County of city hall: Etowah County
Location of city hall: 2610 W. Meighan Blvd. (US 278), Gadsden
Phone: (256) 549-4688
The director of the library is Amanda Jackson
This building is # 4 on the NRMP Nomination Form:
4. Gadsden Public Library - Alabama City Branch. 2610 Meighan Blvd. (c.1938).
One story with basement brick Classical - style free standing library with a center steeple and a side oriented gabled asphalt roof. There are 8:12 double hung metal windows throughout and a gabled front portico with massive round columns, and decorative dentils. There is also a double door entrance with sidelights and transom, and a brick foundation.
"At 2 p.m. on Tuesday, October 20, The Hoyt Warsham Library, the Alabama City branch of the Gadsden Public Library was re-opened after being closed for six months for repairs.
"The grand re-opening featured the Emma Samsom Middle School Choir, who sang a rendition of “Don’t Stop Believing” by rock group Journey. Light refreshments were served to the guests which included local officials such as Gadsden Mayor Sherman Guyton and several Gadsden City councilmen.
"The building is almost 100 years old and needed some repairs. The roof was replaced, as well as the rotten decking beneath it. Some of the cornice work was repaired, and because the building is so old, the replacements had to be handmade. The library was given new carpets and doors and repainted, giving it a “whole new facelift.”
“We were out of there for the summer,” said Gadsden Public Library Director Amanda Jackson. “I know everybody missed it, but it was good to finally get that stuff done.”
"The historical building that houses the library was originally Alabama City Hall, when Alabama City was a separate municipality. Then, it became a library and post office where people could also go to pay some utilities. The library was started in 1938 as part of the Works Progress Administration, or WPA. The WPA was one of the New Deal programs established by Franklin D. Roosevelt to employ Americans desperately in need of jobs during the Great Depression. In 2011, the building was designated as a historical landmark.
The library was named after Hoyt Warsham, a Gadsden City Commissioner who was very active in the Alabama City community.
“I think that the library there kind of helps pay homage to that neighborhood library feel,” said Jackson." ~ The Messenger
History of the city on a marker erected by the Alabama City Historical Association in 2012
Marker text:
ALABAMA CITY, ALABAMA
During the year 1890, Capt. James H. Elliott, Jr., the famed riverboat captain and industrialist, began to draw up plans for a new town about ten miles west of Gadsden. Elliott's dream was to develop the town as an industrial center and eventually merge it with Gadsden and Attalia into one major city, named Alabama City.
The town became a reality in 1890 when Elliott, Col. R. B. Kyle and T. S. Kyle met to found the town of Alabama City. Elliott applied for a post office for the new village in 1891. It was granted, and Elliott directed the mail from the car works through the Alabama City Post Office in order to pay the first postmaster, J. K. Fleming. The large volume of mail gave the new post office a substantial amount of business during the early days.
The first elections were held for Alabama City in March 1891, with William Gardner being elected its first mayor.
Kyle worked tirelessly to bring a major industry to the Alabama City area. Kyle opened the first industry here known as the Alabama City Furniture Company which made hand carved tables. Kyle's efforts were rewarded when the Dwight Manufacturing Company of Chicopee, Mass., announced that a giant cotton mill would be located in Alabama City. The company sent officials to the 3,000-acre town to begin plans to bring the industry to Etowah County. Kyle offered to donate the land to build the textile plant. The mill opened in 1896.
With the effects of the "Great Depression" lingering and Alabama City unable to meet payroll, the only solution appeared to be a merger with Gadsden. The vote came about July 12, 1932. Mayor R. D. Morgan thought the merger with Gadsden would help, relieve the financial crunch. The citizens of Alabama City voted 520 ~ 133 in favor of merging with Gadsden. Alabama City officially became part of the city of Gadsden on July 13, 1932.