W.E. Temple Company and Planing Mills

W.E. Temple Company and Planing Mills

Industry

Another lumber company located in the downtown Florence area, W.E. Temple Company and Planning Mills was a fixture in Florence at the beginning of the twentieth century. W.E. Temple was well known for his architectural ability because he constructed the 1901 Lauderdale County Courthouse and the 1903 Florence First United Methodist Church, which met an unfortunate demise in a fire in 1920, and the Florence Post Office in 1912-1913. Shortly after completing the federal building, the Temples left for Hopewell, Virginia to make a new home. Temple’s Planning Mill was originally located alongside Sweetwater Creek on Huntsville Road between Sweetwater Avenue and Minnehaha Street.

M.C. Fesmire, University of North Alabama

Text Sources:

McDonald, William Lindsey. "A Walk Through the Past: People and Places of Florence and Lauderdale County, Alabama." Killen, Ala., Bluewater Publications, 2003.

McDonald, William Lindsey. "Remembering Sweetwater: The Mansions, The Mills, The People." photos by L.D. Staggs, Jr. Killen, Ala., Bluewater Publications, 2002.

Picture Source:

UNA Archives & Special Collection. William L. McDonald Collection. “W.E. Temple Company and Planning Mills.” Florence, Alabama. Box 12: Florence Industry, 12-15.

Alabama Cultural Resource Survey

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