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Brick By Brick: The Legacy of Henderson & Daniel Brandon

About our exhibition

Our exhibition showcases eleven structures built by the Brandons, three of which still stand.  These buildings include the Baker-Helms Building at 101 Washington Street, the Harrison Brothers Building, 112 Southside Square, owned by the nonprofit Historic Huntsville Foundation, and the Humphrey Bros Building at 112 Main Street in Madison.

Rooted in History Brings People Together

Just the Facts

Where?
Harrison Brothers 
124 Southside Square

When?
Exhibit runs February 24 – September 15, 2023
Monday – Saturday, 10 AM to 5 PM
** Exhibit Opening and Press Conference, February 24 at 10 AM. Join us for refreshments and guided tours! **

Where to Park?
A few options! Free, one hour parking around the courthouse square and downtown streets from 9 AM to 5 PM. ALL PARKING IS FREE AFTER 5:00 PM AND ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY.

Click here to check out city lots and garages within easy walking distance to Harrison Brothers.

THIS IS A FREE EVENT

Brandon buildings that survived the test of time.

101 Washington Street
101 Washington Street

Photo credit to Jim Teed.

124 Southside Square
124 Southside Square

Photo credit to Jim Teed.

112 Main Street
112 Main Street

Photo credit to Jim Teed.

Brandon buildings lost to history

Even though many of the Brandons’ buildings are no longer standing, they still have a place in our city’s history.

Federal Courthouse and U. S. Post Office, demolished 1950s.
Federal Courthouse and U. S. Post Office, demolished 1950s.
Dallas Textile Mill, burned 1990s.
Dallas Textile Mill, burned 1990s.
Church Street Cumberland Presbyterian Church, demolished 2017
Church Street Cumberland Presbyterian Church, demolished 2017

Brandon Family Values

Henderson Brandon & Son was Huntsville’s most successful Black-owned Huntsville business in the decades following Reconstruction (1880-1920).  Born in the 1840s, Henderson Brandon worked his way from enslavement to independence by purchasing his freedom from his white enslaver, William Brandon–also a noted Huntsville builder. Brandon used his brick making and masonry  skills to establish a construction firm in the early 1870s. 

Business Owner, Office Holder,  Community Leader

When his son Daniel joined the family business in the 1880s, the firm became Henderson Brandon & Son.  Highly regarded by members of Huntsville’s Black and white community, voters twice elected Daniel to Huntsville’s Board of Aldermen–first in 1897 and again in 1901. After voters ratified Alabama’s racist Constitution in December 1901, Henry C. Binford, Daniel Brandon would be the last Black men elected to public office in Huntsville until 1988. 

Daniel Brandon emerged as a leader in Huntsville’s Black community by forging a response that focused on Black entrepreneurship and independence.  Brandon promoted Black-owned businesses, founded organizations for Black Huntsvillians, and formed a labor union for Black workers to have safer working conditions and improved wages.

Brandons as Voting Rights Activists

The Brandon family also fought for Black voting rights. Daniel’s wife, Ellen Brandon, was one of six Black women who registered to vote in 1920. The Historic Huntsville Foundation dedicated a historic marker in October 2021 recognizing these brave women.

Huntsville’s historic marker is the first in Alabama recognizing the brave Black women who confronted racism and Jim Crow to register to vote in 1920 following the ratification of the 19th amendment.
Huntsville’s historic marker is the first in Alabama recognizing the brave Black women who confronted racism and Jim Crow to register to vote in 1920 following the ratification of the 19th amendment.

Our marker recognizes: Mary Binford, Ellen Brandon, India Herndon, Lou Bertha Johnson, Celia Love and Dora Lowery.

Family members, Governor Kay Ivey, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, and community leaders joined together to welcome Huntsville’s Black voting rights activists to history. Over 500 people joined the celebration at William Hooper Councill Park.
Family members, Governor Kay Ivey, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, and community leaders joined together to welcome Huntsville’s Black voting rights activists to history. Over 500 people joined the celebration at William Hooper Councill Park.

Left to Right: Patsy Harris, Yvonne Lowery-Kennedy, granddaughters of Dora Fackler Lowery; Alabama Governor Kay Ivey, HHF Executive Director Donna Castellano, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Herndon Spilman, grandson of India Herndon; June Carter, granddaughter of Mary Binford; Randy Kelley, pastor, Lakeside Methodist Church.

The Historic Huntsville Foundation is grateful to all those who support our exhibition, but we are indebted to the following:

The City of Huntsville

The Alabama Humanities Alliance

Ms. Ollye Conley, retired educator and driving force behind documentation of Huntsville’s Black history

Mr. William Hampton, founder of Huntsville Revisited

Mr. Jahni Moore, artist, community volunteer, history advocate

Mr. Jim Teed, photographer and community volunteer

Ms. Heather Adkins, Mr. Thomas Hutchens, Ms. Joy Caitlin Monroe, Huntsville-Madison County Public Library

Mr. Reagan Grimsley and Mr. Drew Adan, University of Alabama-Huntsville Library and

Special Collections