PLACES IN PERIL

ALABAMA'S ENDANGERED HISTORIC LANDMARKS FOR 2003

ONCE AGAIN, THE ALABAMA HISTORICAL COMMISSION AND THE ALABAMA PRESERVATION ALLIANCE HAVE TEAMED UP TO PROFILE HISTORIC SITES THROUGHOUT THE STATE THAT ARE IN DANGER OF BEING LOST TO ALABAMIANS FOREVER.

THIS YEAR MARKS THE TENTH YEAR THAT the Alabama Preservation Alliance and the Alabama Historical Commission have collaborated to designate some of Alabama's most imperiled historic sites and structures as "Places in Peril." The listing is meant to raise awareness about landmarks that often reflect little-known aspects of our heritage. Though under threat, these landmarks all share a similar potential: the potential to engage local support and foster grassroots activity that will keep them around for future generations to see and enjoy. It is this potential that Places in Peril highlights and encourages.

The sites on the following pages, while noteworthy in and of themselves, are symptomatic of a larger problem: the steady erosion of historic places throughout Alabama. Though threatened by many different factors, the problem is increasingly one of economics. On one hand, a shortage of funds often leads to neglect and deferred maintenance of our historic places. On the other hand, too much economic activity and development, such as sprawl and urban redevelopment, threaten the very existence of historic resources. No other site better illustrates the former than the nationally significant Bryce Hospital. Lack of public funding for the maintenance of this graceful building has led to its severe deterioration in recent years. However, in the historic town of Fairhope, burgeoning economic growth threatens to compromise its much-cherished historic landscape.

The tools are often there to protect and promote these endangered historic sites and structures. With the right combination of local interest, imaginative foresight, and preservation guidance, the threat to these resources can be alleviated. The Alabama Historical Commission and Alabama Preservation Alliance always stand ready to support and provide assistance to any grassroots efforts.

RURAL CEMETERIES

STATEWIDE

THREAT: Neglect

AS POPULATIONS IN OUR RURAL AREAS SHIFT and diminish, the typically small, rural cemeteries associated with a particular family or village are left behind. Oftentimes, the locations of rural cemeteries are not marked on maps; in addition, many his- toric burials were either never marked or were marked using materials that have since been torn down, moved, or deteriorated. Vandalism accounts for a great deal of the destruction of these cemeter- ies. Law enforcement agencies are often unaware of laws protecting cemeteries or do not have the resources to respond when a problem is reported. Another threat arises when well-intentioned citi- zens, in an effort to clean the historic marker, use substances too abrasive for the material.

The University of Alabama Geography Department has compiled an excellent database of Alabama's burial grounds. The Alabama Historical Commission, with assistance from local citizens, is com- piling a registry of historic cemeteries, providing a historic context for each one. Technical assistance is offered to lo- cal groups who seek assistance in main- taining historic cemeteries. Furthermore, Alabama's rural cemeteries have an advo- cacy group effort underway. The Ala- bama Cemetery Preservation Alliance is in the process of forming a statewide, nonprofit membership organization. A state- wide cemetery workshop will be held November 1, 2003, at the Archives and History Building in Montgomery. For more information, contact Joyce Nicoll at 334-272-0481.

BRYCE HOSPITAL

TUSCALOOSA

THREAT: Physical Deterioration, Lack of Funding

TUSCALOOSA'S BRYCE HOSPITAL, constructed between 1853 and 1861, was the first institutional building dedicated solely to the care of the mentally ill in the state of Alabama. A rather elongated, three-story, masonry structure with Italianate details and a Roman Revival portico, the hospital is characterized by three progressively setback wings flanking each side of the central pavilion. Its design, the then-unique linear plan, was the result of architect Samuel Sloan's collaboration with Dr. Thomas Kirkbride, a leading physician in mental health care. Kirkbride sought to express in concrete form the current philosophy of moral treatment. More so than other hospitals using Kirkbride's ideas, Bryce Hospital retained many features of the plan and, therefore, was the leader among the Kirkbride linear plan hospitals. Today, it is the oldest and most intact Kirkbride hospital in existence. In 1995, unable to meet federal regulations for patient care, the Department of Mental Health removed patients from Bryce Hospital. Meanwhile, budgetary constraints and revenue shortfalls forced the State of Alabama to defer maintenance on the building, leading to the failure of the roof system.

Abandoned for many years now, the Lodge, another historic building on the Bryce campus, is threatened because of its partially collapsed roof. Constructed in 1878 for coal storage and later used as housing for African American male patients, the Lodge once displayed a tin mansard roof, floors laid with narrow oak boards, and plastered walls and ceilings. Delicate wooden trim, made by Bryce patients, is seen around the doors and windows and along the staircase.

