Captain Handley

Sometimes we forget to admire the things that were created in the past that we use today. We learned about how things went from bad to good because of a very important person, William A. Handley or "Captain Handley". Now I'm going to tell you about Captain Handley, and the wonderful things he did for this town.
      The gold rush was a great spike in mining for people that wanted to have money, or use it for other goods, gold was even found in our county. Captain Handley installed a railroad in Roanoke so that things could get imported and exported in a faster and easier way. Captain Handley firmly belived that education was the key to success, therefore he opened up The Handley Mills for kids that couldn't afford to go to school, and he also payed some children schools fee. It was hard for native American during the time of the Indian Removal Act, but land opened up for people like Captain Handley just like the places we went to as we retraced his footsteps.
    He had did the most unforgettable thing ever as we learned that he had donated to build Handley High School, he never acted above anyone. Walking in the footsteps of Captain Handley have taught me things I never knew about Roanoke, so I guess you could say that this town was boomin in the past!
       

1.This is a historic picture of old downtown Roanoke and the new Roanoke. It was very busy

2.The buildings that were three are still standing

3.The differences that stand out is the side walk they have built and the street isn’t as busy.

4.More buildings started getting old and some couldn’t be as tall and high.

5.Back then Roanoke was very busy with stores downtown and now Roanoke isn’t as busy like it used to be because the stores aren't there anymore

6.We think that next generation will take over and not know about the history of Roanoke and they will try to tare some of the buildings down.

Napa Motors and Bus Station

This historic photo is the side of the former Roanoke bus station and later, Genuine Motor Parts. Today, the building is currently "The Raven," a restaurant and sports bar.The primary similarities that are still there today are the the outline of the old RC Cola advertisement and the brick exterior. The old Coach Line advertisement is now gone. The sign has been weathered but the main change is that more people have cars today and do not travel as much by bus. Roanoke seems to have been a more thriving business area in the past than it is now.

  The Randle house belonged to Fountain Pitts Randle from Wehadkee MIlls who was the first superintendent at Handley Mills. He was wounded in the Civil War but yet wasnt the cause of his death. The cause of death was pneumonia.

Down Town Pictures

This Historic photo is of the it was the old bus station and auto parts store. The store know is a ice cream shop/ bar now. The similarities the buildings are both very similar nothing has really changed just the renovation on the inside. The only thing I can tell is that the front of the building is painted a different color. The reason I think it has changed is because everything in roanoke has changed it is not the thriving busy town it use to be. This area probably won’t stay open long because hardly any small business stays open very long in Roanoke today.

OLd historic College Street

1. This is a picture of a old historic Street called College street. This street was built in 1938.

2. In these two picture both had sidewalks, driveways, and both have a car in the picture.

3.In the old picture the road was sorta curving, the roads were wider, and the sidewalks were longer and curved also.

4. Roanoke started building more properties and adding more land to the city which made the roads more narrow and longer.

5. They had more money to put into the work of new roads so the roads could be more spacious and smooth. Today we feel that the roads are much smaller and narrow.

6. We think they will better the roads and build more houses because people will start to complain or they will want to change the community for the better.

Historic Downtown Roanoke

1. This a historic picture of downtown Roanoke and downtown Roanoke today.
2. The similarities are that some of the buildings still look the same, they are still tall like they used to be.
3. There is a road now with the sidewalk made. Some of the buildings aren't tall like they used to be.
4. Buildings may have been burnt down or fell in. Roads and sidewalks needed to be improved to make the town look better.
5. It was a town where everybody came to trade and sell things and it was busy. It's not really busy during this time.
6. Hopefully we will get more things to do and more things to see, Roanoke will rise up and have a mall and everything. The downtown will still remain the same because that is part of historic downtown.

Downtown Delivery Grocery Store.

