From Department Store to Iconic Multi-Use Venue
Many native Atlantans will remember getting dressed in their finest to visit the Davison-Paxson department store on the now historic corner of Peachtree and Ellis Streets. Davison’s had its origins in 1891 when the Davison & Douglas company opened its doors in downtown Atlanta. Journalist Henry Grady had just died, railroads were beginning to change
the face of the South, business was booming and women everywhere were needing a place to shop. They came to Davison & Douglas to buy everything from hosiery to home furnishings. In 1901, the department store changed its name to Davison-Paxon-Stokes. Later, in early 1927 the company dropped the “Stokes” part of the name to become Davison Paxon Co. Macy had purchased the store and built the huge Peachtree Street store that still stands today. Over time, the Davison-Paxon Company name was shortened to simply Davison’s. The downtown Davison’s store was a classic example of a downtown shopping experience. The main entrance on Peachtree featured a very stately marble-floored cosmetics and jewelry area, which is now the Whitehall Ballroom of Southern Exchange Ballrooms. Modeled after Macy’s flagship store on Herald Square in New York, the refurbished mezzanine overlooking the Whitehall Ballroom balcony level gazes out on the brilliantly polished crystal chandeliers. Truly, the historic elegance of yesteryear has emerged into the wondrous Multi-use Venue known as 200 Peachtree City Center, and is also home to the Atlanta Braves All Star Grill, Meehan’s Public House, Sweet Georgia’s Juke Joint, Jon Ric International Luxury Spa, Escape the Room and much more that also call 200 Peachtree City Center their home.