The Alabama Historical Commission has applied for federal grants to fund preservation efforts and is working on a nomination for National Historic Landmark status for the historic core of the Bryce campus. However, these endeavors take time; true rehabilitation of Bryce will necessitate a public-private partnership.

ARLINGTON SCHOOL

BESSEMER

THREAT: Neglect, Lack of Funding

A FINE EXAMPLE OF A CLASSICAL REVIVAL school building from the turn of the last century, the Arlington School, built in 1908, was Bessemer's first high school. Its most distinguishing features are the decorative brick and stone facade, interior sky-lighted basketball courts, and an auditorium in the form of a jewel box theatre with a raked floor, proscenium stage, and horseshoe balcony. Once a part of a thriving middle class neighborhood, the Arlington School was abandoned in the early 1980s. Now dilapidated and out of use, the school's state of disrepair is indicative of the decline in the surrounding neighborhood. Cur- rently, the building is co-owned by a community development corporation and a group of developers who intend to adaptively reuse the building. However, with continued deterioration, the rehabilitation costs for the project increase.

COLEMAN HOUSE

UNIONTOWN

THREAT: Lack of Funding, Demolition for Salvage

THIS CIRCA-1906 NEO-CLASSICAL REVIVAL HOME recalls better economic times, featuring a central, double-leaf entrance with full transom and sidelights, a dominant fullheight portico with paired terracotta Corinthian columns, a side porte cochere, decorative quoins, and exterior corbelled chimneys. The finest example of such a house in these parts, the Coleman House interior showcases soaring ceilings, wood burning fireplaces, and an overly generous double-L staircase. The house was recently purchased by out-of-towners, but difficulties discovered while repairing the house are forcing the new owners to offer it for sale again. Many repairs still need to be made to the house, and if the present owners do not find a buyer, they will be forced to demolish the house for salvage, in order to recoup their financial losses.

DAY'S GAP

CULLMAN COUNTY

THREAT: Lack of Formal Preservation

IN THE EARLY MORNING OF APRIL 30, 1863, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest's brigade caught up with U.S. Colonel Abel Streight at Day's Gap in Cullman County after a pursuit through central Alabama. It was there that the two brigades clashed in brief skirmishes and moved on, beginning a series of running cavalry fights unique to the Civil War. The actual site of the engagement on Sand Mountain is now a community called Battleground. Though there is great respect and local reverence for the battlefield, it has no formal protection. Day's Gap is threatened by relic hunting and improper maintenance and protection of the site. The relic hunting is an imminent threat, with more and more historic resources lost each day. Furthermore, until the site enjoys formal protection, it is subject to development.

KENNEDY HOUSE

MOBILE

THREAT: Demolition by Neglect

THE 1857 KENNEDY HOUSE is one of Alabama's most important examples of hybrid Greek Revival and Italianate architectural impulses seen in the last decade before the Civil War. A tall, temple-type, neoclassical front portico is paired with Italianate detailing, broad ornamentally bracketed eaves, round-arch windows with cast-iron hoodmolds, and above the portico, a series of flattened, stilted arches springing from column to column instead of the expected classical entablature. In the tradition of many mid-nineteenth-century Mobile mansions, a long, L-shaped, double gallery services the rear, while also making use of a side-hall plan. The owner of the Kennedy house, American Legion Post No. 3, was recognized in 1950 for its respeetfnl use and maintenance of a landmark building. Since that time, however, the mansion has deteriorated nearly to ruin. The American Legion would like to sell the Kennedy House, but as a condition of the sale, they have asked the purchaser to construct a new building for them in the suburbs.

FRANCES BYNUM HOUSE

COURTLAND

THREAT: Demolition by Neglect

JUST TWO BLOCKS OFF THE TOWN SQUARE in Courtland, the tall, hipped-roof Frances Bynum house stands aban- doned. The 1825 house, one of Courtland's earliest and most significant houses, features a rare "hall and chamber" floorplan, a single large room-or "hall," in the old English sense of the word-flanked on one side by a smaller retiring room, or "chamber." Today, only a handful of two-story, hall-and-chamber houses survive any- where in the state. The Bynum house is probably the oldest. Passed down through the generations and now owned by out-of-state heirs, the Frances Bynum home faces destruction unless it has new ownership. However, difficult legal matters related to the heirs and ownership and the very bleak condition of the house itself have made this home Courtland's most endangered, rather than its most prized, resource. Recognizing the significance of this early house, the Alabama Preservation Alliance will soon purchase and stabilize the Bynum house with funds from its emerging Endangered Properties Trust.

