Issue 87, Winter 2008

The image is the cover of a magazine titled “Alabama Heritage,” specifically issue number 128 from Winter 2018. The top portion features white text against a black background, which reads “ALABAMA HERITAGE.” Below this, there’s a captivating photograph that provides an interior view of an old brick structure. The bricks exhibit various shades of red and orange, suggesting age and historical significance. The architecture includes multiple archways leading into different sections or rooms. Despite the dim lighting, the texture and pattern of the brickwork are clearly visible. Additionally, the magazine cover bears the following text: “PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA, THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM, AND THE ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF ARCHIVES AND HISTORY.”

Issue 87, Winter 2008

On the cover: Fort Morgan’s timeless casemate arches are showing the ravages of age. [Photo by Robin McDonald]

Purchase This Issue

Features

The image depicts an interior view of an old, possibly historical structure. The architecture features multiple large brick arches supporting the ceiling, creating a corridor-like space. Signs of wear and age are visible on the walls and ceiling, with peeling paint and exposed brickwork. Moisture patches suggest exposure to the elements or decay. On the left side, a wooden bench and barrels add to the rustic ambiance. The composition captures the architectural beauty and historical feel of enduring structures.
Water seepage and leaching lime cause slippery floors and arch decay. [Robin McDonald]

Fort Morgan: Guardian of the Bay 

By Jessica Fordham Kidd

One of the South’s greatest military assets, Fort Morgan has protected the waters of Mobile Bay since its inception in 1834. Once its location gained attention for its beneficial strategic location, designs for a spectacular fort that could withstand the ravages of battle were put into place. Having overseen heavy action during the Civil War and World War II, the fort did its job of protecting our soldiers and harbor waters. Finally, however, the ravages of age are beginning to show on this historic landmark, and action is needed to protect the structure that protected so many throughout its past. 

Purchase This Feature
The image depicts an individual sitting outdoors on a folding chair. The person appears to be reading a book or document, dressed in light-colored clothing. Trees and foliage surround them, creating a tranquil garden setting. Another piece of furniture, possibly an outdoor sofa or bench, is partially visible on the left. Overall, it conveys a sense of leisure and relaxation.
Ruby Pickens Tartt, 1940. [Library of Congress]

Ruby Pickens Tartt: Citizen of the World

By Philip Beidler and Elizabeth Buckalew

An extraordinary folklorist from Livingston in Sumter County, Ruby Pickens Tartt’s collection of slave narratives, folk songs, and interviews are vital documents that help unlock the history of Alabama’s past. A painter, librarian, matriarch, football fan (as well as somewhat of a danger behind the wheel of a car), Tartt lived a vivid and rich personal life filled with fortune. Yet she harnessed her enthusiasm for life into critical research that amounts to one of the most valuable collections of slave narratives to date. With empathy, candor, and purpose, Tartt ensured that the stories of Alabama’s slaves would never be forgotten.

Richard Coe’s Birmingham

By Lynn Barstis Williams

An accomplished artist whose studies took him all over the world, Richard Coe’s talent for painting and etching found a muse in the “Magic City” of Birmingham, where he focused on capturing the city and its residents during the Great Depression. His canvas gave true-to-life renditions of everything from steel mills to churches to multi-family dwellings. 

The framed painting portrays an old-fashioned train station or tram depot. The architectural style leans toward industrial, featuring a large central entrance flanked by two smaller doorways. Above the main entrance, there’s a decorative element resembling a crest or emblem. Circular windows adorn either side of this crest. Tram tracks lead into the central entrance, evoking a sense of early to mid-20th century urban transportation. The sky, though partially visible, is obscured by what appears to be construction scaffolding or maintenance equipment. This suggests ongoing work or perhaps disrepair. In the left foreground, a signal post with lights hints at tram movement control. Overall, this image captures a historical moment when trams played a significant role in urban transit. Its attention to architectural detail and atmospheric perspective adds artistic value.
“No Nox” identified as the 3rd Avenue Filling Station in Birmingham. [John Peter Crook McCall]

William Stanley Hoole: A Man of Letters

By Elizabeth Hoole McArthur 

A legend on the University of Alabama campus, William Stanley Hoole is not just an Alabama icon but is also a revered scholar nationwide. Author, scholar, lecturer, and library administrator, Hoole held a great penchant for academia and the South. Beginning his first personal “library” at age four, Hoole grew up to make book collections one of the centermost facets in his life. As an innovative leader in the library sciences, Hoole was steadfast in his mission to improve the service and quality of university libraries, including a major overhaul at UA’s Tuscaloosa campus, where the collection he built is now a favorite of southern history scholars.

