Nalley Martin House

The house originally on this lot, the Pillow House, was demolished in 1935 due to a termite infestation. In 1937, the lot’s new owner C.V. Nalley commissioned Norman Stambaugh to design “the finest home outside of Atlanta” and Ray Knickerbocker to construct it.

Nalley was a brilliant businessman with an eye for cars. He eventually became the Northeast Georgia distributor of vehicles and parts for Dodge Brothers.

After Nalley’s death in 1945, the home was purchased by J.H. Martin. The Martin family lived in the home for many years; however, after the death of Mrs. Martin, the home was given to Brenau University to be used as the President’s residence. The home was eventually sold to the Norton family, who moved into the home in 1986. The Nortons remained there until converting the home into their business headquarters for The Norton Agency in 1990.

Judge William L. Norton Jr. is credited with spearheading the movement to save the houses on Green Street by having them added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

(Modern photographs of Green Street homes taken in 2022 by the Gainesville Convention and Visitors Bureau Intern Emma King. Historic photographs and information gathered from our friends at The Gainesville Times, The Norton Agency, the Historical Society of Hall County, the National Register of Historic Places, and the Digital Library of Georgia.)