Bell House
a.k.a. Biggs House
550 Upper Kingston Rd., Prattville, ALThe Bell House is eligible for listing in the National Register under Criteria C, Architecture. The Bell House is significant as an outstanding example of the Queen Anne style of architecture, a Victorian house form that reached its zenith in Alabama at the turn of the 20th century.
The Bell House is eligible for listing in the National Register under Criterion C, Architecture. The Bell House is significant as an outstanding example of the Queen Anne style of architecture, a Victorian house form that reached its zenith in Alabama at the turn of the 20th century but persisted locally as late as 1920. With its classical order columnar porch supports and detailing, the Bell House is an example of the "Free Classic" variant of the Queen Anne style, identified by architectural historians as a close relative of the first generation of Colonial Revival homes.) Most often constructed in urban areas, Queen Anne houses were usually large in scale and most often built of wood. Demonstrative of a high level of craftsmanship, and resplendent in the eclecticism and sophistication of its interior, the Bell House is an important representation of the aesthetics of the urban upper class during the late 19th century. The eclectic stylistic details of the interior reflect a wide range of historicist design, giving evidence to the broad education of the house's architect and to the voluminous breadth of Victorian tastes. The home, which is the most elaborate and high-styled example of Queen Anne architecture remaining in Prattville, was constructed in 1893 for Joseph Bennett Bell, a merchant who was a son-in-law of prominent local industrialist Merrill Pratt. The Bell House is also significant as its design has been attributed to prominent architect Frank Lockwood (1869-1936,) a native of New Jersey who had established a practice in Columbus, Georgia by the time of the home's construction.
Local significance of the building:Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.