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List of oldest buildings in Alabama

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This article attempts to list the oldest extant buildings in the state of Alabama in the United States. Some dates are approximate and based upon dendochronology, architectural studies, and historical records. The area that is now Alabama was originally inhabited by Native Americans. The settlement of Mobile began in 1702 as the first capital of the colony of French Louisiana, and the region was colonized and traded between French, British, Spanish, and American forces during the 1700s. No documented buildings remain standing in the state from this period, though Fort Toulouse has been accurately reconstructed. There is one remaining example nearby, the 1757 french colonial LaPointe-Krebs House in Pascagoula, Mississippi. The oldest existing structures within the state reflect a wave of American settlement into the Tennessee River valley, including the establishment of Huntsville in 1805.

To be listed here a site must:

  • date to Alabama statehood in 1819 or prior; or
  • be the oldest building in a region, large city, or oldest of its type (government building, style, etc.)

List

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Building Image Location First built Type Notes
Mississippian Mounds, e.g. Moundville Throughout state 800–1600 Earthen mounds Though no original Native American buildings remain above ground, a number of constructed platform mounds have been preserved including the 58 ft tall Mound B at the Moundville Site.
Joel Eddins House Huntsville 1808 House The oldest documented building in the state. This European American influenced log cabin was moved from Ardmore, Alabama to its current location at Burritt on the Mountain museum in 2007.[1][2]
Jude-Crutcher House Huntsville 1812 House Second oldest building and oldest surviving log dogtrot style house in the state. The breezeway has been enclosed and the exterior is now covered in clapboard.[3][4] 2132 Winchester Rd NW, Huntsville AL, 35810
Poplar Grove (LeRoy Pope House) Huntsville 1813 House The third oldest building in the state, and the oldest masonry building in the state. Constructed by LeRoy Pope, the "Father of Huntsville", and visited by General Andrew Jackson on his return from the Battle of Horseshoe Bend.[5] The original federal style facade has seen the later addition of a Greek Revival portico.
Urquhart House Huntsville 1813 House Tied with Poplar Grove as third oldest building in the state. Vacant.[6] 199 Routt Rd, Toney, Alabama, 35773
Perkins-Winston House Huntsville 1815 House Early Huntsville home.[7]
William Reed House Birmingham 1816 House Early homestead.[8][9] 888 Twin Lake Dr NE Birmingham, AL 35215, United States
Hill of Howth Boligee 1816 House Early homestead.[10]
Rev Thomas Newton House Ashville 1817 House Early homestead.[11][12] Barton Lane, Asheville AL 35953, United States
Lucas Tavern (Old Alabama Town) Montgomery 1818 Tavern/Inn Oldest surviving tavern in the state and the oldest building in the city of Montgomery. It is famous for hosting the Marquis de Lafayette during his 1825 trip through Alabama. Now stands at Old Alabama Town.[13]
John Looney House Ashville 1818 House The oldest two story dogtrot house in the state.[14]
Cedarwood Moundville 1818 House Possibly the earliest surviving plantation in the black belt region of Alabama. Restored and relocated to The University of West Alabama in Livingston .[15][16]
Hickman Cabin (Joseph Wheeler Plantation) Wheeler 1818 House A log dogtrot home.[17]
Erskine House Huntsville 1818 House Early Huntsville home.[18] 517 Franklin St SE, Huntsville, AL 35801, United States
Phelps-Jones House Huntsville 1818 House Early Huntsville home.[19]
The Molett House
Orrville 1819 House The oldest house in Alabama owned and occupied by the family that built it. It is also documented in the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), 1934.
Sadler House McCalla 1819 House This home may have originally consisted of an circa 1819 log pen that was later expanded upon.[20]
Weeden House Huntsville 1819 House Early Huntsville home.[21]
McGuire-Strickland House Tuscaloosa 1820 House The oldest building in the city of Tuscaloosa.[22]
Goode–Hall House Town Creek 1824 House This Tennessee Valley plantation house is one of the deep South's outstanding expressions of Jeffersonian Palladian architecture.[23]
G&J Sutherland Store Tuscumbia 1824 Store Possibly the state's oldest surviving commercial building. The white building in the picture, its exterior details have been changed with time.[24]
Masonic Lodge #3 Perdue Hill 1824 Courthouse/Masonic Lodge Former courthouse and Masonic lodge originally built in Claiborne, one of early Alabama's largest settlements. Visited and reportedly dedicated by the Marquis de Lafayette in 1825 during his tour of the United States. Moved to its present location in Perdue Hill in 1884.[25][26]
Indian Springs Baptist Church McWilliams 1825 Church Possibly the state's oldest surviving religious building.[27][28] Indian Springs Road, Beatrice, AL 36425, United States
Old Rock Jail Rockford 1825 Jail The state's oldest jail.[29]
Lassiter House Autaugaville 1825 House One of the state's earliest examples of the I-house form.[30]
Vincent-Doan House Mobile 1827 House The state's oldest surviving example of French colonial influenced architecture and the oldest building in the city of Mobile.[31]
John McMahon House Courtland 1828 House Architecturally significant example of an early Alabama Federal-style structure that reflects the carryover of Atlantic Seaboard architectural forms introduced by Virginia settlers.[32]
Bride's Hill Wheeler 1828 House Oldest surviving example of a Tidewater-type cottage in Alabama. Vacant.
Dancy-Polk House Decatur 1829 House Oldest building in the city of Decatur.[33]
Collins-Marston House Mobile 1832 House Possibly the state's oldest surviving example of a creole cottage style house.[34]
Old State Bank Decatur 1833 Bank The first state bank and oldest bank building in the state.[30]
Barton Academy Mobile 1836 School The first public school in the state of Alabama.[35]
Somerville Courthouse Somerville 1837 Courthouse The oldest surviving masonry courthouse in the state.[36] The structure bears much resemblance to the first Alabama state house, once located in Cahawba.
Arlington Antebellum Home & Gardens Birmingham 1845 House The oldest building in the city of Birmingham.[37]
Langdon Hall Auburn 1846 Church The oldest building in the city of Auburn.[38]
Old Shelby County Courthouse Columbiana 1854 Courthouse Original courthouse for the county of Shelby County, replaced by a larger marble courthouse in 1908. The structure still stands and is currently the Shelby County Museum and Archives.[39]
Bryce Hospital Tuscaloosa 1861 Mental Health Institution Alabama's first and oldest state mental health facility.
Rickwood Field Birmingham 1910 Baseball park The oldest surviving professional baseball park in the United States.[30]

