North Birmingham Elementary School

North Birmingham School began in a wooden building at the corner of 36th Avenue and 26th Street in North Birmingham. The first school on the site was constructed by the City of North Birmingham in 1905. The former Birmingham Country Club clubhouse behind the school was used as the lunchroom. The first principal of North Birmingham School was W. H. Naff. James H. Berry was the Mayor of North Birmingham when the school was dedicated in 1905. The cornerstone from the original building was removed and placed in the east entrance of the current building around 1925. This cornerstone is still there today.

North Birmingham was annexed into the City of Birmingham by the Greater Birmingham legislation in 1910. In 1911, Professor William E. Dickson became the principal. When he resigned to enter the race for associate city commissioner, Rufus A. Duvall, of Columbus, Georgia became principal. The present red brick school building was constructed in 1923 and designed by the noted Birmingham architect firm of Warren, Knight & Davis.

In 1937, while traveling to New Orleans to attend the annual National Education Association convention, Duvall and four other grammar school principals were involved in an automobile wreck. W. T. Snoddy, the principal of Acipco Grammar School was the driver. All five of the school officials suffered serious injuries in the accident. Rufus A. Duvall died at the hospital from injuries he sustained. Following his death, George D. Cox was named principal of North Birmingham through the 1950s.

In the Spring of 1929, the North Birmingham School was damaged by fire. The damaged section of the building was replaced with a new two-story concrete and brick section that Fall. Warren, Knight & Davis provided the design plans, and the contract was award to W. A. Horton. Further additions were completed in 1930 and 1950.

In 1955, Police Sergeant M. L. Giles reported that 61 windowpanes were smashed from the school building in what was called a “rock barrage”. On the floor inside, officers found dozens of rocks. According to The Birmingham News, neighborhood kids were to blame.

In 1958, a new lunchroom was constructed at the school, replacing the former frame clubhouse that had served as the lunchroom previously. Evan Terry designed the $57,000 addition that was built by Perusini Construction. A major renovation was undertaken in 1978, including the addition of drop ceilings with new lighting and tinted windows to help conserve energy.

In February 2008, a school closure and consolidation plan was announced by the Birmingham Board of Education. North Birmingham Elementary was scheduled to close in the Summer of 2010 with all students being transferred to Lewis Elementary School. The consolidation was postponed until 2012.

After sitting vacant for a decade, Congresswoman Terri Sewell secured $3 million in federal funding in 2022 to restore North Birmingham Elementary School. The funds will help clean up environmental concerns at the former school, including removing asbestos and lead paint and streetscaping, which may attract more developers. As part of the project, the city collaborated with Poole & Co. Architects for renovation plans. One possibility discussed was opening a new neighborhood street behind the school so North Birmingham Park could be more easily accessed. The Birmingham Department of Community Development sought proposals in 2024 from private developers for an adaptive reuse of the school building.

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