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).