1. This historic picture is a old historic store that delivers your groceries. It looked like men were working for the delivery working company on main. -
2. The buildings are still built the same, they are made out of brick, and the brick design in the background are still there.
3. The old picture use to be a grocery store that delivers food. The building that’s there right now TEC telephone company.
4. After the civil war, businesses started to slow down because people had left the city of Roanoke.
5. We perceived that Roanoke had a lot of money coming in. Now Roanoke is being built back up today.
6. We think that a lot stores will get built in the city of Roanoke and more people will migrate to the area because the more stuff that is built the more people it will attract.

Roanoke Warehouse Company

1. Our historic photo is of the old Roanoke Warehouse at the corner of Lamont and West Point Street. This building was built between 1914 and 1917. Many people around Roanoke call the building Master Door. Cooper, 82, of Roanoke explained the Warehouse Co. was one of the four companies founded by W.W. Campbell and J.C. Wright that were intertwined.  Now the building is built differently and has people living in it.
2. The shape of the building, still in same spot, and the roadway.
3. The sidewalk, powerlines, and the light poles.
4. Many people moved and lost jobs so money wasn’t coming in.
5. We don’t have a lot of stuff that they did back then. They were more wealthier back then,
6. We think that good things will happen to Roanoke because more money will be coming in from more employment.

The Schuessler Home On Main Street

 The historic picture taken in the early 1900s on the left is originally, the Schuessler's home that is located in Roanoke Alabama on Main Street. The picture to it's right was taken in 2017 and is presently the Owen's home. The house is still painted white and has a maroon like color over a few windows. It looks as if today, the house was moved back farther than the picture taken in the 1900s. The fence around the house is no longer there, and the chimney on the right of the house has also been removed. The tall turret in the old picture has been removed as well. This house is beautiful and now has more stuff added to it and some stuff taken out. There are now beautiful big trees and bushes surrounding it. I think in a couple of more years when the city upgrades and more people move here, these houses will be even bigger than before and now. 

J.A. Carlisle House- Tori Banks

This historic photo is of the J.A. Carlisle Sturgis house, located on Main Street in Roanoke, Alabama. The house to this day is still yellow and it has most of the same features. The picture on the left was taken in 1901, and the picture on the right was taken in 2017. The biggest difference today is the side of the house was taken off. I believe that things have changed because the town has grown and the house needed a lot of work, it was renovated and the people living there today chose to remove part of it. I feel like in the future, this house will change more, new people will come along and will want to change things.

This is the Randle house in 1907.

  This is the Randle House in 2017.

Both of them are the same almost from then and now. In 1907 it had less trees and a top over the bridge. But in 2017 you cant even see the house. The difference between both of them is time as well. It has changed because it has been updated it has all the new technology things now then it did then. I think the the Randle house will still be standing and they may make it a museum.

Collage #1

My historic photo is a photo of old Main Street/downtown Roanoke. In the photo it shows Main Street as a dirt road, men on horses that are pulling wagons, and a few buildings (possibly stores). The similarities in the scene that still exist today is some of the buildings. The differences between the photos that stand out today is that today we have cars, more buildings, and Maine Street is now paved. The reasons/suppositions behind why I things have changed is that over the years technology has been invented and more and more people were starting to use it. Another reason is that most things got old and run-down and they were either renovated or torn down. The way I perceive Roanoke was that it look like an old western town because of the dirt roads, horses and wagons, the buildings, and the people. Today, I perceive Roanoke as a modern day town with a classy look because of some of the buildings that are standing from many years ago. I really don't think anything will change but there is a possibility that the store that are in the old buildings will change. Things that will remain the same is most of the buildings because the majority of them has remained the same for many years because that's part of Roanoke's history to where it all began.

