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Lost Auburn: A Village Remembered in Period Photographs offers a dynamic record of the buildings that once stood in Auburn, Alabama, which have fallen to natural disaster, war, poverty, and neglect, and to what some would call progress. More than two hundred photographs of lost buildings give three historians the opportunity to relate stories of those who once worshipped, learned, and lived in Auburn. Together, these photographs and the accompanying text vividly convey the uniqueness of the village of Auburn that was. Lost Auburn is more than just a document about the lost architectural fabric of a charming village. It is both a volume of insightful commentary and an opportunity to reflect on the role of community in the life of a Southern town.
Although Thomas Jefferson's status as a champion of education is widely known, the essays in Light and Liberty make clear that his efforts to enlighten fellow citizens reflected not only a love of learning but also a love of freedom. Using as a starting point Jefferson's conviction that knowledge is the basis of republican self-government, the contributors examine his educational projects not as disparate attempts to advance knowledge for its own sake but instead as a result of his unyielding, almost obsessive desire to bolster Americans' republican virtues and values. Whether by establishing schools or through broader, extra-institutional efforts to disseminate knowledge, Jefferson's endeav...
Alabama’s oldest courthouses have witnessed a panorama of history. Historic Alabama Courthouses resurrects historical facts and images of buildings that were the centers of much of the state’s public life during its first century. Photographs of more than 120 buildings, the earliest that the author could find for each structure, are gathered in this significant volume along with historical, architectural, social, legal, and political accounts of their contributions to the landscape of Alabama. Historic Alabama Courthouses also emphasizes architects and builders. Although the names of many of the principals are unknown, those who can be identified play large roles in the stories told in the book. Not only are the architects’ personal histories important, but also the history of the architecture profession in the state can be observed through the relationships and projects they created. Finally, the stories of Alabama’s courthouse builders and contractors are accounts of technical innovation, entrepreneurship, and sometimes imitation, revealing that fashions spread as widely and rapidly in building design and construction as in any other endeavor.
As Simpson shows in fascinating detail, rockface concrete blocks, pressed metal imitations of stone, linoleum "marble" and "parquet," and embossed wall coverings made available to the masses a host of ornamental effects that only the wealthy could previously have afforded. But, she notes, wherever these new materials appeared, a heated debate over the appropriateness of imitation followed. Were these materials merely tasteless shams?
Take a juicy foray into the all-but-forgotten history of Chilton County, Alabama.
"The Retirement Series documents Jefferson's written legacy between his return to private life on 4 March 1809 and his death on 4 July 1826. During this period Jefferson founded the University of Virginia and sold his extraordinary library to the nation, but his greatest legacy from these years is the astonishing depth and breadth of his correspondence with statesmen, inventors, scientists, philosophers, and ordinary citizens on topics spanning virtually every field of human endeavor"--Publisher's description.
"Ellen Weiss breaks important new ground in her remarkable monograph on Robert R. Taylor. This volume is by far the most detailed account we have of an African American architect. Weiss vividly conveys the immense challenges faced by black architects and professionals of every kind, especially during the rise of Jim Crow. Along the way we get myriad insights on architectural education, architect-client relationships, and the development of a major institution of higher learning."--- Richard Longstreth, George Washington University "Architectural historian Ellen Weiss's book provides a wealth of little-known factual information about Taylor and a scholarly historical analysis of his many cont...
"The Retirement Series documents Jefferson's written legacy between his return to private life on 4 March 1809 and his death on 4 July 1826. During this period Jefferson founded the University of Virginia and sold his extraordinary library to the nation, but his greatest legacy from these years is the astonishing depth and breadth of his correspondence with statesmen, inventors, scientists, philosophers, and ordinary citizens on topics spanning virtually every field of human endeavor."--
They examine historic structures ranging from the Essex County courthouse (1729) and the King William County courthouse, built ca. 1725 and one of the oldest public buildings in continuous use in the nation, to the newer historic courthouses such as Richmond's massive Supreme Court/State Library Building, dedicated in 1941.
Selected articles originally presented at the Vernacular Architecture Forum conference in Duluth, Minnesota (2002) and Newport Rhode Island (2001).