Sloss Quarters
Sloss Quarters, commonly the quarters, was the community surrounding Sloss Furnaces in downtown Birmingham and North Birmingham where most of the labor force resided.
The original quarters was built up informally during the 1880s and 1890s. Thomas School, a public school for Black children in East Birmingham opened in the 1880s. New Hope Baptist Church was organized at Sloss Quarters in 1892.
Many of the housing units were constructed by the Sloss-Sheffield Steel & Iron Company in the 1920s and early 1930s.
During this period the company constructed 48 small cottages for black workers near the downtown furnace.
The former James Duncan residence, constructed in 1905 in Tarrant, was donated to the Birmingham Historical Society in 1985 and relocated to the Sloss Furnaces site. It was restored to serve as offices for the society, and as an exhibit of the type of house that would have been occupied by a supervisor's family at Sloss Quarters. A "Grandmother's garden" featuring native herbs and heirloom plants was maintained next to the house for educational purposes.
| Sloss Furnaces | |
|---|---|
| Events | Magic City Brewfest · Preserve Jazz Festival · Sloss Fright Furnace · Stokin' the Fire BBQ Festival |
| Exhibits | Engine No. 4018 · Sloss Quarters |
| Owners | Sloss Furnace Company · Sloss Iron & Steel Company · Sloss-Sheffield Steel & Iron Company · U.S. Pipe · Jim Walter Corporation |
| People | Joseph Johnston · Theophilus Jowers (The Ghost in Sloss Furnaces) · Hugh Morrow · James Sloss |
| Programs | Sloss Metal Arts · Sloss Performing Arts Program |
References
- "House finds home at Sloss" (September 1985) Magic City News, Vol. 2, No. 12
- Wolfson, Hannah (August 6, 2009) "In Birmingham historical society grows a garden the old-fashioned way." The Birmingham News
- "Improvements at the Duncan House" (October 2013) Newsletter, Birmingham Historical Society, p. 2