The image features an individual sitting and holding a book. The book’s cover displays the title “NAUGHTY NOVELS” in bold letters, with an illustration below—possibly depicting a character in a hat. The person wears a formal suit with a tie, suggesting a mid-20th-century setting.
William Stanley Hoole. [Elizabeth Hoole McArthur]

Departments

The image depicts an interior view of a house. Here are the details: Staircase: The wooden staircase has a curved handrail and leads to the second floor. Room Entrance: To the left of the staircase, there’s an entrance to another room with visible dining furniture. Under Stairs: On the right side, under the stairs, there’s a small table with a vase and flowers. Floor: The floor is covered by a large red patterned area rug. Wall Decor: Various framed pictures and artworks adorn the walls. Lighting: The space appears well-lit with natural light coming through unseen windows.
This “geometric stair” is a focal point of the Lee-Darwin-Lacy House in Madison. [Robin McDonald]

Southern Architecture and Preservation

Function Marries Form: Some Early Tennessee Valley Stairways

By Robert Gamble 

The breathtaking stairways of antebellum Alabama demanded artistic flair and design. View the beautiful Lee-Darwin-Lacy House of Madison’s geometrical stair, and the unique main and “back hall” stairway of the Woodroof-Crumlish House in Mooresville. The Watkins-Moore-Rhett House’s corkscrew staircase is also a dizzying delight, but most spectacular of all is the tour de force of grace, elegance, and double flights: Barton Hall’s stairway in the Cherokee Vicinity.

The image appears to be a black and white newspaper clipping. It features two photographs, both with faces obscured by gray rectangles. The headline reads, “TWO CONVICTED AND ONE ON TRIAL FOR MURDER OF THIS AGED COUPLE.” Below the photographs, the names “MRS. JACOB C. LUTES” and “MR. JACOB C. LUTES” are printed.
Circumstances surrounding the murder of Jacob and Marcella Lutes were called into question with the alleged deathbed confession of John McLemore.

Alabama Mysteries

Murder on Chandler Mountain

By Pam Jones

A deathbed confession reopened the grizzly double homicide case of St. Clair farmer Jacob Lutes and his second wife, Marcella two decades after it occurred. Three men had already spent over twenty years in prison when an ill and elderly John McLemore stated that he and his father-in-law Thomas Mcknight were the actual murderers. Those surrounding the case on Chandler Mountain ask: where does the truth lie?

The Nature Journal

Lessons in Morelity

By L. J. Davenport

Over thirty species of morels exist nationwide, delighting epicures, drawing curiosity, and even functioning as a source of danger for those who are unfamiliar with some morels’ deadly toxicity. Sprouting from an underground network that shares a hidden, symbiotic relationship with treeroots, it is not until these morels blossom above the surface that we are provided with a hint of the magic going on beneath. 

The image depicts a single morel mushroom growing amidst leaf litter on the forest floor. The morel has a distinct honeycomb-like structure on its elongated, conical cap, with pits and ridges. Its creamy white stem appears slightly bulbous where it meets the ground. The surrounding area features dry leaves and small green plants, suggesting a natural woodland setting. Morel mushrooms are highly sought after for their unique flavor in culinary uses.
A morel awaits its culinary fate. [W. Mike Howell]
The image appears to be the cover of a book titled “Locust Hill” by Mary Wallace Kirk. The cover features a sepia-toned photograph of a two-story house partially obscured by foliage. The house is situated in a rural or wooded setting. The title and author’s name are printed in white text against the sepia background.
The image appears to be a book cover. The top half features a dark green background with the text “sunlit, zestful memories of yesterday’s Alabama” in smaller italic font. Below this, a stylized depiction of a red sun (partially obscured by a green horizon line) adds visual interest. The bottom half of the cover is a lighter green, displaying the title “With a Southern Accent” in large, white serif font. The author’s name, “Viola Goode Liddell,” appears below the title.

Reading the Southern Past

Two New South Girlhoods

By Stephen Goldfarb

A boisterous childhood from the Black Belt of Wilcox county is delightfully detailed in Viola Goody Liddell’s With a Southern Accent (University of Alabama Press, 1982). Liddell’s large gentry family was hard-hit by the post-World War I depression, but she and her siblings certainly did not suffer from a lack of mischief. A contrast to this rowdy clan is the memoir of Mary Wallace Kirk’s Locust Hill (University of Alabama Press, 1975). Her etchings of the area surrounding Tuscumbia portray a serene and solemn life of southern prosperity. 

Back to top arrow