Murphy-Collins House, 2601 Bryant Drive, 2011

Murphy Museum 001a.jpg

Title

Murphy-Collins House, 2601 Bryant Drive, 2011

Subject

Historic house museums
Bungalows
African-American--History--Tuscaloosa
Murphy African-American Museum

Description

The Murphy-Collins House on Paul W. Bryant Drive and Lurleen Wallace Boulevard South is home to the Murphy African-American Museum. The museum houses a diverse collection of black memorabilia and is a testimony to the contributions and accomplishment of African Americans, with an emphasis on Tuscaloosa and Alabama.

In, 1923, Mr. Will J. Murphy, the first black licensed mortician and funeral director in Tuscaloosa, built this home as his private residence. Materials from the old state capitol building a few blocks away, such as bricks and window sills, were salvaged when it burned in 1923 and used in the house’s construction.

Murphy hired African American contractor George Clopton to build the house for him and his wife, Laura. Laura Murphy was the principal at 20th Street School.

In the early 1900s, the street which is now Lurleen Wallace Boulevard was the dividing line between Tuscaloosa's white citizens and the well-to-do black professionals who lived in the lace curtain community of downtown.

The house is the only example of twentieth century architecture under the umbrella of the Tuscaloosa Preservation Society; it was built around 1923 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. (Jubilation, Summer/Fall 2011)

Creator

Porfirio Solorzano

Source

Murphy African-American Museum

Publisher

Jubilation

Date

Summer/Fall 2011

Contributor

Betty Slowe (Description)

Rights

Jubilation

Type

Photograph

Identifier

969

Coverage

Tuscaloosa (AL)

Original Format

Photograph