In Atlanta, experts say one historic home demolished each week

Blame the Yankees. When Union Gen. William Sherman stormed through the South more than 150 years ago, he famously ordered many Atlanta buildings put to the torch.

It's a narrative that, some say, has stuck. In the latest chapter, city preservationists are decrying the demolition of two historic houses in a month.

The remains of the Wilson House, erected before the Civil War, were knocked down in January. About four weeks later, the Maddox house — a structural gem, designed by the famed Atlanta architect Phillip Shutze and built in 1937 — fell to heavy machinery.