The Fairhope Museum is located on the Faulkner State Community College campus in the Bell Building. It contains displays with photos and memorabilia from years past. Exhibit includes local Native American artifacts, Fairhope Single Tax items, Civil War displays, and much more. Visit the museum at 50 South School Street on the Faulkner Campus, Tuesday through Friday and on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The museum is staffed with volunteers and local resident and historian, Donnie Barrett, serves as the curator. With help from the Fairhope Single Tax Association, plans are underway for the museum to move next to the Welcome Center on Section Street in downtown Fairhope. For additional information, tour groups or to volunteer, call 990-0205.

It may not look like much now, but Fairhope’s old City Hall will soon look as good as new as home to the Fairhope Historical Museum.
 
One of the older structures in downtown, the Spanish Mission Revival style building was constructed in 1927 as City Hall. Most recently, with a metal ‘slipcover’ and false front, it served as Fairhope’s police station and city jail until 2001.
 
The Fairhope Single Tax Corporation is spearheading the renovation on the building, which will also include an expansion on the back of the property. “We’re working on those plans right now and hope to have that finalized by sometime in August,” said Larry Thomas, president of the FSTC. “The location is perfect, but it really doesn’t have a lot more space than the museum’s current location in the Bell Building on the Faulkner campus. We realized that we needed just a bit more building to make it work.”
 
The FSTC will transfer the facility back to the City of Fairhope when work is complete. Plans also include a new park and fountain behind the museum that will tie the property in with the new library. “All the plans are moving along and coming together nicely,” said Thomas.
 
City Councilman Mike Ford says everyone is “on the same wave length” when it comes to the new museum. “We’re all looking forward to the new location. My vision had always been to add on to the existing building, so I’m glad that’s coming together. I’m proud of our city and its history. I want the museum to be a place where newcomers can learn about Fairhope’s past but also a place for our children and grandchildren to enjoy and appreciate everything Fairhope is famous for, past and present.”
 
Donnie Barrett, who serves as curator of the museum, is thrilled about moving the facility from School Street to the heart of downtown. “The new building is right next to the Welcome Center and across the street from the library. It’s going to wonderful. We’re very excited about showcasing the beautiful architecture of the old building along with our many great artifacts.”
 
Barrett said the museum will feature changing exhibits. “We’re not going to just move the existing museum as it is. Instead, we will showcase our collection and frequently change the exhibits so that there will be new things to see all the time.”
 
Currently the City Historical Museum is open most afternoons from 2 to 4 pm. Barrett expects those hours to increase in the new facility. “We are looking for new volunteers and docents to help in the new museum,” he said.

The Marietta Johnson
Museum

Historic Bell Building

The Marietta Johnson Museum was founded in 1991 and exists to inform the public about the work and life of one of the visionaries of the early 20th century. Marietta Pierce Johnson founded the School of Organic Education in Fairhope in 1907.
 
This extraordinary woman and her school were influential both in drawing people to Fairhope and in the history of American education itself. Mrs. Johnson is among the most interesting and most influential individuals in the field of education in terms of creating an environment that fostered freedom of expression, love for learning and tolerance.
 
The Museum assured the preservation of the historic Bell Building when the Organic School campus was sold to the City of Fairhope in the mid 1980’s. Located in the historic building at 10 South School Street on what is now the Fairhope campus of Faulkner State Community College, the Museum houses a repository of documents, photographs, writings and other artifacts which serves as a research base for educators of today who seek to utilize Mrs. Johnson’s methods. 
 
The Museum was responsible for the casting of the Marietta Johnson Memorial Sculpture which is located on the bluff overlooking Mobile Bay at the foot of Cliff Street in Fairhope. Teaching Without Failure, a collection of Mrs. Johnson’s 2 books, Youth In A World Of Men and Thirty Years With An Idea, was published by the Museum and can be purchased at the Museum, by calling  (251)990-8601 or by emailing a request to: mariettajohnson@mindspring.com. In addition, the Museum maintains a web-site: www.mariettajohnson.org that helps keep Marietta Johnson’s name and accomplishments alive and available to virtual visitors from around the world. 
Museum hours are: 2 P. M. - 4 P. M. Monday through Friday or by appointment.