Old Alabama State Capitol, Broad Street, Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa County, AL

Significance: Alabama State Capitol, 1829-1846; housed Alabama Central Female College after. From 1825 to 1846, Tuscaloosa served as capital of Alabama. State legislators moved the capital here due to severe flooding of the first site at Cahaba (1820-1825). Sited on a high bluff above the Warrior River at the terminus of steamboat navigation coming from the south and at the end of the Huntsville Road (called Broad St. in the 19th century and later University Boulevard) coming from the north, Tuscaloosa seemed well-suited for this choice. In 1827, stone foundations were laid and construction of the $100,000 classically styled capitol begun. William Nichols of Philadelphia, the architect who designed the University of Alabama's early campus, also drew plans for this building. Complete with cupola visible throughout the early city and from the river, the Capitol opened its doors in 1829. In 1846, legislators again moved the capital to Montgomery, the geographic center of the state. The Capitol Building at Tuscaloosa burned in the 1920s.
Survey number: HABS AL-867