1895 Cotton States and International Exposition exhibit

The "Alabama Building" at the 1895 Cotton States and International Exposition

The 1895 Cotton States and International Exposition exhibit was a display building created to showcase Alabama's natural resources and industries at the "Cotton States and International Exposition" held from September 18 to December 31, 1895 at Piedmont Park in Atlanta, Georgia.

The Commercial Club of Birmingham called for a meeting of the Alabama Commercial Association on April 2, 1895 to discuss plans for the exposition. F. Y. Anderson was elected to chair the board of managers for the project. Early negotiations with the Southern Railroad to support the project stalled, but an agreement was reached before June. Charles Wheelock & Son were commissioned to produce an architectural design for a free-standing "Alabama Building", which would be located on high ground at the northern edge of the exposition grounds, near the U.S. Government building.

Wheelock's design called for an octagonal structure 80 feet across, surmounted by a 50-foot-high dome. Two 32-foot square wings extended the frontage to 144 feet and providing 7,500 square feet of exhibition space. A 34-foot deep entrance hall with offices and restrooms was entered through a 12-foot-deep covered portico. a 20-foot wide second-floor gallery around the central octagon added 3,500 square feet of floor area, for a total of 11,000 square feet of exhibit space.

Bids for construction of the building were opened on July 1, allowing 60 days for construction.

References

• "The Alabama Building" (June 25, 1895) Birmingham Age-Herald - via Birmingham Public Library Digital Collections