The Battle-Friedman House
The Battle Family
The Battle-Friedman House was built in 1835 by Alfred Battle and his wife Millicent Beale. Alfred was from North Carolina and Millicent was from Maryland, but they met in Georgia. Soon afterward, their family decided to move to the territory of Alabama. Alfred, rising in status, due to his agricultural and later business interests, wanted to be closer to the city life so they built this townhouse in 1835. The Battle family owned the house until 1875 when they lost it due to foreclosure in the last dark days of the Reconstruction period.
The Friedman Family
The house was bought by the Friedman family. The head of the family, Bernard Friedman, was a Hungarian Jew who had come to Tuscaloosa as a peddler, opened a store, and became a respected member of the Tuscaloosa business community. Bernard and his wife, Linka, raised their three children in the home throughout the early 1900s. The Friedman family owned the house until 1965 when it was willed by Bernard’s youngest son, Hugo Friedman to the City of Tuscaloosa.
The house is available for historic tours
Tuesday-Saturday at 2:30 pm.
Group and school tours are also available by calling Historic Tuscaloosa
at 205-758-2238 or emailing us at info@historictuscaloosa.org
Love the look & feel of the Battle-Friedman House?
You can also rent our space for private parties, meetings, and events!
Find out more at the link below.
AMY E.
We visited this location as a wedding venue, and I found it very interesting from a historic and an architectural point of view. The interior friezes are pretty amazing, and the fact that period furniture is on display is a plus.
CHRISTOPHER J.
We had a great tour of the home. The tour guide knew the ins and outs of the home and the history of the families who owned the home. Keep up the great work and your passion of telling their stories.
LINDSEY B.
Absolutely beautiful historic home. We took a tour of the home and grounds, and it was just breath taking. The sweet lady who gave us our tour shared so much history with us. It was great. We’ve been to a wedding here as well. So pretty.