Who was Josephine?

By the fall of 1880, the brand new Josephine Hotel opened and was ready to take in travelers coming to or passing through the town of Union Springs.  With two major railroads intersecting in the city and a booming economy, Dr. Robert A. Fleming must have felt this was a worthy investment.  He gave the contract to build this magnificent hotel to the finest architectural firm - Messer, Daniel, & Britt of Eufaula.  This same firm had built a similar hotel on the mainstreet of Eufaula.

 At the time the hotel was built, cotton and other agriculture were very important to the city to continue it's growing economy.  More and more people flocked to Union Springs, to live, get jobs, and become a part of what was becoming a thriving city. The Josephine would now be a symbol of those prosperous times.  After all, the South overcame the challenges of a long and expensive war.  The past was behind them and the reconstruction was alive and well in Union Springs.

That fact that the Josephine Hotel was named in honor of Josephine Fleming, the wife of Dr. Fleming, made me even more curious about her.  There is very little documentation of her on record and the few facts locals know is limited to say the least.  But I knew there had to be more to know about her and I've recently stumbled upon some new information that I will be adding as my research continues.

Here's what the locals know:

1. Josephine's full name is Laura Josephine Cowan (Fleming).

2. She is the daughter of a prominent  Dr. from Eufaula.  Now this is where things get confused around here.  Many think her father was S. C. Cowan, (Samuel), also a doctor and from Aberfoil, which is not to far from Eufaula.  But actually, Samuel was the brother of Dr. William L. Cowan who is without any doubt, her Father. I have lots of research to back that up.

3. She is the wife of  Dr. Robert A. Fleming who, himself is not a native of Alabama, but was born in Georgia.  He came to Eufaula fresh out of medical school to study under Dr. William Cowan.  This is how he met Josephine.

4. It is said that the hotel is named in her honor because of her many virtues.

I will delve more into Josephine Fleming in upcoming posts.

Below: There are four of these cast iron plates, one at each entry way.  They read: Josephine Hotel, 1880. The 1880 would be in the rectangular.  You can barely make out 1880, but gosh, they are 136 years old.

 In this photo, (sorry about my shadow), you'll see half of the same iron entry plate. This is because it was where the original stairway led up to the hotel lobby.

In this photo the original entrance to the hotel leading up to the lobby was directly between the two white posts.

In these photos you see the original brick color peeking through.  The windows will soon be put back as the owners tell me.  They hope to have the old white paint removed so the original brick bringing the building back to it's original look. They are hoping to also add the original facade back to the building.  That being the balcony and it's beautiful wood railings.  That will something beautiful to see.

With a little closer look you can still see the sink there in the window.  Almost all the rooms have a sink in them.  They weren't there when the hotel was built but most likely added during one of the first renovations between 1903 and 1905

In my next post I will have more information about Josephine Fleming.

To keep up with current events at the hotel, check out the website at:

www.artatjosephine.com

and 

Follow them on Facebook at: Josephine Art Center