F.D. McArthur Elementary was a former Birmingham city school located in the Druid Hills neighborhood. Built on the site of the old 17th Avenue School, the building was constructed in 1910. The school mascot was the Hornets, and the school colors were green and white. The school was later renamed after a local attorney and Birmingham Board of Education president F.D. McArthur. An eight-room addition was added in 1941 after a neighboring school was destroyed by fire. In 2008, former Mayor Larry Langford announced a South Korean-owned firm, which was interested in nearby Carraway Hospital, also planned to purchase the school. The firm’s plan included a $3 million renovation. Unfortunately, the project never materialized. Today, like many closed Birmingham city schools, F.D. McArthur Elementary continues to rot away. Check out my book Abandoned Birmingham for more.
Really good article!!
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I’m not sure if you got permission to go in there, but if so who do you contact for that? I would like to do this for my photography class final, so I figured I should at least try going through the legal channels. Either way, thanks for all the information! I had a hard time finding anything for places like this in my area of the country before I found your page.
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Honestly you can go on the cops don’t really care that’s if there is any anymore. But it’s a dope place to go, as well as the homeless man Arthur he’s very nice and welcoming. He also says the school is haunted and not to come at night. But it’s very much in tact and very beautiful still.
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Excellent article. Sad to see that the school was closed and the building is deteriorating so badly. F.D. McArthur was my husband’s great-grandfather.
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Does anyone know of a plan to change the school into a place to house women for a work release program?
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I am a former student of McArthur. I attended in the late 50’s and early 60’s. I have started a Facebook page for the school and have about 90 members.
We are having a reunion on May 2, 2019. If you are a former student/teacher, please do a search on Facebook and join the page.
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I attended McArthur 55-58, lived on 22nd Street
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I started school (1st grade) at the Seventeenth Avenue School in 1948 and moved to the beautiful new F. D. MacArthur school at mid term 2nd grade. I only got to attend one year because we moved to Tennessee at mid term 3rd grade. When I returned about 2005 to show my late wife where I started elementary school I was appalled at the condition of the building. What a shame that we in this country can’t maintain and utilize such wonderful facilities.
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Who owns the school? Could it be bought and like someone said house women or something else.
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I think it is owned by the city.
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It belongs to the city and I was told has been used by the fire department for training.
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I started school in September 1953-1961 at FD McArthur. I lived at 1600. Graduated from Phillips High in 1966. We had such fun times at the elementary school especially our Fall Festivals.
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What happen to Northside elementary school that was across the street from the Holiday Inn in Birmingham on 24st n ,I lived in druid hills and went to Northside and Phillips hs,but I can’t find any history or pictures of Northside elementary school.
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