Ishmail R.

Coleman 7/21/15

Lithonia, GA- City of Stone

Part One: Commodity Chain

In order to understand the current commodities that Lithonia, Ga are involved with, it is
important to mention the commodities of the past that allowed Lithonia, Ga to thrive in the way
that it does now. Lithonia, Ga is known for its granite and stone rich geography, in which there
were major rock quarry sites present in Lithonia, and still are. In correlation with the extensive
railroad system in Georgia, which includes the Georgia Railroad, and the Atlanta, Stone
Mountain, and Lithonia Railway, the vast amounts of stone present in Lithonia was able to travel
to different cities, such as Stone Mountain, and Augusta; therefore this allowed for a granite
quarrying industry to flourish in the area. The establishment of this granite quarrying industry
allowed for Lithonia to become known for its granite, gneiss, and stone architecture, as well as
masonry when it comes to building homes, factories, and other construction designs. This is still
true today, in which Lithonia is regarded as one of the most affluent cities in DeKalb County and
is reflected in some of the homes that have beautiful designs. Furthermore, due to the railroad
system that was established in Georgia, and went through Lithonia, this allowed Lithonia to be
recognized as a major transportation hub, in which Lithonia later became established as a major
postal service for the area.
The extraction of the raw material of granite and other rocks from the Lithonia area has
allowed for a complex system of production and exportation to take place, which caused a lot of
jobs to open in the area, which ranged from extraction of granite from quarry sites, construction
work, and truck driving. The commodity chain of Lithonia goes from extracting the raw material
(granite and other rocks), organizing them for transportation or prepping them for architecture
usage, and finally sending them to different cities, such as Stone Mountain, Augusta, and
Atlanta, as well as using the material to build plazas and homes, which contributes back to the
economy. Furthermore, due to this commodity being essential to the Lithonia area, the success
from this commodity has allowed other ventures such as the Lithonia Lighting Company to
emerge, which later became relocated to Conyers, which showcases another city connection due
to relocation.

The Atlanta, Stone Mountain, and Map of the path of the Lithonia
Lithonia Railroad Railway as it Passes through Lithonia
to Surrounding areas.
Ishmail R. Coleman 7/21/15

Image of a granite quarry in

Lithonia during the 1900s

Part Two: Migration

One of the earliest migration movements to Lithonia, Ga began during the 19th and 20
century when people began migrating to the area because of the work that was available due to
the rock quarrying sites and transportation accessibility. Most of the migrations at this time were
internal migrations in which most were migrating due to economic reasons and starting a new
life. As time progressed toward contemporary times, many people moved to Lithonia because it
became a placed that was recognized as “ideal” to raise a family, and attracted families due to the
areas remarkable architecture for home designs, as well as the vast amounts of schools to choose
from for children, and recreational activities such as parks and community centers. People also
moved to Lithonia because it was considered the suburbs of the Atlanta-Metropolitan area and
had easy access to get into the city of Atlanta. The rapid movement and migration to the
Lithonia area caused the MARTA transportation line to be expanded to Lithonia so that people
can easily enter the city of Lithonia and Atlanta through bus and train. Furthermore, the location
of Lithonia placed it around a multitude of community colleges such as Georgia Perimeter,
Everest, and other community colleges in the area. Therefore, there became a great percentage
of young adults, and college students who moved to the area due to the easy access to college.
As the years progressed, Lithonia became known as having a strong Christian presence
within the area and because of this, many Christian churches dominate the area of Lithonia, in
which many of the churches within the area became and are landmark properties. Also, the
popularity of the megachurch New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, which is known to host the
funerals and Baptisms of high profile individuals, has also attracted a strong population of
Christians and church-goers to the area. In addition to the Church attraction, the Lithonia area in
recent years has had a mass increase of international migration of people from different
countries, particularly the Caribbean. This is primarily due to the area becoming somewhat
“cultured” toward the demographic of Caribbeans, in which there are a vast amount of Caribbean
restaurants, health stores, corner stores, and event centers and event hostings. This allowed
many Caribbean’s to recognize Lithonia as “the home away from home” due to the accessibility
to their native culture, which causes an influx of Caribbeans to live in the area. Furthermore, the
various amounts of hand on job opportunities promotes international migration because of the
easy access of jobs that are considered hard labor, which most domestic population don’t want to
engage in but the international population would.
 Ishmail R. Coleman 7/21/15

New Birth Missionary Church,

The Extended MARTA bus line to
a reason for vast migration to
Lithonia
Lithonia
Part Three: Economy
The economic flow of the Lithonia area is primarily categorized greatly based on the
commodity chain and the migration of the area, which allows for the economy to flourish. For
example, due to the granite quarries and raw materials present in Lithonia, this allowed for
architecture to flourish in the area, which allowed for buildings and homes to be in abundance in
Lithonia. Therefore, the real estate market in Lithonia thrives because there are always homes
for sale, ranging from cheap homes to expensive million dollar homes. Also, due to the
development of many shopping plazas, many people come to Lithonia to engage in retail,
buying, and selling. Many people travel to the Mall of Stonecrest in Lithonia to engage in
shopping, in which the entire plaza area generates a great deal of money and profits for the city.
The location of the Mall of Stonecrest allows access from people from all angles, whether it is
Conyers, Gwinnet, Atlanta, and any other surrounding counties and areas. Also, because of the
area being consumed with community colleges and young adults, this allows for the flow of
money to go from the students to the college, then back into the economy, and vice versa.
Also, due to Lithonia being a hub for transportation, rock quarries, car industry, steel
production, and a multitude of labor work, this allows for a great amount of job opportunities
which helps the economy thrive as well. Many truck companies are based in Lithonia, and a lot
of trucks make stops in Lithonia due to the commodities present in Lithonia. Also, due to the
close proximity to Stone Mountain, and Atlanta, Lithonia serves sometimes as a living quarters
for people who want to explore and experience tourism around Atlanta and the surrounding
metro areas.

The Mall of Stonecrest, a center of

economy for Lithonia, Ga