Ramona Liddell, Wife of Heyward Todd Liddell Jr., Has Died

By Lola Carlisle

We have Ramona Liddell to thank for a significant portion of this neighborhood’s historic archives.

Several years ago, Karri Hobson-Pape, Judy Potter, and I had the pleasure of meeting Ramona while working on our book, Virginia-Highland, Images of America.  Over several visits and many cups of coffee, we all went through boxes and boxes of images and family documents. Ramona answered so many questions so graciously that we felt like she had made us part of the family.  Her mother-in-law, Bertie Sue, was a Cheshire (as in Cheshire Bridge Road) and (from all accounts) a strong and amazing woman.

Ramona was married to Heyward Todd Liddell, Jr., a descendant of Richard Todd. Richard Todd (Todd Rd. and the Todd Cemetery Memorial) was the first white settler in this region. It is also of interest that Richard’s oldest sister Sara was the wife of Hardy Ivy (Ivy St., Hardy Ivy Park). Ivy is considered Atlanta’s first citizen – the boundaries of Atlanta had not extended out to the Virginia-Highland area yet. Ivy may have been convinced to move to the area by his wife who wanted to be near her brother, Richard. Todd Rd. originally connected the Todd farm to Ivy’s place downtown.

The Todd holdings in VaHI encompassed 202.5 acres approximately bounded by Ponce de Leon Pl. to the west, St. Charles Ave. to the south, Barnett St. to the east, and Adair Ave. on the northern boundary. The only remaining portion of (once lengthy) Todd Rd. runs from Virginia Ave. (near the Wells Fargo branch) south to Highland Ave.

The Todd Cemetery Memorial was established in the rear of 797 Ponce de Leon Ter. in the late 1980s as part of an agreement between the developer of that property, the family, and local citizens. According to documents provided by the Todd family, the site was to include a vault containing material from the original cemetery. The memorial headstone that had been on the property since the late 1920’s was placed and surrounded by a brick and wrought iron enclosure and an easement was filed with the city for the memorial and the public access.

The Memorial has been visited over the years by a stream of family members, historians, and interested citizens. Sadly, the Todd Cemetery Memorial was destroyed around the end of 2015. The Todd family has been notified and we’ll share more information on this topic when we have it.

The family of Ramona Liddell is in town this weekend for Ramona Liddell’s funeral services. You can learn more about the life of Ramona Liddell here.

Lola Carlisle is a VHCA Board Member and Co-Chair of the Planning Committee.

Family Photo of Ramona with Heyward Todd Liddell, Jr. and their son, courtesy of Ramona Liddell.

Map Courtesy of Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center.