Escape to the Choctaw Wildlife Refuge
Alabama the Beautiful. Not just the slogan that warmly welcomes visitors to the state, beautiful truly describes the heart of Dixie, blessed not only with down home southern attitude but a God’s gracious smile across the scenic countryside and deep into its waters. Even with highfalutin plasma screen and high definition Direct tv Alabama can’t be done adequate justice except through the human eye. To truly appreciate Alabama’s natural beauty, you quite simply have to see it person. From the peak of Mount Cheaha, all the way down to the Gulf coast lowlands, the majority of Alabama has maintained a quaintly rural landscape, accented with quintessentially rustic cities, firmly rooted in the distinct styling of a simpler time.Perhaps nowhere in the state’s border are God’s gifts to Alabama showcased in more pristine condition than the Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge, located approximately 10 miles northwest of Coffeeville and 80 miles north of Mobile, in the southwestern region of the state. The Refuge has been shielded from human access in most capacity over the years, with much of the marsh and wetland area accessible only by boat, offering an undisturbed peak into nearly pure natural preservation.The refuge is fortunate to serve as the landing place for over 10,000 waterfowl, who call the Refuge home for the winter, among several other breeds of bird, highlighted by a pair of bald eagles in the colder months, and wood storks each summer.Of course fowl are far from alone in calling the Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge their own, joined by alligators, deer, beavers, among several other species of native Alabaman animals. (more…)
Tuskegee University: National Landmark and Educational Treasure
Tuskegee University is located in Tuskegee Alabama and is a school with a great academic history. It is also a school that has played a role in United States history, leading it to become a National Historic Landmark. It was established in 1881 and still plays a role as a fantastic educational university with around 3,000 students attending classes their today.
This is a place that people should take the time to see in person and learn about before visiting. Tuskegee University is a National Landmark and educational treasure (more…)
Barons Baseball
The Birmingham Barons are one of the most historic baseball teams in the south and a significant part of Alabama’s history. You can trace the history of the team all of the way back to 1885 when they played throughout the South. Today they are a minor league team associated with the Chicago White Sox. The team plays at the newly renovated Region Parks, which underwent extensive renovations in 2008. Once a year, however, the team goes back to its historic roots and plays at Rickwood Field in the Rickwood Classic. Rickwood Field (more…)
Rosa Parks Museum in Montgomery
The Rosa Parks Museum was created to remember Rosa Parks and what she stood for. She was a great women who was an activist for civil rights during the Civil Rights Movement. Because she was black, she was told she had to give up her seat to a white person on a Montgomery, Alabama city bus. Rosa Parks refused and history was written.
Rosa Park’s interactive museum is truly an inspiring place. The museums exhibits are very entertaining and informing. You will be (more…)
Christmas on the Coast
Alabama is home to some of the most beautiful land in Dixie, but despite its proud southern heritage, the state’s non-Northern location places it at a strategic disadvantage come Christmas time. When boys and girls go to bed at night in Alabama, their dreams of a white Christmas will almost certainly go unfulfilled.So went the inspiration behind the Alabama Gulf Coast’s new holiday tourism marketing campaign. Though you may not be able to look out your window and see white snow covering the ground, the Foley, Gulf Shores and Orange Beach area do have plenty of white sand on which to frolic. The official name of the campaign is “Coast this Holiday,” urging residents to get out of the house, take a vacation and take easy, literally coasting through the holiday season.Historically speaking, the November and December months are a lull for Alabama coastal tourism. As you might expect, the summer months see the heaviest traffic, though winter beach-going is not all too uncommon. The gulf does get its share of visitors during the colder months, though generally the business does pick up until the new year. (more…)
High Class Alabama Glass
Perhaps you’ve seen the movie Sweet Home Alabama. For those out there who haven’t, Melanie Smooter (Reece Witherspoon) finds herself in a local Alabama glass shop with her new “Yankee” boyfriend Andrew Hennings, only to discover the magical world of ornate trinkets and luxurious glass sculptures are owned and crafted by her hometown sweetheart, Jake Perry. Remove all the drama and what you have is an Alabama tradition, as boldly historic and beautiful as the great state herself. That’s right, glass blowing is alive and well in Alabama, a must-see attraction and souvenir shop for any visitor and a must-have staple of household dcor for any resident.Of course, as Hollywood tends to do, the movie overblows the glass blowing, telling tales of how the lighting strikes to cause glass formations, real life glass sculptures are commonly constructed through forces of man not nature. Yes, lighting does cause the formation of “fulgarite,” but it is less elegant than depicted on-screen. Present day Alabama is the proud home of more traditional forms of glass art. (more…)
Historical landmarks recognize Alabama’s early cultures
While Alabama has definitely defined its own local character and culture since its unification in 1819, there have been settlers living in the region for much longer. Several sites recognized as National Historic Landmarks in the area remind us of the cultures that preceded the Alabama of today.The Bottle Creek Indian Mounds are located at the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta in Mobile, Alabama. Archaeologists recognize the site as one of the premier locations of Mississippian culturethe Native American tribes that occupied the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern US between 800 CE and 1500 CE. The Bottle Creek site is thought to have been occupied between 1250 and 1550 CE, and consists of 18 earthen mounds. The tallest one is 45 feet high. The mounds usually served as platforms for temples or houses, which were built on top. (more…)
Relive History in Huntsville
The residents of Huntsville take 4-D to a whole new level when they live out the past of the Alabama Constitution Village. This isn’t a movie or a documentary, its real people, dressed up in colonial clothing, engrossing themselves in the day to day activities of the past. The historically clad tour guides will take you on a journey through eight reconstructed Federal style buildings. Let your imagination take over as you hear the whir of the spinning wheel, smell freshly baked bread, and chat with villagers who don’t seem to realize 200 years have passed as they go about their daily chores. (more…)
Visit the Birthplace of Helen Keller
Can you imagine going through life unable to see OR hear? For 19 month old Helen Keller, this nightmare of sorts became an unfortunate reality. After a severe illness as an infant, Helen lost two of her most important sensesbut this didn’t stop her from becoming one of history’s most remarkable women of all times. Thanks to Dr. Alexander Graham Bell (inventor of the telephone), Helen was united with Anne Sullivanmore commonly known as ‘The Miracle Worker’. By the age of seven, Ms. Sullivan had gotten through to Helen and taught her to read, write, and speak a language which was previously unknown to the southern wild child. (more…)
DeSoto Caverns
Located in Childersburg, Alabama, DeSoto Caverns is comprised of a series of caves at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Legend and lore runs deep at the caverns, as locals tell tales of the caverns various uses over the past centuries.DeSoto Caverns houses a Woodland Indian burial site, named “Copena,” uncovered by a team of archaeologists in 1965. Among the remains was the enormous jawbone, researchers believe to belong to a Native American over 7 feet tall. It is believed, the local native tribe found the cave to be a peaceful, protective environment to both guard and give rest to the souls of their departed. (more…)