Category Archives: Research

Historic Building Research & Markers

A series of Birmingham lectures as part of the National Historic Preservation Month includes one on “How to Conduct Historic Building Research and How to Obtain a Historical Marker” THIS TUESDAY AT NOON.

Presented by the City of Birmingham’s Department of Planning, Engineering, and Permits, hear directly from the city authorities what you need to know to comply to historic requirements.

The lecture will be in the Birmingham Public Library – Arrington Auditorium, 2100 Park Place. Learn how to use sources in the public library and the county courthouse to research historic homes and buildings…and how to get a historical marker to recognize them. Should be an interesting lecture! Please plan to attend.

Historic Preservation Education Lecture Series

  • Tuesday, May 9: “The National Register of Historic Places.” Boutwell Auditorium.
  • Tuesday, May 16: “How to Conduct Historic Building Research & How to Obtain a Historical Marker.” Birmingham Public Library, Arrington Auditorium (Enter through main library, 3rd floor skywalk)
  • Tuesday, May 23: “Historic Preservation Tax Incentives.” Boutwell Auditorium.
  • Tuesday, May 30: “Birmingham’s New Adaptive Reuse Incentive for Historic Buildings.” Birmingham Public Library, Arrington Auditorium (Enter through main library, 3rd floor skywalk)

Click here for a printable schedule of events for Historic Preservation Month.

For more information, contact Hannah Garmon, Historic Preservation Manager, at 205-254-2424or Hannah.Garmon@birminghamal.gov. You can also reach Karla Calvert, Urban Design Administrator, at 205-254-2479or Karla.Calvert@birminghamal.gov.

Historic Preservation Month!

May is Birmingham’s Historic Preservation month, and the City of Birmingham will be hosting a series of events to showcase the economic and social benefits of historic preservation with walking tours and lectures. Please plan to attend! Select the image below to download a pdf file of events. Or download brochures below for more information on policies and federal incentives regarding Historic Districts.

Who were Birmingham’s early pioneers?

The last printed copy of The Birmingham News has now come and gone, but does anyone remember the special section, True Tales, published every Saturday from February 1991 to April 1992? A project of the Birmingham Historical Society, these stories were assembled in a book entitled True Tales of Birmingham and published in 1992. Here are a few pages…

Did you miss the Annual Meeting?

Several members of the audience recalled when President Franklin Roosevelt came to Jasper, Alabama to attend the funeral of William Bankhead. The thousands (estimated 40,000) who attended can attest to the importance of the Bankhead family’s political influence in Alabama for several generations,

Here’s a synopsis of the Bankhead family from the newsletter. And you can buy the book, Deep South Dynasty by Dr. Kari Frederickson HERE

The Bankhead Highway

Did you think that the Bankhead Highway was local (like I did)? Far from it! Come hear more about it Monday night at the BHS annual meeting and learn about the remarkable Bankhead family of Alabama.