Collage # 2

My historic photo is a photo of old Main Street/downtown Roanoke. In the photo it shows Main Street as a dirt road, a chicken crossing the street, more buildings, power lines, and trees. The similarities in the scene that still exist today are the majority of the buildings and a few power lines (not really). The differences between the photos that stand out today is that downtown doesn't have trees lining the street instead it has small plant beds, we don't have random chickens crossing the road anymore, the road is paved, and people drive cars. The reasons/suppositions behind why I things have changed is that the technology and machinery had an impact on the world because the more technology and machines created, the more Roanoke grew into that town it is today. The way I perceive Roanoke was back then was that it was a fast- growing town because of the more things that were invented more buildings were built and power lines were placed. Today, I perceive Roanoke still as a fast-growing town although things are different. I really don't think things will change but there is a possibility that things will change. Things that will remain the same is the majority of the buildings because they tell a story about Roanoke and what the changes it went through to be what it is today.

Randle House

This is the left side of the Randle House, the side of the house looks the same way it did years ago. The only thing that has changed about this house would be the white fence which is not there anymore, and that the steps have moved over into the middle of the porch. I think that the owners of the house changed it to make it more modern, and so that it would fit in with more houses today. From this photo it looks like a wealthy slave owners could have lived in this house. I think that the bushes around the house may get cut down, and maybe some trees so you can see the house a little bit better.

The picture I was given was the asylum and also a hospital, some people in roanoke was also born their. One similarity is the small balcony is still there and looks like it's stable and the shoot where they drop the dead bodies are still there, the long thick poles are still holding the roof up. One big difference is the small car isn’t in front of the building no more, The rose bush isn’t on the right of building. The rose bush probably died because wasn’t nobody taking care of it, and the small car probably got moved because the owner either moved it under the small garage. Roanoke looked like it was mediocre town that didn’t have nothin out the extraordinary.  I think in a couple years the building won’t be their, and also somebody might try to rebuild the asylum.

Downtown

The building across the street was once the the Merchants and Farmers Bank building. It still is the tallest building on main street. Not much has changed since this picture was taken. They both look the same other than all the people and the drug store sign. Back then the streets were covered in people and roanoke was booming at that time. My prediction for the future is when 22 bypass comes to play, downtown roanoke will loose all the business due to less traffic going through on a daily basis. Just like it did when 431 bypass did in the 70’s.

Judge Moore House- Katlyn Wilson

     This historic photo of the Judge Moore house was taken in the early 1900s. It is presently the Cato's house on North Main Street. There are various similarities, both the houses are still white and still had most of the same features. As for the differences, the present house doesn't have the chimney, along with the poles on top of the house. I believe some of these features have changed because most of it is upgraded and looks newer. I perceive that back in the 1900s, Roanoke was a very popular place. Today it is lesser known, a small town community. I feel like in the future, this house will be a home for new people. For the most part, I think this house will remain the same, at the very most, there'll be small renovations to it. 

downtown roanoke old vs new

My historic picture is downtown roanoke in the 1900s and has a lot of cars parked next to very old buildings.Some similarities of both the pictures are the theater is still there and then road are some what the same.Some differences are the stores on the far left are gone leaving a big open space and lots of the stores don't have a hanging thing.I know that things have changed because almost all the stores are either gone or something different.From the picture it looked as if roanoke was the hype city like las vegas but a whole lot smaller.I think that roanoke will stay more or less the same as it was then.

Picture This/ THe Sanders Residence by Pilara Gay.

This historic picture is the Sander's Residence in Roanoke, AL.
As you see in comparison of both pictures, the porch is still the same.
On the circular roof to the left, there was added a roof and the drapes were removed.
I believe the new owners changed a few things over the years.
I thought Roanoke was too small to have such beautiful houses back in the day.
It still has the beautiful structure as it did many years ago.
I predict that in the future this house will only become more beautiful over time.
If other owners come in, they will add many decorations in order to add more value to the house.

The bridge at the randle home.

