The Daniel Pratt Historic District is a
historic district that includes and 154 buildings in
Prattville, Alabama
Prattville is a city located within both Autauga and Elmore counties in the State of Alabama but serves as the county seat of Autauga County. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 37,781. Nicknamed "The Fountain City" due to t ...
. It is named in honor of Prattville's founder,
Daniel Pratt. The district includes the historic downtown and is roughly bounded by 6th Street in the north, Northington Street in the east, 1st Street in the south, and Bridge and Court streets in the west. Architecture in the district includes the
Greek Revival
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
,
Italianate
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian ...
, and
Bungalow styles.
[ ''See also:'' ] It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
on August 30, 1984.
The district includes the Autauga County Courthouse. It also includes the site of the Daniel Pratt House, which was demolished in 1960 to make way for the expansion of the successor to the Pratt industrial complex.
List of properties
The district, which spans 15 blocks and once served as an industrial hub, encompasses over 200 properties that were primarily built in the timeframe of 1840 to 1930. The following structures are listed in no particular order.
* 215 and 225 South Court Street; built 1900.
* B.W. Moncrief General Merchandise (207-213 South Court Street); built from 1910-20.
*
Service station (201 South Court Street); built c. 1920, contains
Mission Revival architecture
The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...
such as the elements of tiled
parapet
A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). ...
and
zapatos.
* Old
Autauga County Courthouse (147 South Court Street); built 1870 and an example of
Italianate
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian ...
architecture applied to
civil architecture.
* 190 Hunt's Alley; built 1875, originally
servants' quarters
Servants' quarters are those parts of a building, traditionally in a private house, which contain the domestic offices and staff accommodation. From the late 17th century until the early 20th century, they were a common feature in many large ...
for the Miles-Barnes-Ellis House.
* 143 Hunt's Alley; built c. 1895, possibly originally a millworker's house.
* 127, 131, 135, 139, and 141 Hunt's Alley; built c. 1900, row of five identical dwellings intended as rental space for slaves.
* Miles-Ellis-Barnes House (115 South Court Street); built c. 1850, originally owned by Benjamin Miles, superintendent of frame and brush department for the Pratt Cotton Gin Factory.
* Chambliss-Thomas Building (103 South Court Street); built 1924.
* Service station (101 South Court Street); built 1922.
* Autauga County Courthouse (134 North Court Street); built 1906, an example of
Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. Designed by the Bruce Architectural Company of
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
and contracted by Lewman and Company of
Louisville
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border.
...
.
* Planter's Warehouse (138 North Court Street); built 1913.
* Millworker's cottage (131 North Court Street); built c. 1915 to serve Prattville Cotton Mills.
* Millworker's cottage (117 North Court Street); built c. 1880 to serve Prattville Cotton Mills. One of the few surviving 19th-century mill cottages.
* Mill house (143 North Court Street); built c. 1880, one of few surviving mill houses out of hundreds built for Prattville Cotton Mills.
* 131 and 141 First Avenue; built c. 1880, pair of mill houses which are among the few surviving houses of the village that served Prattville Cotton Mills.
* 334 Third Avenue; built c. 1900, part of the Prattville Cotton Mills mill village.
* Cook House (209 North Court Street); built c. 1925.
* Esco House (217 North Court Street); built c. 1900.
* Golden House (221 North Court Street); built c. 1900.
* McHearg Houses (231 and 233 North Court Street); built c. 1880 and c. 1925.
* Johnson House (245 North Court Street); built c. 1895.
* Evans House (253 North Court Street); built c. 1935.
* 174 Fifth Street; built c. 1890.
* Durden-Miller-Misseldine House (164 West Fifth Street); built c. 1885.
* Kelly House (152 West Fifth Street); built c. 1925.
* Ward-King House (120 West Fifth Street); built c. 1890.
* 223 and 227 Chestnut Street; built c. 1910, pair of dwellings.
* Meeks House (205 Chestnut Street); built c. 1880.
* Post House (201 Chestnut Street); built c. 1925.
* Planter's Cotton Warehouse (164 West Fifth Street); built c. 1880
* Garrett House (133 West Fifth House); built c. 1885.
* Jones House (121 West Fifth Street); built c. 1890.
* Ward Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church (130 Fourth Street); built c. 1891, land originally purchased by the
African Methodist Episcopal Church from Merrill Pratt, Daniel Pratt's nephew.
* David Hall House (106 Chestnut Street); built c. 1880. Was reputedly built for David Hall, now serves as a law office for W. Clarence Atkeison (as of 1984).
