember vividly.
I was living in Washington State when your book came out and immediately made a purchase. I have read it many times and still find the fire fascinating. Thank you and your co-author for this work.
Michael Dunn
Dear Mr. Dunn,
Thanks for your kind words and for sharing your eyewitness account of the fire's aftermath.
Be safe,
Allen
Labels: Eyewitnesses