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In my pictures it captures the bridge that crosses the stream. In both pictures it has the picket fence in the back and the house in the back. The kids are not in our picture although we did try that. it didn't look right. Both of our pictures contain the bridge. In the old picture there is a overhead cabana on the bridge. The seasons have changed and the trees have been removed out of the front yard. The cabana thing has most likely fallen over the years. Roanoke was a nice community and nice all year round. In the future it is most likely gonna be the same the fence will probably fall the bridge might collapse.

                      

Here I have a historic photo of downtown mainstreet in Roanoke AL. Mainstreet today vs mainstreet back then has come a long way tremendously. But there are some things that remain the same, you just have to go out for yourself and see it. The area now known as Roanoke was settled originally in the 1830s and was initially named High Pine for nearby High Pine Creek; the new settlement reportedly burned in 1836, allegedly during an attack by Native Americans. The city became known as Chulafinee in 1840. There are some similarities back then as there still is today, which includes the buildings, most of the buildings back then still remain today. The differences that stand out today are the the ways the roads were being used, in the older picture cars were parking in the middle of the roads, now today you can’t do that. I believe that things have changed because of all the new inventions and more jobs developing throughout the years, to bring new and better things. Back then it looks like Roanoke would be a lot smoother and less things going on and happening, rather than today things happen all the time and everything doesn’t go as smooth as they did back then. I think the buildings would change, I believe some of these buildings will turn into stores and what not due to population and I think the old theatre will remain the same, with very little changes.

Aerial View of Main Street: Then vs. Now

My historical photo is an aerial view of Main Street in downtown Roanoke, Alabama. This shot was taken on Highway 22 facing Highway 431.The route of the road is still the same; The old Roanoke Banking Company, later known as the City Cafe, still stands and functions as City Salon. Across from this building stands The First National Bank, which used to be Farmers and Merchants bank; It is now the law office of Kesa Johnson. The building directly beside the bank, used to be the Bingham Store; Beside this was the B.D. & T.L. Awbrey store. Handley Hardware was also beside those. The economy increased and people's wants and needs changed. Because of this, the streets are now more structured and the horse and buggys changed to automoblies. Roanoke was home to a lot of family-owned businesses back then, yet now downtown is mainly empty lots. I feel as if downtown Roanoke will grow slowly over a period of time, due to the fact that recently we have been trying to build up that part of town again. More locally-owned stores are being put in, so I see a trend happening soon.

Main Street

Through the years Main Street has evolved from dirt and horses to pavement and motor vehicles. In the collage above, the changes in Main Street are shown. The time before cars and trucks seem to be very simple. I feel like life was much simpler and people were more friendly. In the left photo, people are shown communicating, but in the right photo no one is in sight. I feel like “back in the day” people weren’t so rushed or focused on materialistic items. On the other hand, Main Street has managed to keep the same layout when it comes to buildings and their positions.

Picture Project

My photo is of a side of a building taken then and now. Some of the things still are there, some are different. For example the stairs have been redone, the plants that were there aren’t anymore. For some similarities the house, the columns, and the sidewalk type of thing still looks the same. For some future looks of the building I feel like it’s columns, and the structure of the building will be rebuilt or changed in some way or the other.

My photo is of an old grocery store in downtown Roanoke in present day 2017. Some of its similarities are still there like the shape of building and the surrounding buildings. The differences that you would probably recognize is that the sign is not there and is writing on the building. I believe things have changed because the new stores and walmart coming to Roanoke caused the stores to run out of business and eventually closed. I perceived Roanoke's downtown area back then to be the place to be when it came to groceries and things and was the busiest part of the whole town. The area of downtown roanoke has been getting redone in some spots to make it look better and more people have started to open up stores and businesses but with the expansion of Roanoke I don't think it will return to its original glory.

Picture This

The first photo is a parade for the Randolph County Training School and the second photo is present day main street at the spot the picture of the parade was took. The similarities of the photo is the car lot in the past photo is still being used to fix and sell cars. The differences in the photo is now we have built a dollar tree on the left side of the street. And now instead of separate parades we just have one parade for the town with Handley High Marching Band leading it. The reasons that these things have changed is because we all go to the same school now instead of us being separated into multiple schools. Back then there was multiple schools for the kids like the mill kids went to Knight Enloe and the City kids went to Handley and of course the Randolph County Training School. I predict that M.L Awbreys will remain there but I believe that Roanoke will slow begin to expand again.   

