Historical marker describes Montgomery City Hall, Hank Williams' funeral

Montgomery City Hall Historical Marker

This week’s featured historical marker is the “MONTGOMERY CITY HALL/FUNERAL FOR HANK WILLIAMS” marker in downtown Montgomery, Alabama. The marker is located in the Lister Hill Plaza on the corner of North Perry Street and Columbus Street.

This marker was erected by the Bureau of Tourism & Travel in 2007. There’s text on both sides of this marker, and both sides are unique. What follows is the complete text from the marker.

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“MONTGOMERY CITY HALL, Built 1936-37, Following a fire in 1932 that destroyed a 19th century City Hall, architect Frank Lockwood designed a replacement for the same site. With the Depression affecting all construction projects during the period, the city received federal assistance through the Works Progress Administration. Completed in 1937, the City Hall included offices for city officials and an auditorium to accommodate large crowds for public programs, debutante balls and social gatherings. Stylistically, the building’s exterior and Mayor’s offices reflect Neo-Classical influences with highly decorative detailing in the grand entrance to the auditorium.”

“FUNERAL FOR HANK WILLIAMS: The death of songwriter and singer Hank Williams on Jan. 1, 1953, stunned his legion of devoted fans. On Sunday, Jan. 4, family members viewed the body at his mother’s boarding house at 217 McDonough Street. The casket was then brought four blocks to the Municipal Auditorium. Some 2,750 mourners crowded inside for the service while another 20,000 stood vigil outside in the cold. Many of country music’s headliners, including the reunited Drifting Cowboys, sang at the funeral. In 1991, Hank Williams Jr. commissioned Texas sculptors Doug and Sandra McDonald to create the life-sized statue of his father that faces the auditorium.”

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I encountered this historical marker back in September when I took a few minutes to check out the Hank Williams statue mentioned above. If you ever find yourself in downtown Montgomery and want to see this historical marker for yourself, be sure to also walk down the sidewalk just a few yards and also see the statue. Williams is arguably one of the most famous Alabamians ever, and his statue in Montgomery is a fitting tribute.

It’s said that there are more historical markers in downtown Montgomery than anywhere in the state, and you don’t have to venture far from the marker mentioned above to encounter even more historical markers. Others include markers at St. Peter’s Roman Catholic Church, the Alabama State Capitol, the Montgomery Theatre, Court Square Fountain, Dr. Luther Leonidas Hill’s Office, Lucas Tavern, the Montgomery City-County Public Library, Huntingdon College, the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, the Central Bank Building, the Governor Shorter House, the Teague House, the Lomax House, the Winter Building, Knox Hall, the Figh-Pickett House, the First United Methodist Church and others.

In the end, visit this site next Wednesday to learn about another historical marker. I’m also taking suggestions from the reading audience, so if you know of an interesting historical marker that you’d like me to feature, let me know in the comments section below.