The Drish Home, a historic plantation house in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States; also known as the Dr. R. Drish House, has had a highly colorful history spanning several decades, ranging from slave craftsmen to terrifying ghost legends.
Alabama preservationists see the Drish House as a combination of Italianate styles and Green revival in the entire state.
A number of eyewitness tales dating back to the early twentieth century have stated that the Drish House is haunted. Among the ghost sightings are sightings of the tower on the third story on fire, with no signs of the fire or other floors of the structure. Some individuals have reported seeing odd ghostly lights coming from the top of the skyscraper and shooting straight up into the skies in the past. The Drish House’s haunted reputation also helped it land a spot in Kathryn Tucker Windham and Margaret Gillis Figh’s 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jefferey.
The Drish House dates back to 1837, when the stuccoed brick structure was built in the midst of a massive 450-acre estate on the outskirts of town at the request of Dr. John R. Drish. Dr. Drish, a native of Virginia, went to Tuscaloosa in 1822 and was among the very first inhabitants. Dr. Drish was a widower who opted to marry another affluent widow, Sarah Owen McKinney, in 1835 after being unmarried for some time.Dr. Drish had already established himself as a prominent physician and was working as a construction constructor, employing a number of skilled slave artisans when he married. Drish’s slaves had completed most of the early plasterwork in Tuscaloosa for many of the region’s inhabitants.
Drish House had its start thanks to Drish’s many slave artisans, and its early architecture is credited to renowned architect William Nichols. When it was finished in 1837, the outside component of the house had a massive Doric portico to the area and front, as well as two-story pillars that separated each bay of the structure on all four sides. Prior to the commencement of the American Civil War, the mansion underwent considerable Italianate-style restoration. The distinctive three-story brick tower was added to the edifice during this refurbishment. The building’s front column was modified to Ionic order, and new brackets were put to the overhangs and eaves.
Dr. John Drish died in 1867 after falling down the stairwell and hitting himself on the head, while Mrs. Sarah Drish died a few decades later in 1884. The saga of the Drish House did not finish with the deaths of Dr. and Mrs. Drish; it changed ownership a few times after Mrs. Drish died. While people were still living in the structure, the surrounding area was scaled, subdivided, and sold; it was supposedly Tuscaloosa’s first significant expansion.
The Drish House’s next major ownership came in 1906, when the Tuscaloosa Board of Education purchased the facility and opened the Jemison School in it. The Drish House school did not continue long and was closed in 1926. It was later bought by Charles Turner’s Wrecking Company, who intended to utilize it as a parts warehouse, a far cry from its former owners. Walker Evans took the iconic shot of the Drish House in 1936, which is now on exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Drish House was utilized as a parts warehouse at the time.
Southside Baptist Church bought the Drish House in 1940 and opted to remodel it to meet their needs. The church had opted to build a sanctuary alongside the main home, as well as a Sunday school on the other side of the house. The Drish House was kept by the Southside Baptist Church throughout the rest of the twentieth century. The actual threat to the Drish House’s survival came in 1994, when plans for its demolition surfaced just as Southside Baptist was about to close its doors. However, a lease to the Tuscaloosa County Heritage Commission by some of the previous members spared the property from demolition.
