Magic City sign
Birmingham's Magic City sign was constructed outside Terminal Station in 1926. The large electric sign, a gift to the city by E. M. Elliott, originally read "Welcome to Birmingham, The Magic City." In the late 1930s, it was decided the sign had too much of a small town feel, so it was modified to just read, "Birmingham, The Magic City."
The sign welcomed numerous rail travelers to Birmingham over the years and become a cherished landmark. However, the sign was not maintained properly and by 1951 Birmingham building inspector H. E. Hagood was asking that the sign either be renovated or torn down. The sign's framework had rotted due to lack of paint and the wiring had deteriorated to the point it needed to be replaced. In 1952, Hagood said it would take $2500 to $3000 to renovate it. Commissioner James W. Morgan opposed renovation because more travelers now arrived in Birmingham via plane or car than train. He instead proposed spending that money to create smaller welcome signs at the airport and main highways. In the end, the money was not raised and the sign was torn down on June 13, 1952.
In January 2008 the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Authority announced that a replica of the historic sign would be erected as a gateway into The District, a planned entertainment district.
References
- Whittington, George (April 6, 1952). "'Welcome' sign at Terminal Station may be headed for the scrap pile." Birmingham News
- Edge, Lynn (July 2, 1969). "Terminal Station hailed in 1909 as desire fullfilled." Birmingham News
- "BJCC to use replica of "Magic City" sign at entertainment district." (January 25, 2008) Birmingham News