City guide
14 buildings worth a detour, each with what to look for. Open them on the map, or walk them with the iPhone app, which collects each one you photograph.
The buildings that define the city's architecture.
16th Street Baptist Church was completed in 1911 to a design by architect Wallace Rayfield in the Byzantine Revival style. It carries National Historic Landmark status, the strongest individual federal designation, and is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.
Photo: John Morse , CC BY 2.5
The Alabama Theatre is a Spanish Colonial Revival movie palace in downtown Birmingham, designed by Graven and Mayger. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage, and its facade and marquee remain a landmark presence on the sidewalk.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
The Birmingham, Railway, Light and Power Building is a Chicago School commercial building in downtown Birmingham, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its commercial massing and fenestration remain visible from the street.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
The Cathedral of Saint Paul was completed in 1893 to a Gothic Revival design by architect Adolphus Druiding. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and serves as a recognizable civic landmark in downtown Birmingham.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
Fire Station No. 11 in downtown Birmingham was built in the Chicago School style, an unusual choice for a civic fire station rather than a commercial building. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Photo: Bfrspubed , CC BY-SA 3.0
Manchester Terrace, built in 1927, blends Tudor Revival and Mediterranean Revival architecture in a single row. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with its mixed detailing prominent from the street.
Photo: Mthunter58 , CC BY-SA 4.0
Second Presbyterian Church was designed by architect Daniel Andrew Helmich in the Romanesque Revival style. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with its arches and massing visible from the street.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
Landmark
Sloss Furnaces is a preserved industrial ironworks complex in Birmingham associated with James Sloss and dated to 1983. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and its furnace stacks and industrial structures remain visible from the street.
Photo: DXR , CC BY-SA 4.0
The Steiner Bank Building was completed in 1890 in the Romanesque Revival style in downtown Birmingham. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with its masonry and arches still visible from the street.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
The Woodward Building is a downtown Birmingham commercial building completed in 1902 and designed by architect William C. Weston in the Chicago School style. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
Worth a stop when you're nearby.
Landmark
The Alabama Penny Savings Bank in downtown Birmingham was designed by architect Wallace Rayfield and completed in 1913. It is a National Register of Historic Places contributing and listed property.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
Landmark
The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute in downtown Birmingham was completed in 1992 and designed by Bond Ryder & Associates. The building anchors the institute's well-documented institutional story and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Photo: Historic American Buildings Survey , Public domain
modern architecture
The Jefferson County Courthouse in downtown Birmingham was designed by Holabird & Root, the Chicago architecture firm, in a modern architecture style. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Photo: Chris Pruitt , CC BY-SA 3.0
Fine buildings that fewer people seek out.
Landmark
The Kirklin Clinic in downtown Birmingham was designed by I. M. Pei and completed in 1992.
