falstoricSociety Starts Drive ' To Mark City's Historic Spots ^ Greatest Newspaper -& 19th Street, Mortimer Jordan; .- ^-Z.. Historic spots in Birmingham Baker, pioneer Birmingham resi­ will be marked with cast iron em­ Linn's Folly, now Brown-Marx Building, and site of the old First City Historical Group dent and Birmingham Electric blems under a program an­ Avenue and 19th Street, north­ Company employe who made Bir­ nounced by Alec Montgomery at a west corner, Ellen Linn Molton mingham history a hobby over a luncheon meeting of the Birming­ long period of years. Downs; Discusses Markers Those present in the pictures ham Historic Society at the Church Old Caldwell Hotel, northeast shown included Dr. C. B. Glenn, su­ of the Advent. corner, First Avenue and 23rd Bronze markers to designate his­ torical spots in Birmingham and perintendent emeritus of Birming­ A number of citizens have as­ Street, LeGrande Wilson; Bir­ ham public schools, who was rep­ sumed the responsibility for mingham's first commercial busi­ cooperation of churches in assem­ resented in a picture of the orig­ marking locations significant in ness location, Roberts & Sons, bling local church history are two inal staff of the Paul Hayne School, the history of the city. Mr. Mont­ southeast corner, Second Alley objectives of the Birmingham His­ of which he was principal, and A. gomery recommended the pro­ and 20th Street, now Frank Nel­ torical Society outlined at a lunch­ A. Adams and Sol Jacobs, who rec­ gram be state-wide. He suggested son Building, Hill Ferguson, eon meeting yesterday at the Tut­ ognized themselves in a scene of the that part of $25,000 annual ap­ president of the historic society; wiler Hotel. opening of the traction line in propriation from the state for Ruhama Baptist Church, East North Birmingham. Both these pic­ publicity purposes be used for Lake, First Baptist Church in Alex C. Montgomery heads the tures were made in the 90s. A pho­ markers outside of Birmingham. this district, Tom Huey; Walker committee on markers, James Sulz­ tograph of the Caldwell Hotel fire Birmingham and Alabama, he Memorial Methodist Church, First by the committee that, will seek of 1894 brought recollections of the said, have sufficient historic in­ Methodist Church in this district, a cooperation of church congrega­ conflagration from several members. tions in obtaining church history. terest to attract tourists. There Tuscaloosa Avenue and Third Other pictures left to the city by is no reason, he added, why travel Street, Southwest, Robert Jemi- Hill Ferguson, president of the society, presided. Mr. Baker included a collection of to Florida should not come son, Jr.; Mudd-Munger home, the mayors, postmasters, fire chiefs through Alabama. "Arlington," Ruby Munger Mont­ A feature of the luncheon was and police chiefs of Birmingham. Locations that will be marked gomery; Walker Smith Home, the connecting of events recorded Luncheon meetings of the society and the persons who will be re­ Broad Street and A. G. S. rail­ in pictures displayed with those will be held regularly, Mr. Fer­ sponsible for them are as follows: road, Jack and Grace Smith; present. Many of these pictures had guson announced. Old Relay House, southwest Flemming Jordan farm, present been collected by the late Bob corner of Morris Avenue and location of Woodward Iron Com­ 19th Street, Margaret Cameron pany, Houstis Lydia Rogers. Spain; Old Florence Hotel, north­ Mr. Montgomery invited sug­ east corner Second Avenue and gestions for other markers. HISTORICAL MARKERS PLANNED BY SOCIETY Marking historical spots in the HISTORIC SPOTS Magic City and collecting church history were set as the two objec­ tives of the Birmingham Historical WILLBE MARKED Society at its meeting yesterday at the Tutwiler Hotel. Bronze markers to designate his­ Alex C. Montgomery will head the torical spots in Birmingham, and committee on markers.-James Sulz­ co-operation of churches in assem­ by will seek the co-operation of bling local church history are two churches in obtaining church his­ objectives of the Birmingham His­ torical Society that were outlined tory. at a luncheon meeting of the so­ Pictures from the collection of the ciety yesterday at the Tutwiler late Bob Baker, relating events in Birmingham since its founding were Hotel. exhibited at the meeting. Alex C. Montgomery is» chairman Hill Ferguson, president of the of the committee on markers. society, presided. James Sulzby will head the com­ mittee to seek co-operation of church congregations in obtaining church history. A feature of the meeting was an exhibit of pictures recording events in Birmingham, many of which i had been collected by the late Bob ! Baker, pioneer Birmingham resi­ dent. Hill Ferguson, president of the society, presided. y^ VLD, FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 1946 of historical interest with perma­ nent markers, so tourists, as well as people who reside here, will Society Plans To Mark HISTORIC SPOTS know and recognize them. The speaker favored use of cast Historic Spots Here iron markers rather than bronze Plans for placing appropriate or brass, and said that the wording r^—kers at several historic spots in. could be worked out by a commit­ citv will be completed today at "There are enough historic spots tee in the Historical Society. Mr. seting of the Birmingham His- in Birmingham to make the city Montgomery asserted that he would „ical Society. It will be at the attractive to tourists," Alec Mont­ welcome suggestions as to what Parish House of the Church of the gomery, local real estate man, told spots in the city should be marked. Advent at 12:30 p.m. a luncheon meeting of the Birm­ He also said that the program A. marker for the Walker Me­ ingham Historical Society yester­ should be carried out throughout morial Church is being made and day at the Church of the Advent. the state as well as in Birmingham. will be installed with appropriate The great need now, Mr. Mont­ Some of the places suggested as ceremonies this month, gomery said, is to mark local spots spots for markers were: site of A plaque to mark the location, of the first free school in Birming­ the old Relay House, Birmingham's Medical Detachment of 331st In- ham, where Powell School now first hotel, will be installed some­ ntry Regiment, stands; Mudtown, the locality where time after Jan. 1, officials of the "ed Victory from Algiers, six evidence of the first inhabitants Historical Society said. It will be Haneous personnel. of the district has been found and placed on. the Louisville and, Nash­ ~ Parker from Southampton, the site of a large indian village ville Railroad office building, at h war brides and children. which was wiped out by Andrew 19th Street and Morris Avenus. \t SEATTLE Jackson's troops during the wars -us on following: Gen. with the Creek and Cherokee In­ /2~/2 from Calcutta, 3,078 dians; first lot sold by Elyton Land •GPtf U. S. S. Winged Company; O'Brien's Opera House; 1,492 Navy and Florence Hotel, 1884-1916; Mudd- Munger home; Ruhama and other 'CISCO old churches of the County; Ex­ 'lowing: La position Building in Wilson Park; 7 Navy, 49 Linn's Folly; the Old Court House, •>rl Har- and the Relay House, Birmingham's Pearl first hotel. from Hill Ferguson, president of the society, presided at the meeting. Birmingham Historical Society today called on the public for sug­ gestions as to historical spots in the area that should be marked, simul­ taneously it announced its next marker will be placed at the site of the old Relay House at the foot of 19th-st. ' Having just placed a marker this past Sunday at the site of the Walker Memorial Church, the so­ ciety has some 10 . or 12 similar markers it plans to place in the next 12 months. "But there must be other his­ torical sites that we are overlook­ ing!" President Hill Ferguson said, "and we would welcome sugges­ tions." Alex Montgomery is chairman of the society's marker committee, and is making arrangements for the placing of the Relay House marker, which probably will be set in con­ crete in the sidewalk. Birmingham's first hotel, the Re­ lay House was built in 1871 when the bustling new metropolis was a-borning. Most of the men re­ sponsible for the hotel being built at the juncture of the South and North (now L. & N.) Railroad and the . Alabama and Chattanooga (now AGS) Railroad, were its guests. The Elyton Land Co. placed a 5 per cent assessment on its capital stock in mid-1871 to build the ho­ tel. It had 37 rooms, with "mod­ ern" improvements such as gas fix­ tures, a cistern and bells connect­ ing each bedroom with the office. Its cost was $13,974.08. A few months' later, on Dec. 19, Birmingham was incorporated. Shortly thereafter, the Louisville & Nashville Railroad took over the South and North line, and complet­ ed a 66-mile gap that lay between Birmingham and a point south of Decatur. In 1886 the Relay House was torn down to make way for a brick L. & N. Station, the same one in use today. X.HI S TABLET, cast in metal, is being placed in the lobby of the Brown-Marx Build­ ing in Birmingham. ON THIS CORNER PLOT OF GROUND, CHARLES LINN IN 1873 AS FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL BANK OF BIRMINGHAM, ERECTED THE FIRST BANK BUILDING IN THE CITY. OF THREE STORIES IN HEIGHT, IT APPEARED SO MUCH BEYOND THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY THAT IT WAS REFERRED TO AS "LINN'S FOLLY." HERE ON THE NIGHT OF DECEM­ BER 3IST, 1873 TO COMMEMORATE THE PASSING OF THE EPIDEMIC OF CHOLERA AND TO CELEBRATE THE OPENING OF THE NEW BANK* BUILD­ ING, MR.