SILVERHILL, Ala. — The Save the Little Hall Committee hosted an open house and recognition ceremony on Sunday, Jan. 11 at the Little Bohemian Hall in Silverhill.

“This is the biggest crowd we’ve had in here in a long time,” said Save the Little Hall Committee Chairman Frankie Kucera.

Kucera recognized and handed out certificates to those who served on the Save the Little Hall Committee and contributed to the rebuilding of the structure.

In March of 2011 the building sustained extensive damage during a tornado. Two months later the Silverhill Town Council voted to proceed with plans to demolish the structure and build a new Community Center.

Following the vote, several concerned residents came forward asking to save the structure, and another three months of discussions later, in August of 2011, plans proceeded to save the Little Hall and move it to a new location.

Another six months of discussions followed, trying to decide what to do with the structure, where it could be moved and how to move it. Then, on Feb. 13, 2012 a proposal was presented to the Council at a specially called meeting to move the structure closer to the corner of Third Avenue and Fourth Street near the town’s water tower.

After receiving no objection from the Havel family, who donated the land for the park and approved the usage of the land when the structure was moved in the 1970s, and confirming with the town’s insurance company that, as long as they give the building a new address, it can stay at the park, the Town Council voted at its regular meeting March 5 to move the structure to its new home at the corner of Third Avenue and Fourth Street, mere feet from where the structure sat for more than 30 years.

Three weeks later, after receiving approval from the town’s Planning Commission and following the proper procedures to facilitate the move, employees with the Town of Silverhill and Fauver’s Movers out of Semmes worked together to right, turn and move the structure from facing east toward Second Street to facing north toward Fourth Avenue.

The building will serve as more than just a meeting place, said former mayor Frankie Kucera, who has headed up the project and served as chairman of the Save the Little Hall Committee since the beginning. It will also serve as a museum of sorts, showing the history of the town and specifically its Czech and other heritage which has so long been a part of the identity of the town.

On display Sunday were numerous photos that lined the walls from the early days of the town.

"We're giving this back to the town for use by the people of Baldwin County," Kucera said. "This building has served people well and it is our hope that the town will be able to get a lot more use out of it."