Decades-Old City Federal Scrapbooks Donated to Archives Department

John Akin, Jim Baggett, and BPL Director Renee Blalock examine one of six City Federal Savings & Loan scrapbooks found in the City Federal Building. Akin is vice president of Atlanta developer Carter, which owns the building. Baggett is the head of Archives at the Birmingham Public Library. Photo courtesy of The Birmingham News.

Birmingham Public Library was the recipient of several scrapbooks donated by Ingram & Associates. An employee of the real estate firm recently discovered six large scrapbooks in a closet of the City Federal Building, which is being turned into condos. The scrapbooks are filled with photos, documents, newspaper clippings, and memorabilia that reveal the history of the landmark 1913 building, and a peek at some of the events that took place there through the decades.

An executive with the company that owns the City Federal Building and agents with Ingram & Associates recently visited the Archives and Manuscripts Department at the Birmingham Public Library, Central, to present the scrapbooks to Renee Blalock, Director, and Jim Baggett, head of Archives. The scrapbooks will be cataloged and made available to the public. In accepting the donation, Blalock and Baggett agreed that the books will add to the library's collection dedicated to the city's history of commerce. Baggett continued, "Birmingham is a city built for business, and many corporations kept scrapbooks. Our library is actively seeking donations for our commerce collection."