CS Picture Project 8/15/17 Jakob Daniel

These two pictures are of the Wells Fargo bank on main street in downtown Roanoke, Alabama. The bank is still located in the same spot as it was in the first picture above. Over the years there has been many different changes that have been made to the bank. The bank has been restored to a more modern bank and now has a drive thru section added. I believe the changes were changed to more modern looking to make it easier for people to do what they need to do faster. I think of Roanoke back then as a booming town and died down and became more relaxed and laid back in the years. In the future it will be the same ole small town and nothing will really change except the people.

Historic photo

My Photo is of main street looking more at the church. There is not any special going on in either photo besides a people out for the day. The only thing that is in the photos that are the same is the church. The way people park on main street has also changed because most people pull over to the side of the road instead of parking in the median. The differences of the photos is the building. There use to be many building all along main street by the church and now there is a big green field in between the church and the nearest building. I believe that over time that the building were no longer safe to be in and as technology grew they took down the building to create a safer environment. I believe that from the photo that life on main street was very lively and thrived. I believe that the building and the area on main street will later be better buildings and be restored.  

Downtown Roanoke

My historic photo is of the corner by Wells Fargo. I tried to get the picture as best as I could to match the picture from back then. The two pictures still look the same. Just one is up to date and in color. The main difference I notice is that the bank isn’t as grown up and everything is up to date. I think this place has changed so much based on the city itself. From the picture back then I would’ve thought Roanoke was just a small town city where everyone knew everybody. I feel like roanoke will stay the same. Some buildings will be renovated and small things will change but nothing major I don’t feel like. I feel like it will stay the same city where everyone loves high school football and comes together to do whatever it may be.

Chestnut Street

My historic photo is of Chestnut street in Roanoke, Alabama. On the right side of the picture is where Bonner's Hotel used to be. The hotel was built in 1917. The hotel is where the Roanoke rotary club met when it was first created. After the hotel closed it was used as a boarding house. Then the building was demolished after it hadn’t been used for along time. Some of the similarities that are still there are the buildings, the light polls, etc. The Bonner’s Hotel isn’t there anymore, but the tilling from the floor is still there. The cars look different. As time has went on things have deteriorated and went away. Things have gotten older and changed. Back then I could see this street being very busy and crowded with the hotel being there and today it isn’t as busy. I think the buildings are going to change. The buildings might start to fall in overtime. I think there will always be something to remember the buildings being there.

Bonner Hotel

My historic photo is the Bonner Hotel, well really the platform of it because it is no longer there. This hotel is located of Chestnut Street, each room had large rooms and bathrooms. The differences in the pictures that stand out the most to me are that the building is no longer there, there are cars parked on it. My reasons for the reason why this building has changed because over the years people started changing things up to make Roanoke look different. I think back in the back Roanoke was a busy place because we had hotels and now today it's not like it use to be because everything has changed. I think in the future more things will be added and it will become more busy because Roanoke is starting to liven up. I also think some things will stay the same because they are new and people aren’t gonna want to lose it.

downtown roanoke

This is a picture of historic downtown Roanoke, Al. This is probably in the early 1900’s around the time the W.A Handley company built a textile mill. The buildings are laid out similar. The road has the same right turn, some of the buildings are the original buildings. Some of the differences are the stop sign, the cars and I also see a horse, many of the building structures have changed. This area is not the busy part of town any longer. Arrows on the road are news. The main part of town has moved mainly because of wal-mart, and other businesses closed because of large corporations. I believe Roanoke has really not changed that much, when it comes to people. But there are no longer small family owned businesses. People still go to work and come to town to be seen. I think this part of town will eventually close down without something new and fun for the youth, it will not survive.