Demolished early Alabama buildings

[edit]

Issac Bett House, Burnt Corn Alabama[40]

The existing house once located at 308 Conti Street (now moved) in Mobile may contain portions of a 1796 structure. [41]

Sandy Hill Plantation

The Oaks

Shelby Hotel

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Burritt on the Mountain - Huntsville Museum, Education, History".
  2. ^ House legacy.decaturdaily.com [dead link‍]
  3. ^ "George Jude House - Huntsville, Alabama". Archived from the original on 2013-08-18. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
  4. ^ "David and Lucy Crutcher House". 2 August 2010.
  5. ^ "Huntsville, Alabama | G.I.S. Division | Historic Markers Site". Archived from the original on 2015-01-20. Retrieved 2013-08-18.
  6. ^ "5 things to know about Madison County's 200-year-old log Urquhart house (Odd Travels with photo gallery)". 4 June 2013.
  7. ^ "Perkins-Orgain-Winston House, 401 Lincoln Street, Huntsville, Madison County, AL". Library of Congress.
  8. ^ "William Reed House".
  9. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2020-07-23. Retrieved 2020-07-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ "Hill of Howth, County Road 19, Boligee, Greene County, AL". Library of Congress.
  11. ^ "Landmark Hunter". www.landmarkhunter.com.
  12. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2020-07-23. Retrieved 2020-07-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  13. ^ "Lucas Tavern / Circa 1818 - Montgomery, Alabama - Alabama Historical Markers on". Waymarking.com. 2011-11-22. Retrieved 2022-05-04.
  14. ^ "Looney House".
  15. ^ "Article 404 - Tuscaloosa News - Tuscaloosa, AL".
  16. ^ BB Connection centerforblackbelt.org December 2012 [dead link‍]
  17. ^ "Alabama Historical Commission - Pond Spring/Gen. Joseph Wheeler Home". Archived from the original on 2010-10-21. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  18. ^ "HHC". huntsvillehistorycollection.org.
  19. ^ Gamble, Robert S. (December 1980). "Phelps-Jones House". National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form. U.S. Department of the Interior. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  20. ^ "Sadler Plantation House - McCalla, Alabama". www.exploresouthernhistory.com.
  21. ^ "The House's History". Archived from the original on 2013-09-11. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  22. ^ "The Capitol School". Archived from the original on 2013-08-20. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  23. ^ "NPGallery Asset Detail".
  24. ^ "State's oldest commercial building still kicking". 28 November 2010.
  25. ^ "Claiborne Encyclopedia of Alabama". Retrieved 2019-04-18.
  26. ^ "Masonic Lodge Marker - Historic Markers Across Alabama". Retrieved 2019-04-18.
  27. ^ "Indian Springs Baptist Church near McWilliams, AL (built ca. 1825)". RuralSWAlabama.
  28. ^ "Alabama's picturesque antebellum log and wooden churches". 6 March 2014.
  29. ^ "Old Rock Jail & Museum".
  30. ^ a b c "National Register". Archived from the original on 2010-12-04. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
  31. ^ "Home". mobilemedicalmuseum.com.
  32. ^ "Asset Detail".
  33. ^ "Historic Decatur Christmas Tour - Carriage rides". Archived from the original on 2012-11-30. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  34. ^ https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NRHP/64000005_text
  35. ^ "Home".
  36. ^ Photo flickr.com [dead link‍]
  37. ^ "City of Birmingham-Arlington Antebellum Home and Gardens". Archived from the original on 2013-07-05. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  38. ^ "Langdon Hall :: AU". Archived from the original on 2012-02-10. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  39. ^ "Courthouse | Shelby County, AL - Official Website". www.shelbyal.com. Retrieved 2021-11-18.
  40. ^ "Burnt Corn, Alabama".
  41. ^ "308-310 Conti Street (Double House), Mobile, Mobile County, AL". Library of Congress.
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