MALBIS, Ala. — Malbis Plantation near Daphne in Baldwin County was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on May 10. 

The plantation is important for its role in Greek-American history and for its variety of historic buildings, most notably Malbis Memorial Church.

Italians, Scandinavians, Germans, Poles and Greeks came to Baldwin County around 1900 to farm and raise livestock on timberland. A specific ethnic group founded each settlement. Many of these immigrants came indirectly from Europe via industrial cities in the northern United States. It was unusual for Greek immigrants to live in the rural South. Most settled in large cities, taking whatever jobs they could find. 

Jason Malbis, a native of Greece who had lived in Chicago, founded Malbis Plantation in 1906. Here, Malbis’ Greek compatriots lived and worked communally under his direction, rather than on their own family farms. 

Malbis Plantation’s landscape includes perhaps the largest and best preserved collection of agricultural buildings in the county. It also features industrial buildings, the 1907 Big House, the Malbis Nursery building and the Tampary-Simmons House.  These latter two resources illustrate a Mediterranean Revival architecture with Classical Greek elements that is distinctive for the region. 

The architectural crown jewel of Malbis Plantation is Malbis Memorial Church. The church is representative of Greek Orthodox churches and is an example of the Neo-Byzantine style in the state.   

The National Register of Historic Places is a program of the National Park Service and is the nation’s official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation. The Alabama Historical Commission administers the program in Alabama.