The Bottle, Alabama

The Bottle
Unincorporated community
A 1924 picture of "The Bottle"
A 1924 picture of "The Bottle"
The Bottle is located in Alabama
The Bottle
The Bottle
The Bottle is located in the United States
The Bottle
The Bottle
Coordinates: 32°40′34″N 85°29′11″W / 32.67611°N 85.48639°W / 32.67611; -85.48639
CountryUnited States
StateAlabama
CountyLee
Elevation
761 ft (232 m)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-6 (EDT)
GNIS feature ID153675[1]

The Bottle is a community located in the northern corporate limits of Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Bottle is located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 280 and Alabama Highway 147, five miles (8.0 km) north of downtown Auburn, and adjacent to the Auburn University North Fisheries Research Complex.

The Bottle is located at 32°40′34″N 85°29′11″W; its elevation is 760 feet (230 m).

The Bottle is named for the bright orange wooden replica of a Nehi soda bottle which stood in the location from 1924 to 1936. It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.[2]

History

Built in 1924, and billed as "the world's largest bottle", The Bottle (sometimes referred to as The "Nehi Inn") was built by John F. Williams, owner of the Nehi Bottling Company, in Opelika, Alabama. The Bottle stood 64 feet (20 m) tall, and measured forty-nine feet (15 m) in diameter at the base, and 16 feet (4.9 m) at the cap. The ground floor was a grocery store and service station, and the second and third floors were living quarters and storage. The neck of the Bottle had windows so as to be used as an observation tower. The "bottle cap" was the roof. Inside there was a spiral oak stairway. The Bottle became a gathering place for tourists and locals alike to swap yarns and have parties every Friday night on the balcony above the service station.[3]

The Auburn Heritage Association held a historic marker dedication at the original location of "The Bottle" on April 25, 2015, at the corner of U.S. Highway 280 and Alabama Highway 147 (North College Street)[4]

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt stopped briefly at The Bottle after visiting Auburn, as did Grand Ole Opry comedian Minnie Pearl.[3]

According to a 2001 account by W. A. "Arthur" Wood, The Bottle burned at 5:00 one morning in fall 1936.[3] However, multiple contemporary newspapers claim The Bottle burned down in 1933, 1935, or 1937.[5][6]

"The Bottle" (2006)

Although the structure no longer exists, and the former location is only an empty lot, a historic plaque and a photograph mark the location, and Alabama maps still list the area as "The Bottle". The property was put on sale in 2005. The land was purchased in early 2006 by the Hayley Redd Development Company.

See also

References

  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: The Bottle, Alabama
  2. ^ Duncan, Andy (2005). Alabama Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities & Other Offbeat Stuff. Globe Pequot. pp. xii. ISBN 9780762730889.[permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ a b c Buckner, Brett (May 6, 2001). "The storied past of a piece of Auburn 'pop' culture". Opelika-Auburn News.
  4. ^ Thursday, April 23, 2015, The Auburn Villager by Katy Thorson interviewing Jill Sybalsky and Anne Booth "Locals to remember 'The Bottle' in dedication"
  5. ^ Sybalsky, Jill Marci. Jill Marci and Her Ancestors Maternal Side (Library Edition).
  6. ^ "The Bottle". Lee County Bulletin. July 22, 1937.

Sources

  • Logue, Mickey & Simms, Jack (1996). Auburn: A Pictorial History of the Loveliest Village, Revised. Auburn, Ala. ISBN 1-885860-08-0