Buttermilk Bottoms

Bowen Homes provided housing for approximately 4,000 people who had been displaced primarily from the old Buttermilk Bottoms area and other surrounding areas of the Atlanta Civic Center. Buttermilk Bottoms, also known as Buttermilk Bottom or Black Bottom, was a central Atlanta neighborhood predominantly inhabited by African-Americans. The name "Buttermilk Bottom" possibly arose because residents were unable to afford or preserve "sweet" milk, or fresh milk. Instead, milk was cultured to increase longevity and shelf life, in the era before modern refrigeration. Buttermilk Bottom was considered a slum area, similar to Beaver's Slide (which was eventually replaced by University Homes), characterized by unpaved streets and a lack of utilities.