Massey Building
SW corner 3rd Ave & Richard Arrington Jr Blvd N. At the western end of the block, at the intersection of 3rd Avenue at
Richard Arrington Jr Blvd, you will see the ornate roofl ine of the
10-story Massey Building (1920). The main entrance is even
more elaborate, with twisted columns and grand classical motifs
in molded terra cotta.
Levy s Fine Jewelry Building
2116 2nd Ave N. Across the street, Levy s Fine Jewelry Building (1883) is one of the oldest remaining downtown, along with
Dewberry Drugs and the Phenix Insurance Co. Notice the
narrow door between the two storefronts, which originally led
to residential rooms on the second fl oor. Though the building is
modest, there are decorative hood molds above the windows.
Look for the mark of a Birmingham foundry near the base of a
cast-iron column attached to the building.
Waters Building
211 22nd St N. Continue east to 22nd Street and then turn left to walk toward 3rd Ave N. Midway up the block is the Waters
Building (1888), which like others just viewed, was built as the
city was beginning to prosper in its second decade. Like others,
the building originally had retail on the ground fl oor with rooms
for boarders above. Note the hood moldings above the windows
and the fi nely detailed cornice at the roofl ine.
Cathedral of St. Paul
2120 3rd Ave N. Continue north to 3rd Ave, where the
Cathedral of St. Paul (1893)
anchors the northwest
corner. Built as a church
for Birmingham s Catholic
population, it became the cathedral of the Catholic Diocese of
Birmingham in 1969. This bold Victorian Gothic structure, with
sharply pointed twin spires and contrasting red brick and white
stone, featured prominently on the city skyline until more recent
times when high-rise buildings came to dominate. Adjacent to
the cathedral stands what was originally the rectory (1922) and
buildings behind the cathedral originally housed a school (1925)
and a convent (1935).