
Kirkwood
Kirkwood is a national historic designated neighborhood on the east side of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is a historic streetcar suburb and was designed by architect Will Saunders. Kirkwood is situated entirely in DeKalb County, bordered by the neighborhoods of Lake Claire, East Lake, Edgewood, and Oakhurst. Kirkwood is bound on the north by DeKalb Avenue, on the south by Memorial Drive and Interstate 20, on the west by Montgomery Street, and on the east by 1st Ave. A large part of the neighborhood is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Kirkwood Historic District.
Prior to the Civil War, the most prominent landholders in early Kirkwood were the Kirkpatrick, Dunwoody, and Clay families. The name Kirkwood was likely derived from a blending of the Kirkpatrick and Dunwoody family names.
Kirkwood traces its beginnings to residential development begun in the 1870s. While no one would consider Kirkwood a suburb of Atlanta today, an early tour book described it as an “area of beautiful suburban villas.” Kirkwood was an early streetcar suburb of Atlanta. By 1910 streetcars provided express service to and from Atlanta three times daily, and streetcars continued service along some streets including Kirkwood Road NE until the early 1950s.
Kirkwood was incorporated as an independent municipality in 1899. Governed beginning in 1899 by its own city council and mayor, the town boasted its own water system, school systems and fire department.
In 2018 Kirkwood was a filming location for Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween