Sweet Home Alabama: Then and Now – 12 Years Later

Deep South Glass (Real name: Starr’s Mill)
This is the glassblowing store in the movie where Jake showcased all his glassware. Although it took a lot of work to transform an old dusty mill into a retail store, the film crew only spent 1 day filming at this location.

Originally, the Simon Pearce store in Vermont was chosen as the building for Jake’s store, but when scouts stumbled upon Starr’s Mill the film crew decided to renovate the historic landmark for the scene instead. In order for the old mill to look like an actual store, the art and construction departments joined forces to bring the building back to life and make it shine once again. The exterior of the building received a fresh coat of paint, front deck was rebuilt, and a arch bridge was built from scratch. While the bridge was left standing at the location after filming was completed, it was washed away in 2005 due to a flood caused by Hurricane Dennis. Since most made-for-movie construction projects aren’t built for longevity, it was inevitable that the bridge would one day suffer the wrath of mother nature.

The property that ultimately became Starr’s Mill was originally owned by Hannaniah Gilcoat who built the very first mill in the early 1800s. In 1866, Hillard Starr purchased the mill and his name has been attached to the mill ever since. The building that sits on the property today was built by William T. Glower in 1907 and it operated until 1959. In 1991, the Fayette County Water System purchased Starr’s Mill which included the mill, outbuilding, dam, and more than 15 acres of land.

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