* Lowery House (117 North Chestnut Street); built c. 1890.
* Hunt-Rawlinson House (141 North Chestnut Street); built c. 1900.
* 216 North Chestnut Street; built 1890.
* 214 North Chestnut Street; built 1880.
* Chambliss House (101 East Fifth Street); built c. 1920.
* George House (109 East Fifth Street); built c. 1925.
* Cook House (115 East Fifth Street); built c. 1880.
* Weir-Garner House (147 East Fifth Street); built c. 1860.
* Hunt-Sullivan House (153 East Fifth Street); built c. 1880.
* Hunt-Stoudemire House (171 East Fifth Street); built c. 1880.
* Lindsey House (209 North Washington Street); built c. 1900.
* Wyatt House (110 East Fifth Street); built c. 1930.
* Wadsworth-Roach House (113 East Fifth Street); built c. 1930.
* Nixon-Jackson House (120 East Fifth Street); built c. 1930.
* Kilgore House (138 East Fifth Street); built c. 1930.
* Smith-Bayard House (137 North Washington Street); built c. 1890.
* Hannon House (113 North Washington Street); built c. 1890.
* Wilkinson-Avant House (105 North Washington Street); built c. 1895.
* 157 East Fourth Street; built c. 1939, considered an exception to the “50-year” criteria for its example of 1920s-40s
American colonial architecture.
* Henry Bell House (145 East Fourth Street); built 1935, noted for its reinterpretation of
federal architecture.
* Golson House (133 East Fourth Street); built c. 1885.
* Northington-Ross House (117 East Fourth Street); built c. 1895.
* First United Methodist Church (100 East Fourth Street; built 1912, example of
neo-Tudor
Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...
architecture.
* St. Mark's Episcopal Church (178 East Fourth Street); built 1909, example of
Gothic Revival architecture
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th cent ...
.
* Gipson House (129 East Third Street); built 1888, owned by the Prattsville First Baptist Church as of 1984.
* Norton-Anderson House (239 South Chestnut Street); built c. 1925, originally built for Harry W. Norton upon his marriage to Nora Ellen Mims, who was daughter of Wilbur Fisk Mims and granddaughter of county historian Shadrack Mims.
* Buckner House (120 South Chestnut Street); built c. 1890.
* Ticknor-Hazen House (206 South Chestnut Street); built c. 1850. Constructed by Daniel Pratt for his niece, Mary Ticknor, who married Pratt Gin Factory worker and eventual Prattville
Presbyterian Church pastor
A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...
from July 1861 to July 1877 James K. Hazen. Later occupied by town mayor James Burns.
* Cobb-Westbrook House (152 East Third Street); built c. 1930.
* Johnson-Pirtle House (170 East Third Street); built 1936.
* Bateman House (218 South Washington Street); built 1921.
* Griffin-Wilkinson House (266 South Washington House); built c. 1930 by Carl Griffin.
* Stewart-Murphree-Smith House (139 East Main Street); built c. 1900
* Bateman House (141 East Main Street); built c. 1900 by James M. Bateman.
* NW corner Northington (199 East Sixth Street); built 1850, 1895.
* 159 North Northington Street; built 1913, originally occupied by the Collier family.
* 132 North Northington Street; built c. 1900 by W.W. Dunkin.
* 217 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1900 and occupied by the Rice, Archibald, Gresham, Bateman, Searcy and Cranfield families.
* 225 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1910 for William T. Northington.
* 235 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1905 as a
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
pastorium.
* 245 Wetumpka Street; built 1906 for Dr. D.P. Jones Sr.
* 301 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1855, 1895 for
Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
Mecklenburg County is a county located in the southwestern region of the state of North Carolina, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,115,482, making it the second-most populous county in North Carolina (after Wa ...
native William H. Northington as his (reported) second house on Wetumpka Street.
* 306 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1855, 1880 for Pratt
foundry
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...
foreman (supervisor) M.D. Fisher.
* Dismukes House (129 North Northington Street); built c. 1930.
* 260 Wetumpka Street; built 1935 and used as a
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
parsonage from its construction until 1981.
* 246 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1880 and used as a parsonage for the Prattsville First Methodist Church until 1935.
* 216 Wetumpka Street; built c. 1895 as a parsonage for the presiding elder (district superintendent) alongside 246 Wetumpka Street.
* Prattville Primary School (210 Wetumpka Street); built 1927 and potentially designed by
Frank Lockwood, north of the site of where Prattville Academy once stood.
