The Bridge House
Albany, Dougherty County, Georgia
Marker Inscription
The Bridge House. Here, at the site of an early ferry over the Flint River, Col. Nelson Tift, owner of bridge and ferry rights and the founder of Albany, had a toll bridge constructed by a well known bridge builder, a freed slave named Horace of Columbus. At the same time, in 1857, Col. Tift built this "Bridge House" with the archway serving as entrance to the bridge. The bridge keeper occupied one side of the ground floor; Col. Tift's office the other. The second floor was a theatre, known as "Tift's Hall." Decorated by New York artists, it was considered the most beautiful in the State. Many leading actors & actresses - Laura Keen, Sothern, Mrs. Oates, Sol Smith Russell, Harry McCarthy, the Crisp family, the Templetons - appeared on its stage. At this social center of Albany, dances, masked balls, public social events were held. During the War Between the States, the great cellars of this building were converted into packing houses and the back yard became a slaughter pen. Thousands of cattle, hogs, and sheep were barreled in pickle for the use of the Confederate Navy. 047-2 GEORGIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION 1958
Erected by Georgia Historical Commission
The Story
At a crossing of the Flint River where an early ferry once ran, Albany founder Col. Nelson Tift built a toll bridge in 1857, its span raised by Horace of Columbus, a freed Black bridge-builder of wide renown. Tift's adjoining 'Bridge House' held the bridge keeper's quarters and Tift's own office below, and above them 'Tift's Hall,' a lavishly decorated theatre that drew touring actors and hosted the town's grand balls. During the Civil War its cellars were turned into packing houses, curing meat for the Confederate Navy.
Why it matters
The building shows how a single riverside structure could serve at once as commerce, culture, and, in wartime, a cog in the Confederate supply line.
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Related people
- · Nelson Tift
- · Horace
Themes & tags
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