Welcome to the Historic Drish House
Vibrant History Meets Contemporary Elegance
From our large Main Hall to our spacious second floor Dressing Parlors, the Historic Drish House is equipped with modern amenities and a vintage vibe for a comfortable and elegant memory you’ll talk about for years to come.
Let us help you plan your special day at one of Alabama’s most beautiful historic buildings.
A Little History
The John R. Drish Mansion
The large stuccoed brick mansion was built at the center of a 450-acre plantation on the edge of town for Dr. John R. Drish in 1837. John Drish died in 1867, reportedly from a fall down a stairway, and Sarah Drish died in 1884.
The Jemmison School
The mansion changed hands several times after the death of Sarah Drish; while it was still a residence the surrounding property was sold and subdivided to create Tuscaloosa’s first major expansion. The structure eventually came to be owned by the Tuscaloosa Board of Education, who opened the Jemison School in the house in 1906.
Tuscaloosa Wrecking Company
The house continued to be used as a school until 1925, after which it was purchased for use as a parts warehouse for Charles Turner’s Tuscaloosa Wrecking Company.
South Side Baptist
In 1940, it was purchased by the Southside Baptist Church, which added a sanctuary abutting the house on one side and a detached Sunday school building on the other. The church retained it for the rest of the 20th century.
Is The Drish House Haunted?
The Drish House has been the site of purported hauntings since the early 20th century. It was featured in Kathryn Tucker Windham and Margaret Gillis Figh’s book 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey, in the short story “Death Lights in the Tower.” Alleged supernatural events over the years have included people reportedly seeing the third-story tower on fire, when no fire is present, and ghostly lights coming out of the house. Below is the video we show during our Haunted Tours.