Dowtown Mainstreet-Then & Now

Roanoke, Alabama is home to 5,984 people, so I guess you could call us a small town.  Though our town may be small, our history is large.  Main Street in Roanoke is and has always been the beautiful, focal point of our town.  Throw it back a hundred years, and tiny, little Main Street was the place to be.  People would come from bigger cities just to be in the Roanoke, Alabama mix.  Now, it seems so abandoned and full of old, boring buildings, but the history of these, “old, boring buildings,” is quite interesting.  The two photos were taken on Main Street.  The top left picture is a picture of the City Cafe in 1920.  The City Cafe was originally was The Roanoke Banking Co.  The restaurant was opened by the Rombakus family (Greek immigrants.) A fun fact is that, Clark Gable who played Rhett from Gone with the Wind ate here! The (now) window on the front was actually a door to the bank.  The Rombakus family turned the door into what is now a window!  The building exterior has not changed on most of the buildings including this beautiful Cafe that is now City Salon, run by Angel Whaley.  The top right picture is a photo looking down Main Street towards the City Cafe and First National Bank.  First National Bank never opened as a national bank it was actually the merchant and farmer’s bank.  When it was Merchants and Farmers Bank, Mr. Z. J. Wright was the President of the bank.  When the depression came, the bank closed.  It was later reopened by Mr. Joe Owens under the name City Bank & Trust Co..  Much like the City Cafe, the exterior of the Bank was not changed.  It is now a law office of Kesa Johnson, and the original safe is still in there as well.  There are many changes outside on the streets.  There are less power poles, and the sidewalks have gotten a lot better!  People back in the olden days used to crowd the streets and live their daily lives and enjoy each other. I think the social aspects of the pictures changed more than physical because now people do not stop or really have a reason to stop which they would have back then when there were more business.  People now just pass through and admire the old buildings and ride the streets that were once full of life.  I believe things have changed all because time has become one of the bigger obsessions of us, we just do not have the time to socialize anymore.  However, Roanoke is becoming what it once was, on Main Street.  New businesses are starting daily.  I feel, in the future we will be thriving like we once were 100 years ago, with the same beautiful structures and with the same beautiful history.

The elephant

The historic photo is a an elephant. It was homemade sculpted. The elephant started as a fake rocky sea cliff that eventually lost its lighthouse. The elephant was also a reported as a giant tooth. Some similarities that still exist between the two pictures is that the building still has two doors in the front and the “eye” in the middle. The differences in the two photos are that now the building has an awning in front, and in the older picture the building had a shed to park a car under. The building has aged and the shed is no longer there anymore. I think Roanoke might have been a fun place to be on the weekends because of the things downtown. Today, Roanoke doesn’t have a theatre or a few other things to do like they did years ago. The future of this area I think will be busier and there will be more things to do because over the years more things have been added such as restaurants, ice cream shops, hair salons and various other things.

Louina

My historic photo is of Louina Street facing East Courtesy of H.M, Rumbley. There are more trees visible in the picture I captured but the historic photo only has one tree and many more houses. The present photo only one house is shown. It seems in the older photo the town was booming they needed more houses. I think things have changed because of how booming the town was back then also if you look a the roads they have moved slightly. I see the town being very cozy back in the day as in the new picture it looks run down or not as busy. I do not think the new picture of the area will change anytime soon.

Yates Motor Company

My historical photo is of Yates Motor Company, who was the first auto supplier in 1916. The building is no longer there. One big thing that stands out is the the building is not there. Also the land has grown up surrounding and is more of a small parking lot. There is no longer Yates Motor Company because Roanoke had a drop off in population and stopped being a booming town. Roanoke back then was a busy place that was changing with the world. There was a constant crowd coming through giving all the stores business. Today, we have slown down to a steady crawl and many of the once popular stores have closed down.

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