
Brown's Department Store, Tuskegee, Marion County, mid-19th century (Places in Peril 1994)10/24/1994 ![]() Behind the Italianate facade of this building is a mid-nineteenth-century retail interior incomparable in Alabama. The focal point is a freestanding stair that corkscrews upward through a tiara-like well to the second floor. A handsomely coved and molded ceiling, ornamented plasterwork, and balustraded light-well complete a setting that affords a rare glimpse of an upscale antebellum commercial interior. It is conceivable that the architect was John Stewart of the preeminent Philadelphia firm of Sloan and Stewart. Stewart was active in Alabama during the 1850s. Virtually no retail interiors from the 1850s remain intact in Alabama; this one has survived more through happenstance than any real awareness of its importance. It is listed on the National Register as part of Tuskegee's Main Street Historic District. The building, presently occupied by a T-shirt manufacturing company, should be protected and rehabilitated with sensitivity to its unique worth. Fortunately, a proposal to remove the distinctive stair a number of years ago did not materialize, but alterations such as this could happen at any time.
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Alabama's Endangered Historic LandmarksEach year since 1994, Alabama Heritage has highlighted threatened historic sites throughout Alabama. The “Places in Peril” list has identified more than 215 imperiled historic resources throughout the state, and is compiled by the Alabama Historical Commission and the Alabama Trust for Historic Preservation. The locations highlight the results of deferred maintenance, perceived obsolescence, development pressures, and lack of funding—forces that now more than ever threaten our cultural legacy. But awareness is a powerful force, too, and can cultivate a renewed determination to be responsible stewards of our heritage. For more information, visit the AHC or the ATHP websites. Alabama Heritage is proud to bring to you a selection of the places designated as perilous. Please keep your comments to information relevant to the featured place in peril. Alabama Heritage reserves the right to delete any comment that we deem inappropriate. Archives
May 2023
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