Tuscaloosa's historic Drish House coming back to life

Published: Saturday, March 14, 2015 at 11:00 p.m. Last Modified: Saturday, March 14, 2015 at 11:11 p.m.

Through the years, the Drish House has changed hands several times, serving at various times as a public school, a garage and a meeting place for a church. Local legend has it that a ghost once roamed its halls.

The story of the historic house on 17th Street, built in 1837, has been one of deterioration followed by renewal.

Now, Nika McCool, who bought the vacant house in 2014 from the Tuscaloosa County Preservation Society, hopes the time is ripe for resurgence again.

"I feel really strongly in private enterprise having a role to play in the preservation of historic buildings," said McCool, who lives in the Birmingham suburb of Mountain Brook. "There are only so many period restorations that can be done, and after that, if you want them to be saved, they need to find a place in 21st-century society. They need to become part of the day-to-day life of society again, and that's what my business is dedicated to doing."

Ian Crawford is director of the Jemison-Van de Graaff Foundation, a nonprofit that helps take care of the Jemison-Van de Graaff Mansion on Greensboro Avenue. Crawford says McCool's effort is vital to Tuscaloosa.

"No city has a successful rehabilitation program without including historic preservation, and that's been shown time and time again," Crawford said. "We're hoping that things like the Drish coming back will help people understand how important historic preservation and building conservation are."

McCool's renovation has been organized into two phases. Her first objective was to restore the outer facade. Repairs were made to the roof, stucco and masonry. The woodwork and windows were replaced, and more than 100 gallons of paint were used. Now she is conquering the interior, with plans to have it completed by fall. Then she hopes to locate someone who could find a good use for the building.

She sees the space, with its mostly open floor plan downstairs, being used as an event venue for weddings and parties. The upstairs has been sectioned off into smaller rooms that once held Sunday school classes and now could be used for office space.

"It's right next to the new brewery and the new gym," Crawford said. "It could be a great restaurant, it could be offices, a little cafe, artists' lofts. We've talked about everything under the sun."

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Tuscaloosa's historic Drish House coming back to life