** Prattville Academy site (opposite Fourth Street intersection); built 1859 by Daniel Pratt as Prattville Male and Female Academy. Nearby marker commemorated in 1916 by the
United Daughters of the Confederacy
The United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) is an American neo-Confederate hereditary association for female descendants of Confederate Civil War soldiers engaging in the commemoration of these ancestors, the funding of monuments to them, ...
commemorates
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
unit “Prattville Dragoons”. Building was demolished in 1929, is now a part of Prattville Primary School as of 1984.
* 123 South Washington Street; built c. 1915, specimen of early Prattville worker housing.
* Cook House (127 South Washington Street); built c. 1870.
* Wynn House (213 South Washington Street); built c. 1930.
* Parrish-Frye House (222 South Washington Street); built c. 1895.
* Walker House (319 South Washington Street); built 1921.
* A.F. Fay-Grouby House (345 South Washington Street); built c. 1880.
* Fay Servant House (345 South Washington Street); built c. 1880.
* Fay-Mercer House (403 South Washington Street); built 1854 by George W. Coe.
* Autauga Baptist Association Office (326 South Washington Street); built c. 1930.
* Spigener House (346 South Washington Street); built c. pre-1836, potentially built by Joseph May and possibly the oldest structure in Prattsville.
* 163 First Street; built c. 1930.
* 149 First Street; built c. 1850.
* 137 First Street; built c. 1890, served as a workers’ cottage.
* 131 First Street, built c. 1890, server as a workers’ cottage.
* 135 First Street (behind 131 First Street); built c. 1840, built as part of the Mims Hotel complex and once served as the bedroom of Annie Mims.
* Anthony-Booth-Wilkinson House (123 First Street); built c. 1883 by William Anthony.
* Mims Hotel (121 First Street); built c. 1840, formerly the center of the hotel complex before moving to its site in 1982.
* Wright House (317 South Chestnut Street); built c. 1925.
* McWilliams-Smith House (102 East Main Street); built c. 1850 reputedly for A.K. McWilliams, and was later owned by Amos Smith and his son, George, who founded Pratt's
sash
A sash is a large and usually colorful ribbon or band of material worn around the body, either draping from one shoulder to the opposing hip and back up, or else running around the waist. The sash around the waist may be worn in daily attire, bu ...
and
blind factory in 1850.
* Scott House (342 South Chestnut Street); built c. 1890.
* Tumlin House (340 South Chestnut Street); built c. 1875, reputedly as a servant house.
* Suzuki World (113 West Main Street); built c. 1940, an example of
Moderne architecture
Moderne architecture, also sometimes referred to as Style Moderne or simply Moderne, Jazz Age, Moderne, jazz modern or jazz style, describes certain styles of architecture popular from 1925 through the 1940s. closely allied to Art Deco.
Origina ...
built for Dave R. Yarbrough and Terry Walls as a
Plymouth dealership, and was serving as a
Suzuki dealership as of 1984.
* 131 West Main Street; built c. 1900 for C.E. Thomas and formerly housed Behrendson Bakery.
* 133-135 West Main Street; built 1915 as storefronts for C.E. Thomas.
* 137-141 West Main Street; built c. 1895 as a pair of storefronts.
* Rawlinson-Gay Building (147-149 West Main Street); built 1899, built for E.J. Rawlinson at Rawlinson's
Mercantile.
* 151-153 West Main Street; built c. 1900 as a commercial structure for Howard S. Doster.
* 155 West Main Street; built 1912 as a mercantile establishment for W.G. Robertson.
* 159 West Main Street; built 1905 as a storefront for Howard S. Doster, partially occupied by Progress Printing as of 1984.
* 161 West Main Street; built 1903, formerly Behrendson Bakery.
* 163-165 West Main Street; built 1920 as storefronts for J.B. Bell.
* Hagler-Faulk Office (132-134 West Main Street); built 1900 as a housing store and a medical office for Dr. J.W. Hagler.
* Spigner-Grouby Building (138-142 West Main Street); built c. 1895, 1910. Originally served as a Spigner furniture store, then as a storefront for Chattagnnoa Roofing and Foundry Co.
* Hurd-Grouby-Odell Building (144 West Main Street); built 1912 by W.G. Hurd.
* Ellis-Newton Building (146 West Main Street); built 1900 as a commercial structure by merchants D.N. Smith Sr. and J. Norton Rice.
* 150-152 West Main Street; built 1900 as a storefront and office by S.D. McLemore.
* Wilkinson-Musgrove Building (154 West Main Street); built 1900 as part of a range of businesses for Prattville Rexall Drugs, for Dr. J.E. Wilkinson. Later used as the Prattville Post Office.
