• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Partner
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Southern Hospitality

Adventures in Decorating, Thrifting, Cooking, Fashion & Gardening

  • My Home
  • Categories
    • A+ Blogs
    • My Blog Story
    • Decorating
    • DIY/How-To
    • Family
    • Gardening
    • In the Kitchen
    • My Home Tours
    • Thrifting
    • Travel
  • DIY Gallery
  • Fashion
  • Feature Friday
  • Shop My Home
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter

An 1800’s House in Alabama

May 6, 2010 By Rhoda 84 Comments

0 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

Have you ever driven past a house and it beckoned you to come closer and take a peek inside the windows?  There’s a house on the way to my friend, Debbie’s house near Wilsonville and it always draws my eye when we are driving by.  It’s old.  I mean, mid-1800’s old, so you know it has some stories.  I’d love to know what they are.  One sunny afternoon, I decided to take a closer peek at this aging beauty.

 

 

The Klein’s are evidently the beginning family in this home. I’d love to know the history on all of that.

She’s a very stately and large home and must have been quite the showplace in the mid-1800’s.

With the wide and welcoming front porch, you can imagine the company that this house saw.

Looks like those are the original doors.  It’s in such a state of disrepair now and I wonder if anyone will ever restore her.  I sure do hope so.  She has been sitting like this as long as we have lived in Birmingham, over 4 years.  I heard that once the home was an antique store and at one time a tea room.  That was before my time.

The chimney is still intact, but crumbling.  It would take some major vision to restore her to her former glory.

The front porch is a beauty.  There are many cotton fields on this stretch of Hwy. 25 going into Wilsonville, so I imagine that this home farmed and probably owned some of that land back in the 1800’s.

The stairs look to be marble, stained and tarnished, but marble nonetheless.

One window that I could get a peek into, showed a fireplace.

I bet the boards on the outside are all original too.  Don’t you love these shutters?

There are many of the shutters still intact.  I can also dream that the aqua shutters that I picked up at an antique store probably came off of a home like this.  Ahhh, the beauty of old and weathered.

I think the glass is also original, but many of the panes are broken.  This large and stately chimney is on the left side of the house.

Who lived in this house and what did they do?  What sort of lives did they lead?  Were they wealthy land owners with a beautiful house and furnishings? Those are the questions that went through my mind, while walking around the weedy property which has seen much neglect.

The foundation is set on large stones of some sort. They sure don’t build them like this anymore.  Weathered and green boards have seen better days. It’s been a long time since she has seen a bucket of paint.

The large back porch is plenty big too.

How many people have walked up and down these stairs?

It was sort of eerie walking around the place, but also made me think about just who lived there. She’s an aging beauty, but it would only take the right person to come along and give her new life.

I sure wish someone would. Not me, but someone. I have no idea who owns the house. If any of you here in the area know anything about this beautiful old home, I’d love to hear about it.

UPDATE: I did get some current information about the Klein house from an ancestor, Nell Gottlieb, so check out her page for an update on how the house is being used now in 2020. 

Related


Don't Miss a Post, join my list!

Filed Under: Travel 84 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. saramae says

    May 26, 2013 at 11:27 pm

    Seeing these pictures brought images of what happened to the slaves on the plantation. I would love to know more about the history of the place and the people who lived there. The house is on my places to see list.

    Reply
    • Jeff says

      July 29, 2013 at 12:55 pm

      Some of the slaves are behind the family cemetery just north of the home site. From what I was told, the family continues to allow descendants of the slaves to be buried there as well.

    • Will says

      January 18, 2019 at 8:04 pm

      Saramae, do you know the address? Feel free to email me [email protected]. Thanks, would love to see this place

  2. Paige says

    July 8, 2013 at 5:41 pm

    Hey! I drove past this house today and my mother, and grandmother and I saw this! So of course they asked me to look it up when I got home. Do you know who owns it? Or is it just abandoned? Please get back to me! I love this house and it would be a sham if it rots from the inside out.
    – Thanks
    Paige

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      July 8, 2013 at 8:22 pm

      HI, Paige, I don’t know anything about the house. There are several comments about the history of the house, so see if there is anything in the comments that can help you find it. I’m sure you could find out something from the local tax office in that county. I just admired the house and wrote about it.

    • Will says

      January 18, 2019 at 8:06 pm

      Paige, Do you know the address to this place? Feel free to email me: [email protected]

  3. saramae says

    July 19, 2013 at 9:51 pm

    Do anyone know anything about the Wallace cemetaries? Are they locked 24-7?

