Thursday, the Alabama Republican Party named their headquarters in Hoover after former party Chairman and former State Senator Bill Armistead. Armistead purchased the commercial building in Hoover during his tenure as party Chairman from 2011 to 2015.
The headquarters, located at 3505 Lorna Road in Hoover, was dedicated in honor of former ALGOP Chairman Bill Armistead who secured the funding necessary to purchase the building. The ALGOP Executive Committee passed a resolution in August 2019 naming the building after Chairman Armistead.
The Christmas open house and dedication ceremony was attended by GOP elected officials, candidates and members of the Alabama Republican Party Executive Committee.
Alabama Republican Party Chairman Terry Lathan said that this building and our party stands on a foundation built on principles.
Lathan said that today sixty five percent of the partisan elected offices in the state are held by Republicans.
“It was the donors, like Frank and Betty Mason (who attended the Christmas open house) that made this possible,” Armistead said. “I don’t want to take credit.”
Armistead said that that the Alabama Republican Party’s success has been a process that has been underway for just over 50 years. He credited Alabama Republican Congressman John Grenier with resurrecting the party in 1962.
Armistead said that Jim Martin (R) challenged incumbent U.S. Senate Lister Hill, D-Alabama, that year and got officially 49.5 percent of the vote. He really won but some things happened on election night that took that away so officially he got 49.5 percent.
Armistead said that although Martin did not win, the first Republican Alabama state legislators of the twentieth century were elected that year on his coat tails.
Armistead said that he was a college student at Samford, who was excited by the candidacy of Barry Goldwater for President and asked Grenier how he could help the campaign. Grenier told him to go back to Samford and organize a Samford College Republican Party, which he did and has been involved in the party in the decades since.
Armistead said that in 1964 five Republican Congressmen, including Martin, were sewept in, the first GOP Congressmen from Alabama in almost a century.
Armistead said that as Chairman he hosted Mitt Romney, R-Massachusetts, at the party’s old headquarters and was embarrassed by their basement dwellings.
The current building came on the market and Armistead wanted to purchase it. He approached Bill Featheringill about his vision. Featheringill said that he could just write a check for the $500,000 purchase price; but encouraged Armistead to find a team of donors to help raise the capital to fund the purchase. Armistead did that and he credited Featheringill, the Masons, Julian Davidson, and Grenier’s family for being among the ten donors who provided the funds to buy the building and pay it off. Featheringill passed away shortly after we purchased the building and Davidson passed while we were in the process of purchasing it.
Armistead said that in the decades he had been involved in the state steering money there had been several headquarters and they were constantly spending money on rent.
Armistead said that it was appropriate that we celebrate the building dedication during Christmas season while we celebrate our savior, Jesus Christ.
Lathan presented Armistead with the ALGOP gavel that he and she used as Chair.
