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A legacy of collecting, preserving, and educating the community and beyond.

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Formed in 1992, The Montgomery County Historical Society, a tax-exempt non-profit organization housed within the Figh Pickett Barnes School House, has been collecting, documenting, and sharing Montgomery County’s rich history. The Historical Society also seeks to collect and preserve the records of its historic house, the former early twenty-century home of the Barnes School for Boys.


 

Alabama Humanities Alliance Funding

November 8th, 2024|

MCHS is pleased to announce that we have received grant funding in recent months from the Alabama Humanities Alliance (AHA), a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. The mission of AHA is to foster learning, understanding, and appreciation of Alabama’s people, communities, and cultures. The ultimate goal is to use the humanities to bring Alabamians [...]

Marie Bankhead Owen was one of Alabama’s most formidable and enduring cultural forces: archivist, historian, author, clubwoman, and, for decades, the state’s unofficial guardian of memory and manners. 

From 1910 to 1917, she was part of the staff at the Montgomery Advertiser, where she oversaw the Women’s Society page and authored a popular advice column for young women titled “Talks with Girls.” Published right before women’s suffrage, the column combined practical advice on etiquette, dress, courtship, and household management with gentle encouragement for education, independence, and public service. 

In 1893, she married Thomas M. Owen, the young lawyer who became the first director of the newly established Alabama Department of Archives and History in 1901. When Thomas died suddenly in 1920, Governor Thomas E. Kilby appointed Marie to succeed him—the first woman in the United States to head a state archive. She directed the department for thirty-five years (1920–1955), turning it into a model institution and overseeing the construction of the landmark archives building, which was dedicated in 1940. 

Learn more: https://www.mchsal.org/exhibitions-spring-2026/#bankheads

Visit Tuesday through Thursday from 9 AM until 4 PM. Closed on federal holidays.

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The first federal income tax Form 1040 was introduced for the tax year 1913, following the 16th Amendment. The 1913 form was a four-page document (including instructions) featuring a 1% normal tax on income over $3,000, with super-tax rates up to 6% on higher incomes.
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