    Reply
    • Jeff says

      July 29, 2013 at 2:31 pm

      Saramae,
      the gates were locked the last time I pulled up to them. A short walk will get you to the cemetery from the gate. If you go, please becareful near the cemetrey itself. Honeybees had made a hive in one of the big cedar trees just as you get to the burial area. They were swarming pretty bad! The slave cemetery is on around past the family site and over the hill.

    • saramae says

      August 11, 2013 at 2:18 pm

      thank you so much for that information! I plan on going there soon. I remember going to a burial there when I was a child.

    • kimberly says

      October 14, 2016 at 11:20 pm

      I was told that it is own by a Dr.

  4. Jeff says

    July 29, 2013 at 12:51 pm

    I know the gentleman that owns this house. I spoke to him last week and he informed me that they have done some foundation work recently in order to prevent structural damage. His immediate goal is to preserve the home and not, “restore” it as it would be a great undertaking. He is a descendent of the Wallace’s, whom built the home in 1841. Just north of the home site and across the road is the family cemetery. A tour of the home is planned in the next week or so. It might be where I can add some pictures of the interior afterwards. The owner said that he hasn’t done much except removed multiple layers of wall paper to expose the original walls. He also mentioned that the plantation once had over 5K ac, which is small compared to some “blackbelt” plantation.

    Reply
    • saramae says

      August 11, 2013 at 2:33 pm

      Jeff,

      Do you know if there’s a list of who is buried in the slave cemetary?

    • Daniel Bowles says

      November 21, 2016 at 2:39 pm

      Jeff, Is there any way you could get in touch with me? Please feel free to mail me
      dbowlesmac @ me.com

  5. Susan says

    August 16, 2013 at 2:12 pm

    I’ve passed this house many times over the years. The cemetary has Matching stone gates. I remember on side had
    the inscription “To Those We Loved” It appears the gates are
    now covered up with weeds. When my husband and I stopped
    in 1974 for the first time their was a letter posted on the front door. The letter was very poignant, addressed to the person
    who had vandalized the house and fruit trees. I remember it
    went “We wouldn’t have minded you taking fruit for a pie”
    At that time there were no locked gates to either the house
    or cemetary.
    Not far from my house was the Thomas-Mill house built in
    1851. The house was maintaned by the family and the site of
    an annual family reunion. It had many beautiful features including a mahogany staircase. I talked to a neighbor who
    told me one of the decendants was Joel Thomas president of
    the University of Alabama. In the past the house had be robbed and even the well pump was stolen. Not long after my
    talk with him, the house was burned to the ground. All that remains now is the big magnolia trees and the church that is
    still open.

    Reply
    • Will says

      January 18, 2019 at 8:01 pm

      Susan, where is this house located? Can you give me the address? If u need to get in contact with me email: [email protected]. I would love some info on this place. I have no idea where this is located or the address. Would love to come check it out. Thanks

  6. robinson-booker says

    November 17, 2014 at 8:52 pm

    I can only imagine the pain and suffering of humans living out their days being owned by other humans building a nation on the backs. Taking no thought of the consequences those actions would eventually bring. May God give all the Souls rest and repair the breach made through the…. The Evil That Men Do……

    Reply
  7. Colleen says

    June 6, 2018 at 9:58 am

    Beautiful photos. So sad. Is it still standing?

    Reply
    • Rachel Bell says

      July 12, 2018 at 12:51 am

      Yes it’s still standing. I was there this past September (2017) doing a photoshoot on the grounds. We admired the home and all of the beautiful details.

  8. Claire Hoynes says

    February 6, 2020 at 3:33 am

    To the author. This is my family home. Contact me if you’d like a tour!
    Claire

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      February 6, 2020 at 9:00 am

      Hi, Claire, that’s so exciting that this is your family home. I was living in B’ham at the time I wrote this post. Would you be interested in doing an update and send me new pics of the inside and out and I would share this on my blog? I’m back in ATL living now so won’t be able to get over there for a personal tour. Thanks for writing!

« Older Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Thanks for stopping by! I’m Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn’t have to cost a fortune and I’ve spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yard sales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I’m here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won’t you join me?

Click Here

Click Here

Email Series
How to Decorate in
Classic Timeless Style
.....without breaking the bank!

House Renovation Journey!

Our Paint Colors

Archives

Categories

Footer Widget Header2

Featured here:

Better Homes and Gardens
Atlanta Magazine
Better Homes and Gardens

Footer

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Partner

Copyright © 2023 · Southern Hospitality · Blog Design by Little Blue Deer
Privacy Policy

Get my FREE Email Series How to Decorate in Classic Timeless Style....without breaking the bank!
After years of decorating my own homes, I've learned a few tricks on how to create a classic home on a budget. Hope you'll join me!
Your information will *never* be shared or sold to a 3rd party.