* Prattville Rexall Drugs (160 West Main Street); built 1904, c. 1928 for First National Bank (west half) and Prattville Drug Co. (east half; built 1907). The east building burnt down in 1928, was rebuilt, and in 1957 the west side was purchased and made into Prattville
Rexall
Rexall was a chain of American drugstores, and the name of their store-branded products. The stores, having roots in the federation of United Drug Stores starting in 1903, licensed the Rexall brand name to as many as 12,000 drug stores across th ...
Drugs.
* Downtown Grocery/Godwin Hardware (164-166 West Main Street); built c. 1900 as a two-unit structure for J.T. Floyd.
* Red Arrow Hardware (172 West Main Street); built c. 1860 by Daniel Pratt as a cotton warehouse for Pratt Manufacturing Company.
* 176 West Main Street (formerly Prattville Mercantile Co.); built c. 1855 by Daniel Pratt for mill operatives. Considered one of the most significant
Antebellum
Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to:
United States history
* Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern United States
** Antebellum Georgia
** Antebellum South Carolina
** Antebellum Virginia
* Antebellum ...
commercial structures in Central Alabama.
* Bell-Thomas Building (173-187 West Main Street); built 1921 as an eight-unit commercial building by J.B. Bell and C.E. Thomas.
* Wainwright-Smith-Cook House (115 Maple Street); built c. 1860 for Pratt factory complex mechanic James Wainwright. It is the only unaltered residence surviving from mid-19th century residential areas immediately surrounding original factory buildings on the south side of Autauga Creek.
* Barnes-Cavnar House (124 Maple Street); built 1898 for W.H. Barnes Sr.
* Bush Hog-Continental Gin Complex (West side of Autauga Creek)
** Sash, Door, and Blind Factory; built c. 1849, oldest surviving structure of the complex. In 1857, the structure additionally housed a
grist mill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...
, machine shop, and a carriage & wagon factory.
** Daniel Pratt Cotton Gin Factory; built 1854–55, remnants remain of a sign that once read “DANIEL PRATT COTTON MANUFACTURY”.
** Daniel Pratt Gin Company (later addition); built 1896, represents the last major phase of expansion before Pratt companies merged with Continental Gin Company in 1899.
** Continental Gin Company Warehouse; built 1911 on the site where Daniel Pratt once built a church/storefront in 1853.
** Sheet Metal Department; built c. 1905, located south of the Continental Gin Warehouse.
** Site of Daniel Pratt Foundry; built c. 1860, demolished c. 1965.
** Site of Offices, Turntable, and Open Lumber Shed; built c. 1860, demolished c. 1965.
** Site of Fountain; built c. 1855–57, demolished c. 1900.
* Gurney Industries, Inc. (originally Prattville Manufacturing Company); three structures all predating 1900, acquired by Gurney Industries in 1946.
** Picker House (now offices for Gurney Industries); built as early as 1850–60, used as offices from 1946 onwards.
** Prattville Manufacturing Company No. 1; built 1887–88, built to replace a textile mill built in 1859 that was damaged in a
freshet
The term ''freshet'' is most commonly used to describe a spring thaw resulting from snow and ice melt in rivers located in upper North America. A spring freshet can sometimes last several weeks on large river systems, resulting in significant in ...
on March 30, 1886.
** Prattville Manufacturing Company No. 2; built 1896 as a near-mirror image of the first building.
* Autauga Creek Dam; built c. 1920, sold to Continental Gin Company after mills converted to electricity in 1932.
* Pratt Cemetery (on hill south of Bush Hog-Continental Complex); established c. 1840 by Daniel Pratt for his family, friends, and mill operatives. Notable graves include that of Pratt and his family, as well as painter
George Cooke. Earliest marked grave is that of Pratt's baby daughter, Mary, who died September 21, 1843.
The district also contains multiple conditional contributing properties.
References
External links
*
*
Historic American Buildings Survey
Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...
(HABS) and
Historic American Engineering Record
Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...
(HAER) documentation, filed under Prattville, Autauga County, AL:
** (extensively altered)
** (demolished 1960)
**
**
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Daniel, Historic District
National Register of Historic Places in Autauga County, Alabama
Italianate architecture in Alabama
Greek Revival architecture in Alabama
American Craftsman architecture in Alabama
Historic districts in Autauga County, Alabama
1906 establishments in Alabama
Historic American Buildings Survey in Alabama
Historic American Engineering Record in Alabama
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Alabama