After 54 years of standing on the University of Alabama campus and serving as home to tens of thousands of female students, Tutwiler Hall was demolished in spectacular fashion on Monday morning.

Tutwiler Hall was named after Julia Tutwiler, who was known as the mother of coeducation in Alabama.

Tutwiler successfully lobbied The University of Alabama Board of Trustees to allow female students admittance to the University. The first women, Bessie Parker and Anna Adams, were admitted in 1893. Julia Tutwiler was also a successful advocate for prison reform in Alabama, and she wrote the official state song.

The Tutwiler Hall demolished Monday was the second iteration of Julia Tutwiler Hall. The first Tutwiler Hall was built on the UA campus in 1914 and was demolished in the late 1960s. Rose Administration Building now occupies that area.

The Tutwiler Hall razed Monday housed more than 50,000 women since its opening in 1968.

The building had 13 floors, although there was no 13th floor. Elevators skipped from floor 12 to floor 14 due to superstition. The building’s most recent bed capacity was 1,000.

A comprehensive evaluation of the building determined that a renovation would not be cost-effective, so UA built a new Tutwiler Hall next to the old building.

The new Tutwiler Hall, which will open in August, has a bed capacity of 1,284 and will feature state-of-the-art furnishings and amenities, with a hybrid community-apartment style setup of double-capacity bedrooms. Each room will feature two twin beds with a shared private bathroom.

The building will also feature public community spaces with TVs and white boards, outdoor social spaces, laundry rooms on each floor, a fitness area, craft room and large storm shelter which will also serve as a multipurpose room. Watch this video to see what the new Tutwiler will look like.

Tutwiler Hall has been and will remain an all-women residence hall that primarily houses freshmen.

The implosion was performed by D.H. Griffin Wrecking Company from Birmingham and Dykon Explosive Demolition Corporation from Bixby, Oklahoma.

About 1,600 holes were drilled in the structural columns of the building where about 500 pounds of dynamite was placed.

You can watch the demolition here (skip to the 20-minute mark for the real action):

For more memories of Tutwiler Hall, visit:
https://news.ua.edu/2022/06/tutwiler-hall-the-end-of-an-era/