DOWNTOWN FAIRHOPE

BALDWIN COUNTY

THREAT: Inappropriate Development, Tear Downs

BEGUN IN 1894 AS A UTOPIAN COLONY along the bluff of Mobile Bay, Fairhope's architecture perpettiates a pleasant aesthetic and human scale. Though the designs vary-there are Victorian, Craftsman, and vernacular influences-the scale and proportion of the historic buildings to their lots and the native foliage all provide for a visual cohesive-ness unparalleled in small town Alabama. However, tear downs are rapidly occurring. The small, early twentieth-century storefronts are being replaced with larger buildings that provide for more value per square foot. The historic neighborhoods are also threatened by escalating property values and out-of-town ownership, leading to the destruction of Fairhope's treasured bay cottages.

Today, two of the most significant commercial buildings on Fairhope Avenue, the 1914 Tumble Inn and 1924 Magnet Theater, are under imminent threat of demolition, as developers eye the site for a boutique hotel. Though it has one abundant National Register district and another pending district, Fairhope citizens and local political leaders have been unable to unite to provide protection for these historic resources.

PENSION ROW

MADISON

THREAT: Lack of Awareness, Sprawl

ONCE A THRIVING COMMUNITY with its own schools, churches, businesses, lodges, and recreation areas, Madison is losing many of its landmark and background buildings. Pension Row in Madison is representative of many small town African American neighborhoods. For much of the twentieth century, it was home to most of Madison's black citizens-businessmen, teachers, preachers, farmers, housekeepers, and workers in the town's gin and warehouse businesses. The narrow streets, hedges, plantings, and trees help to define a strong sense of place, but the historic buildings are rapidly disappearing.

This is due in part to Madison's growing status as an affluent bedroom community for Huntsville, which has significantly elevated the per capita income, rendering Pension Row ineligible for rehabilitation and community improvement grants. The Madison African American Alliance Group (MAAG) is actively working to revitalize the neighbor- hood, to ensure that this new prosperity will not cost Madison the physical record of the valuable contributions generations of African American citizens made to this small North Alabama railroad town.

EAST SELMA INDUSTRIAL AREA

DALLAS COUNTY

THREAT: Demolition by Neglect

IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY, as Selma became a hub for cotton production and the industries cotton supported, the East Selma Industrial Area was the center of activity. However, due to a changing economy and the general decline in the agricultural industry, many of the area's historic warehouses are no longer in use. They sit abandoned and dilapidated, possible fire hazards and a draw for vagrants. The late-nineteenth-century Stewart, King and McKenzie warehouse on Selma Avenue, which once housed a cottonseed oil industry, is under immediate threat of demolition due to fire code violations by the owner. Nearby, the Dallas Compress also sits vacant, spanning nearly four entire city blocks. In the past year, one of Selma's most significant warehouses, Tissier Hardware, was demolished for its bricks. These historic resources and many others have the potential to be a part of a National Register district. Once listed on the National Register, owners could take advantage of the Historic Rehabilitation Tax credit. It is also the first step toward including these resources in a local historic district, which would provide protection for the resources.

OLD EASTABOGA AND TRAVELER'S REST

CALHOUN COUNTY

THREAT: Neglect

TRAVELER'S REST, AN I-HOUSE dating to the early 1830s, was once a popular stop for travel-weary passengers along the Jacksonville-to-Montgomery stagecoach route. The Jared Gross home, another exceptionally fine example of an I-house, is located just north of Traveler's Rest. These, along with a few other remaining structures, make up the ensemble of historic homes in the early settlement of Old Eastaboga. The center of settlement moved north in the 188Os for proximity to the railroad, beginning Old Eastaboga's decline. To further demonstrate how things have changed over the past century and a half, Old Eastaboga is now only a hundred yards north of Interstate 20. With proper direction and stewardship, these historic resources do have potential. A creative, comprehensive plan could make these resources part of a regional tourism initiative, taking advantage of their proximity to the interstate system.

HASSINGER HOUSE

BIRMINGHAM

THREAT: Tear Down

THE HASSINGER HOUSE on Birmingham's Highland Avenue, dating from 1898, was designed for prominent Birmingham industrialist William H. Hassinger. Its turret, gables, verandah, and asymmetrical profile are characteristic of the Victorian Queen Anne style, while the porch's Ionic columns and flat wall surfaces arc classically inspired. Though it is one of the few Queen Annes remaining from Birmingham's boom period, intense development pressures threaten the house, with one of its neighbors being a Ruby Tuesday restaurant. Though the house is restorable and appears to be sound structurally, the Hassinger house is only marginally maintained at present. As the property values increase in the area, so does the likelihood that this house will be torn down to make way for more lucrative commercial uses on the site.

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