The oldest homes in Birmingham tell the story of prosperous early industrialists and real estate developers, the struggles of the working classes, architectural trends, and the civil rights era.
The Smithfield/Dynamite hill homes of the civil rights era are described on pg. 90 of Birmingham by the Book.
Some of the most expensive homes were built on 30 acres in Glen Iris Park (pgs 102-103) prior to 1920 and along Highland Avenue in Southside.
More modest homes were in the Five Points South area and along Cullom Street, built in the 1890s.
In the late 1880s, Thomas was a company town with rented housing for those who needed to live close to the iron producing furnaces. By 1912, 550 workers lived in this community.
Pioneering early planters who became prominent citizens of Birmingham included Isaac Sadler, Thomas McAdory, and Thomas Owen who built flourishing plantations from 1820s to early 1900s. (pg. 26 of Birmingham by the Book)
Other significant early neighborhoods included :
Anderson Place, Milner Heights, Forest Park and Mountain Terrace. (pgs. 104-109).
The Hollywood homes in Homewood were designed in 1924, influenced by Hollywood, California, and including some of Birmingham’s first mission style architecture.
Roebuck Springs was contoured around knolls, and boasted an English Garden aesthetic as well as the first designed 18-hole golf course and country club grounds. (pg. 98 of Birmingham by the Book).
See more neighborhood history as well as over the mountain areas, all divided by region in Birmingham by the Book. Some early examples are included below.
W.P.G. Harding House, Glen IrisWorker House, East ThomasWorker House, East ThomasT.O. Smith House, Roebuck SpringsSchwab House, Highland Avenue AreaSadler House, McCalla, 1827Robley Munger House, Arlington ParkRobert Jemison House, Glen IrisParker Bown House, SmithfieldOwen House, Bessemer, 1833Mission Style House, HomewoodMcAdory House, Bessemer, 1840Mary M Means House, Dynamite Hill, SmithfieldLuffman House, Glen IrisLoveman House, SouthsideJordan House, Highland AvenueJohn Drew House, Dynamite Hill, SmithfieldJ. Cary Thompson House, Five Points SouthHollywood House, HomewoodH.K. Milner House, Milner CrescentHayes Davis House, East ThomasHassinger House, Highland AvenueForest Park HouseForest Park HouseEnsley HousesCullom Street Houses, SouthsideCullom Street House, SouthsideCullom Street House, SouthsideCullom Street Houses, SouthsideBrown and A.G. Gaston House, Smithfield
Celebrating 100 years of the historic Hollywood neighborhood is a tour this Sunday from 1 to 4 PM of four beautifully renovated Hollywood homes. The district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002, and is one of the earliest planned communities in the State. Noteworthy for its abundance of Spanish Mission style homes, it mirrored a taste for Hollywood, California glamour, enjoying its greatest popularity from 1915 to 1931.
The Tudor revival style also became popular through 1940, and many examples of this architectural style are found in Hollywood as well. Their distinctive half-timbered exteriors, with exposed wooden framing filled with stucco or brick, create a picturesque and Old-World charm. Together, the two architectural styles create a unique and recognizable neighborhood full of historic and well-maintained homes and gardens.
