Mazzara's
About Us
A Historic Location
Mazzara’s Vinoteca is located in the historic Humphreys-Rodgers house in Huntsville, Alabama.
Since its construction in 1848, it has been expanded and altered at least 3 times, saved from demolition twice, and moved once. The house was built by David Campbell Humphreys, a four-term member of the Alabama House of Representatives and anti-secessionist during the Civil War.
Prior to 1861, an additional room was added to the west of the entrance, creating a three-room plan with a central hall. Many Greek Revival details were added to the interior around this time. The house was extensively modified around 1886, when Augustus D. Rodgers bought the house from the Humphreys. Rodgers had been appointed a judge on the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia.
The previous gable roof was replaced with a hipped roof, and a two-story hipped roof portico was added to the faḉade, giving the house its current Colonial Revival appearance. By 1913, the ell had been replaced with a central, two-story ell that featured a one-story portico with fluted columns.
By the 1970s, the house was vacant and in disrepair, and the encroaching development of a Coca-Cola bottling plant and the Von Braun Center threatened its presence. Efforts by preservationists led the bottling plant to purchase the house and renovate it for use as offices and a Coca-Cola memorabilia museum. Part of the effort led to the house’s listing on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. In 1990, the bottling plant needed to expand, and the house faced demolition once again.
In the early morning hours of March 27,1991, many Hunstvillians awoke to see roughly 400 tons of Huntsville history being moved by truck through town. The Humphreys-Rodgers House was being moved just over a half mile from its original location next to the Coca-Cola Bottling Company to its new home on the corner of Gates Avenue and Fountain Circle.
Mazzara’s boasts a beautiful entertaining space perfect for an intimate gathering or group dinner. Want to host your own party but don’t want to cook? Mazzara’s made-from-scratch Italian cuisine makes a perfectly catered event.
