Tuscaloosa Things to Do

the sara moody gallery of art is located in garland hall on the university of alabama campus. the sarah moody gallery has collections of contemporary paintings, prints, photographs, and small sculpture. the gallery also hosts traveling exhibitions from around the country. for those interested in contemporary art the sara moody gallery is worth a visit when in tuscaloosa. admission is free.

the gorgas house is located on the campus of the university of alabama. this low country style house was built in 1829. it was originally built as a hotel and later served as student dining hall and a faculty residence. the gorgas house is one of four structures on the campus of the university to survive the civil war. general josiah gorgas CSA moved into the house in 1879. gorgas was the 7 th president of the university of alabama. the gorgas family lived in the house from 1879 to 1953. today the gorgas house is a museum and is open to the public.

this beautiful greek revival home was built in 1841 and was designed by architect michael barry. in 1862 when the troops of union general john croxton were burning the university of alabama campus the wife of the university of alabama president landon garland convinced croxton not to destroy the home. today we can be grateful to mrs. garland for her efforts in saving this beautiful building.

the remains of franklin hall more commonly known as "the mound" is located on the university of alabama's quad. franklin hall was built in 1835 and was one of the university of alabama's dorms. on april 4 th 1862 union general john croxton ordered his troops to destroy all of the university of alabama buildings. only four structures on campus survived that attack.

the denny chime tower is located on the quad just across the street from the president's mansion. the tower was built in 1929 to honor university of alabama students who died in WWI. the tower is named after george denny the president of the university of alabama from 1912 to 1936.

the oliver-barnard hall was built in 1889 and today is home to the blount undergraduate initiative. the hall is named after fredrick barnard, a professor and scientist and john oliver, a UA trustee. the oliver-barnard hall is just one of scores of beautiful buildings on the university of alabama campus. for those interested in post civil war architecture the university of alabama campus is well worth a visit.

the battle-friedman house was built in 1835 by alfred battle. the battle house was sold to bernard friedman in 1875. the battle-friedman house is one of a number of ante bellum homes that are located in downtown tuscaloosa. the battle-friedman house is open to the public by tour. see the attached web site for tour information.

The Jemison-Van de Graaf mansion is a very well preserved example of Italianate design. It sits on Greensboro Avenue, formerly lined with large mansions of the same type. Sadly, only one or two still stand. Fully restored in the mid-90's, this house gives a glimpse of high life in the Old South.