Clio Logo

President's Mansion

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

As its name indicates, this historic building is the official residence of the University of Alabama president. Erected in 1841, it is one of the few buildings on campus to survive the Civil War. The three-story home is a fine example of Greek Revival architecture, featuring a full basement at ground level, curved stone steps leading to the main entrance, a large portico with six Ionic columns, wrought iron guard railing, and a balcony on the second floor. There are also four buildings behind the mansion. Two were slave quarters and the other were used by slaves as a kitchen and washroom. It appears these buildings are currently used for storage.

Images

The President's Mansion was built in 1841 and is one of the oldest buildings on campus and one of the few not burned down during the Civil War.

Plant, Window, Property, Landmark

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

In 1838, the university designated funds to build a new residence for the president. Construction began in 1839 and was completed two years later. Up until the new home was finished, presidents lived one of the existing faculty houses. Local carpenter and builder Michael Barry designed the mansion. It appears that he modeled it after other buildings at the university designed by the architect William Nichols, who had designed the original AU campus (he also designed many prominent buildings in the South including the state capitols for North Carolina, Mississippi, and Alabama). Nichols, apparently, took all of the plans and drawings had for the campus when he departed in 1833.

The first AU president to occupy the mansion was the university's second president, Dr. Basil Manly, who owned a number of slaves that worked on the property. The next president was Landon Garland, who also owned slaves and served as president through the Civil War. Fortunately, the mansion escaped destruction when Union troops burned down the campus. Mrs. Garland, who, after hearing that the campus was set ablaze, returned to find that a fire had been started in the house. She convinced the troops to put it out, arguing that it was a private residence and should not be destroyed. As a result, the mansion was spared. Over the years, it has been renovated on a number of occasions. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

Sources

Center, Clark E. "The Burning of the University of Alabama." Alabama Heritage, no. 16 (Spring 1990): pp. 30-45. Retrieved from the WebArchive on December 22, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20100917073911/http://alabamaheritage.com/vault/UAburning.htm.

Floyd, W. Warner. "President's Mansion." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. January 14, 1972. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/a4b9b050-4ce0-4d3b-b1dd-08f167c45484.

Harris, Kyarris. "Strange Alabama: The past of the President's mansion still not acknowledged on campus tours." The Crimson White. October 19, 2016. https://cw.ua.edu/39232/top-stories/strange-alabama-the-past-of-the-presidents-mansion-still-not-acknowledged-on-campus-tours.

Mellown, Robert Oliver. The University of Alabama: A Guide to the Campus. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press, 1988.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:U.A._President%27s_Mansion_by_Highsmith.jpg

Additional Information