Fund-Raising for Hotel Stafford, circa 1954

Hotel fund raising.jpg

Title

Fund-Raising for Hotel Stafford, circa 1954

Subject

Hotels

Description

This sign in front of the Tuscaloosa County Courthouse tracked donations or investments for a new hotel in Tuscaloosa that would become Hotel Stafford. The hotel opened in 1956 with the finest accommodations in Tuscaloosa. Hayse Tucker was chairman of the executive committee and he was assisted by civic leaders who thought it was their duty to bring a hotel to downtown Tuscaloosa.

The hotel was built on the corner of 9th Street and 22nd Avenue , a site where, about 1830, the Tuscaloosa Female Academy was built. Later, in 1885, that building housed the Stafford School, Tuscaloosa's first public school.

The hotel's demise began in the 1960s when motels and hotels opened on the outskirts of Tuscaloosa. A renovation was undertaken, but the building of the Sheraton Hotel near the University of Alabama was the death knell for the hotel. It was sold, but investors did not recoup their investments.

Source

Tuscaloosa Public Library

Date

Circa 1954

Contributor

Betty Slowe (Description)

Type

Photograph

Identifier

2417

Coverage

Tuscaloosa (AL)

Original Format

Photograph

Physical Dimensions

4 inches by 6 inches