Saturday, September 5, 2009

Verve in Vestavia

I always knew Vestavia Hills would prove to be a treasure trove of mods. It is one of the older "Over the Mountain" suburbs, incorporated in 1950. It was developed at the right time, so I was hopeful. I just barely dipped my toe in the neighborhood off Canyon Drive . . . lo and behold!

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Note the butterfly roof:
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The handrail on the stairway has a touch of the Titanic to it, but . . .
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Interesting massing of the brick here -- if I could only vaporize trees for the duration of a photo shoot.
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Another butterfly roof. This one is pretty grand, and just needs some love. Two big caddies in the carport.
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This one is a FSBO -- maybe an estate? Lots of potential.
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This last one is fabulous, if difficult to photograph. Sited beneath the road, the back of the lot drops into a gorge. The cantilevered design makes it appear to float over its site. An enchanted place.
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5 comments:

  1. Bottletree CafeSeptember 10, 2009 at 1:36 AM

    Wow. Those are all awesome! Great work. Thanks to your blog, I'm realizing there are actually a lot of great hidden treasures in Birmingham.

    I just spotted 3 really amazing ones off Rocky Ridge around Tetone Lane and Blueberry Lane off Rocky Ridge Rd. One is a super MCM ranch that endlessly sprawls around 2 corners with amazing horizontal lines!

    Also, surprisingly, saw what seemed (could be wrong because I just zoomed by) like a new construction MCM-looking home on Columbia Rd. right up where Berry High School used to be. And, of course, there's a couple cool 70s modern houses on Shades Crest Road.

    Have you seen the little 5 house tract off of 53rd in Crestwood? It's cool to actually see a few in a row--they're connected with a separate front alley off from the main road.

    Sorry, one more thing, have you seen these architectural magazine photos of Fritz Woehle's Birmingham houses on flickr? Pretty astounding:
    http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=fritz+woehle

    Thanks. Love the blog!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Bottletree CafeSeptember 11, 2009 at 10:29 PM

    Saw a few great ones on Stonewall Dr. off Columbiana Rd. today. Check them out if you haven't seen them before.

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  3. JSeptember 11, 2009 at 11:07 PM

    Bottletree -

    You are making the rounds! Send me an email at midmod@charter.net. If you happen to get photos of any great places, I'd love to post them.

    Thanks,
    jen

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  4. megSeptember 15, 2009 at 9:51 PM

    hi! i bought an atomic ranch and thought i would let you know about it and others on my street too.
    check out overlook road by avondale school in forrest park. (pass v.richards so it's on your left and take your next left onto 42nd... at the stop sign look ahead and you'll see us - then turn right onto overlook and enjoy many more 50's finds)
    i am a big MCM fan/collector and i'm glad to have found your blog!
    if you don't already know, check out cityissue.com (and go in person to drool and touch) :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. kellieOctober 17, 2009 at 11:12 AM

    I would love to know the addresses of some these finds....

    ReplyDelete

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