Heaviest Corner on Earth
National Register of Historic Places

Heaviest Corner on Earth

Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama
Listed
July 10, 1985
Type
District
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
85001502

About this property

The Heaviest Corner on Earth is a promotional name given to the corner of 20th Street and 1st Avenue North in Birmingham, Alabama, United States, in the early 20th century. The name reflected the nearly simultaneous appearance of four of the tallest buildings in the South, the 10-story Woodward Building (1902), 16-story Brown Marx Building (1906), 16-story Empire Building (1909), and the 21-story American Trust and Savings Bank Building (1912). The announcement of the last building was made in the Jemison Magazine in a January 1911 article titled "Birmingham to Have the Heaviest Corner in the South". Over the years, that claim was inflated to the improbable "Heaviest Corner on Earth", which remains a popular name for the grouping. A marker, erected on May 23, 1985 by the Birmingham Historical Society, with cooperation from Operation New Birmingham, stands on the sidewalk outside the Empire Building describing the group. The buildings have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places: three were listed individually in 1982 and 1983, and the group of four was listed as a historic district on July 11, 1985.

Location

1st Ave., N and 20th St., N
Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama
33.51451, -86.80596

Categories

INDUSTRYARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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The Land
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Geology
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Conflict & War
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The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
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Settlement
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The Community
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Rivers & Rail
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Nearby Historic Sites

Empire Building
Industrial
0 mi
Woodward Building
Industrial
0 mi
Nabers, Morrow and Sinnige, Building
Industrial
0 mi
First National-John A. Hand Building
Industrial
0 mi
Caldwell-Milner Building
Industrial
0.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Heaviest Corner on Earth listed on the National Register?

Heaviest Corner on Earth was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 10, 1985.

What type of historic resource is Heaviest Corner on Earth?

Heaviest Corner on Earth is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Heaviest Corner on Earth?

The period of significance for Heaviest Corner on Earth is recorded as the industrial era, specifically around 1902.

Can I research the history near Heaviest Corner on Earth?

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