HERITAGE PRESERVATION, INC.

Minutes of Meeting, 10-23-06

 

Those present:  Judy Tiffin, Jim Ingrum, Mary Peck, Bill McDonald, Charles Harlan, Charlotte Dean, Jerry Dowd, Iva McClure, Betty Champion, Vince Brewton, Hester Cope, Cathy Myers, Billy Warren

 

  1. Bill McDonald made the motion that the minutes of the 9-25-06 meeting be approved.  Vince Brewton seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

     
  2. Billy Warren presented this treasurer’s report:
    1. Checking Account balance                                            $5,017.33
    2. Forks of Cypress Account                                            3,223.38 + 11.40
    3. FDR Fund                                                                    5,000.00
    4. Riverview Historic District                                                112.43

 

Charlotte Dean made the motion that the treasurer’s report be approved.  Bill McDonald seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

 

  1. Billy Warren stated that he has not been able to contact Keith Hager regarding the Cemetery Stroll; therefore, he did not have a status report on the project.  Jerry Dowd volunteered to try to make contact with Keith and to notify Billy regarding his effort.

     
  2. In Bob Torbert’s absence, Bill McDonald reported that Bob is currently cataloguing cemeteries in eastern Lauderdale County.  Bill further stated that Bob recently attended a conference in Montgomery relative to the cemetery initiative throughout the state.

     
  3. Billy Warren circulated a copy of the first issue of Kidsville News, the free monthly newspaper published by the Courier Journal for all students in Lauderdale County in grades K-6.  He stated that he will write a brief article each month for the newspaper under the heading, “Local History:  Did You Know?”  For the November issue, the article focuses on Miss Maud Lindsay.

     
  4. Billy Warren shared copies of the 2007 Main Street calendar featuring 13 historic Florence houses.

     
  5. Billy Warren distributed copies of the letter that he wrote to Judge Tease on behalf of the HPI Board of Directors.  It offers support for the public library’s Board of Directors to be the overseeing body for the proposed Florence-Lauderdale Archival Center.

     
  6. In the absence of Carolyn Waterman, there was not a report on the status of the proposed APT program on 12 Bed and Breakfast establishments in Alabama.

     
  7. Billy Warren circulated a note from Dot and Bill McDonald thanking the HPI Board for placing the book, Native Americans in Early Photographs by Tom Robotham, in memory of Bill McDonald’s late brother, Bobby McDonald.

     
  8. Billy Warren circulated a copy of the Fall, 2006, issue of Alabama Heritage magazine in which Lee Freeman’s well written article on the Tom Clark legend is published.  The Board expressed its pleasure over Lee’s being chosen as a contributor to this prestigious magazine.

     
  9. Billy Warren circulated a copy of the October, 2006, issue of Preservation Report which is published by the Alabama Historical Commission.  It features an article and an accompanying photograph of Col. (Ret.) John A. Neubauer, the new director of the Alabama Historical Commission.

     

Following a discussion, Bill McDonald made the motion that Billy Warren write a letter to Col. Neubauer asking him to speak at the annual meeting of HPI on Sunday, January 21, 2007.  Jim Ingrum seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

 

  1. Betty Champion, Iva McClure, Bill McDonald and Billy Warren, as members of the ad hoc Walk of Honor Committee reported that the work of the committee is almost finished.  It is now developing the inaugural group of honorees, being careful to select people from a variety of categories (e.g., politics, the arts, the military, etc.) and only those who have achieved at the national and/or international level.

     
  2. Charlotte Dean reported that there are no new developments in the proposed sale of the Sweetwater property.  Bob Torbert plans to work on the restoration of the Sweetwater cemetery in December, 2006.

     
  3. Hester Cope gave this report for Main Street:
    1. Two new art galleries are opening on North Court Street;
    2. Robbie’s of Tuscumbia will open a shop in the former Ann’s Specialty Shop building on Mobile Plaza;
    3. Mr. Charlie Mao is opening a gift/homewares shop in the former HyTech building on East Tennessee Street;
    4. Work on dirt moving is officially underway for the new Hampton Inn to be constructed ;
    5. The 3-story building next to Fred’s on North Court Street has been purchased, with plans for its use not yet confirmed;
    6. Work is nearing completion on the former Pittsburgh Paints building on East Tennessee street – a lawyer’s office to be on the ground floor and loft apartments on the upper floor;
    7. Senior Citizen’s Day will take place in Wilson Park on Wednesday, 10-25-06; and
    8. A magic show for children and families will take place at the Shoals Theater on Monday, October 30, with all proceeds going toward the restoration of the theater.

       
  4. Charlotte Dean announced that Buddy Killen and Edy Hand have co-authored a book entitled A Country Christmas.  The authors will autograph copies of the book at Anderson’s Bookland on December 1 during First Friday.

     
  5. Following a brief discussion, Bill McDonald made the motion that the HPI Board place books in the Florence-Lauderdale Public Library in memory of Mary-Eliza Southall Moore and Mildred Rosenbaum.  Betty Champion seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.  It was agreed that if Bill McDonald owns a book by Maud Lindsay which the public library doesn’t have, he will contribute it in behalf of HPI to the public library as a memorial for Mary-Eliza Moore.

     
  6. Bill McDonald added the following to the information about the Malone House on East Hawthorne Street.  The property:
    1. Was burned to the ground in 1864 while Mrs. Thomas Jefferson Foster was nursing a wounded soldier (whether he was a Confederate or Union troop isn’t known); and
    2. Was rebuilt (in the same configuration as before) in 1866 and was sold to Benjamin Franklin Foster.

       
  7. Following a discussion about the video, “Follow the River,” Jerry Dowd made the motion that HPI purchase 100 DVD’s of the video.  Betty Champion seconded the motion, and it passed unanimously.

     

These ideas for marketing the DVD were set forth:

·        Set up a TV and run the DVD constantly on the street during First Fridays;

·        Offer it at the Cemetery Stroll; and

·        Offer it at the annual meeting in January, 2007.

 

  1. Bill McDonald suggested, and all agreed, that HPI apply pressure on appropriate people in the state APT office to gain air time for the video, “Follow the River.”

     
  2. Billy Warren announced that David Hope and Shane Wilson are collaborating on a video project to highlight a number (at least 35+) of historic markers in the Shoals, primarily in Florence.  The project is being funded by Florence City Schools as a resource for fourth grade teachers (the grade at which Alabama history is taught) in Florence.

HPI