Pendleton King Park, a 64-acre historic jewel in the center of Augusta, began with John Pendleton King (1799-1888), one of the most influential men in Georgia history. A judge and a member of the US Senate (1833-1837), he helped develop the Georgia Railroad, the Georgia Railroad Bank, the Augusta Canal and the King Mill in Augusta.
Prior to his marriage, King purchased the plantation originally belonging to the Bugg family. On the plantation was a typical three-story Southern mansion with two story white columns on the front and verandahs on both floors. On the first floor of the mansion were two drawing rooms, a library, dining room, and a morning or day room for the ladies. The kitchens were originally in a brick building behind the house, but were later moved inside for convenience. On the upper two floors were bedrooms for the family and their guests. Near the house were the brick slave quarters, the old Bugg family cemetery, stables and a pond. There was an avenue of cherry trees which led to the Georgia Railroad tracks. As President of the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company, Judge King walked down the tree lined avenue to the tracks, where the incoming Georgia Railroad passenger train would stop for him and take him into Augusta. He died in 1888 at the age of 88 and was buried in the St. Paul’s Churchyard. His wife died in Paris three years later.
The Kings had one son, Henry Barclay King, and three daughters. Following his graduation from Oxford, Henry married Elizabeth Cashin. The family often traveled to Europe. They were frequent guests at the Biltmore Estate in Ashville when Henry and Cornelia Vanderbilt shared mutual birthday celebrations. In Augusta, Henry would play an afternoon round of golf on the plantation’s nine hole golf course, have afternoon tea in the gazebo and in the evening dress in a tuxedo for dinner.
Henry and Elizabeth had only one son, John Pendleton King II. He was called Pendleton and grew up on the family estate. Pendleton, also an Oxford graduate, became a writer and poet, as well as an Army Liaison Officer in Paris, France during WWI. In 1918 he was cited for bravery and awarded the Croix de Guerre by the French government.
Around 1912, while Pendleton was overseas, the family home burned. Workmen preparing to paint the house used blowtorches to soften the old paint, and fire from the blowtorches got underneath the clapboards. The house burned to the ground. Henry and Elizabeth moved into a Sand Hills cottage on the estate and waited for Pendleton to return with the expectation he would rebuild the family mansion.
Pendleton was discharged from the Army in 1919 and returned to Augusta. Three weeks after returning home, he heard screams coming from Lake Elizabeth. He discovered two women drowning; he managed to save one of the women, but the other drowned. Shortly after the accident, Pendleton became ill and died of a probable brain aneurysm. He was only 29 years old. His parents were heartbroken and never rebuilt the mansion. In his will, Henry Barclay King designated 64 acres of the plantation as a bird sanctuary in memory of his beloved Pendleton.
The property deteriorated after Henry’s death, and many Augustans remember playing in the ruins of the plantation. In the 1960’s Augusta’s Mayor George Sancken formed a development committee to establish Pendleton King Park. These volunteers worked tirelessly, and the park officially opened in May of 1966. The City of Augusta leases the park for one dollar a year from the property trustees, and the Recreation and Parks Department is responsible for the maintenance of the park and supervision of an on-premise caretaker. The Pendleton King Park Foundation is a private, non-profit organization that works in close cooperation with the Recreation and Parks Department and other community partners to preserve, enhance, promote and protect the park.
Recently, the park has experienced an explosion of volunteer work including the development of a new hydrangea garden, “The Hydrangeas at Pendleton.” In addition to the new garden, the Junior League of Augusta established two playgrounds, volunteers doubled the size of the camellia garden, the Touch and Smell Garden was renovated and a new Children’s Sculpture Garden and Musical Garden were built by Monte Sano fourth and fifth graders under the direction of the Art Factory. The new “Bark Park” funded by the Garden Volunteers opened Christmas, 2008. A redesigned disc golf course, a new information kiosk and a new playground restroom were added in 2009. PKP with all of its history and beauty continues to bring enjoyment to new generations of our community.