Tag Archives: Birmingham

-Alabama, Houses

The Copeland Mansion of Birmingham, Alabama

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The John R. and Susie Copeland Mansion is located in Birmingham’s Norwood neighborhood. The Copelands married in 1889 and had five children. John Copeland was president of Copeland-Inglis Shale Brick Company and held multiple positions at Alabama Paving Company. He also served as an alderman for the town.

Construction on the home began in 1905 and was completed in 1906 for $8,000. Today, that would be approximately $270,000.

Announcement in the December 22, 1904 edition of The Birmingham News.

Norwood began as a trolley suburb, but following desegregation, many white residents moved farther from downtown. In fact, Copeland relocated to Ohio by 1930. Once known as “The Placid Place” for its scenic lake and location north of town, Norwood, like many neighborhoods across the United States, experienced significant decline over time.

-Alabama, Black History, Signs

A Restored Greyhound Bus Station in Birmingham, Alabama

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In downtown Birmingham, a recently restored Greyhound Bus Station serves as a reminder of Greyhound’s heyday. Built in 1952 by William Strudwick Arrasmith, noted for his designs of Greyhound Bus Stations, the Streamline Moderne building was one of the many bus stations that the Freedom Riders passed through to force bus desegregation.

The station was a key location for the civil rights movement. On May 14, 1961, two buses left Atlanta, Georgia, bound for New Orleans. White supremacists attacked the civil rights activists and slashed one bus’s tires. The driver was able to leave, but the mob stopped the bus and threw a firebomb into it. When the second bus arrived in Birmingham, they were greeted by Ku Klux Klansmen who had been tipped off by Police Commissioner Bull Conner, who told them they had fifteen minutes where they could freely attack the Freedom Riders.

After Greyhound moved operations in 2017, the building sat vacant until it was recently restored. The restoration uncovered many hidden mid-century details that can be seen today, like the bus marquee and the iconic silver greyhound.

-Alabama, Black History, National Register of Historic Places

Sixteenth Street Baptist Church-Birmingham, Alabama

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Originally named the First Colored Baptist Church, the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church was founded in 1873. The first church building was at the intersection of 12th Street North and 4th Avenue. The congregation moved to its current location in 1880.

This is the second building at this location. The City of Birmingham condemned the first building, so the church leaders turned to Alabama’s only Black architect, Wallace Rayfield, to design the current building. T.C. Windham, a Black contractor from Birmingham, managed the church’s building. The church was completed in 1911 with Romanesque and Byzantine elements.

Based on its location in Birmingham, the church became a centerpiece of the Civil Rights Movement. The church hosted lecturers and became a gathering place for meetings and rallies. Unfortunately, the church became a target of white supremacists on Sunday, September 15, 1963, when a bomb went off at 10:22 AM. The bomb killed 4 girls and injured more than 20 others. Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Carol Denise McNair lost their lives that day. It took years to bring the perpetrators to justice. Three out of the four were convicted.

-Alabama, National Register of Historic Places

Sloss Furnaces-Birmingham, Alabama

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Founded in 1881 by Colonel James Withers Sloss, one of the founders of Birmingham, the Sloss Furnaces was Birmingham’s first blast furnace. The first blast was initiated in April 1882. Ownership changed hands several times until the furnaces closed in 1971.

The furnaces were slated for demolition until concerned citizens advocated for it to be saved. In 1981, they were designated as a National Historic Landmark. It reopened in 1983 to the public. Today the site is known for its concerts, annual haunted “house,” and metal arts classes. Visitors can freely tour the site.