Alabama offers visitors a wealth of historic sites to discover, from its struggle for racial equality to its pioneering role in space travel. Huntsville, the state’s largest city, features an amazing historic downtown featuring an enormous public square and grand early-to-mid 19th-century homes that can all be reached on foot.
Russell Cave National Monument
Russell Cave National Monument is an Alabama cave and park located in its northeastern region, considered to be one of the most significant caves in Southeast and occupied by prehistoric people for more than 10,000 years. This 310-acre preserve provides various amenities as part of North Alabama Birding Trail.
Visitors to the park can explore the Nature Trail and relax at the picnic area, while taking in views of Montague Mountain from its 1.2-mile (1.9-km) hiking trail. Plus, this park is home to over 115 species of birds!
Archaeologists have unearthed one of the most comprehensive records of prehistoric cultures in Southeast America at this cave site. Evidence found in and around it includes charcoal from cooking fires, animal bones, spear and arrow points and sherds of pottery from its inhabitants who hunted wildlife including deer, turkeys, black bears, porcupines as well as fishing nearby streams and the Tennessee River for fish as well as collecting roots nuts wild fruits seeds goosefoot etc.
Edmund Pettus Bridge
Edmund Pettus Bridge is an iconic symbol of American civil rights history, best-known as being the starting point for Selma to Montgomery voting rights march in 1965, now commonly referred to as Bloody Sunday due to Alabama State Trooper attacks against nonviolent marchers with billy clubs and tear gas.
This steel and concrete arch bridge was completed in 1940 in Selma’s historic district, named for Edmund Winston Pettus a Confederate general turned U.S. senator and leader of the Ku Klux Klan.
Though intended as a symbol of pride for a Southern state recovering from Civil War defeat, its name also honored an individual who terrorized Black Americans to strengthen white power. Due to this history and Alabama’s ongoing fight for equality, demands have arisen for it to be renamed in honor of civil rights activist John Lewis.
Government Street Presbyterian Church
Established in 1831, this church is considered to be the “Mother Church” along the Gulf Coast. Recognized as a National Historic Landmark, this building also houses an exquisite 65-rank Reiger-Kloss electron-pneumatic organ — only fifth worldwide!
Gallier and Charles Dakin’s design for this church represents an upstate New York style brought south. Its temple-fronted building’s lofty distyle-in-antis Ionic portico was typical of New York City architecture at that time.
Mobile United Methodist Church stands as a beloved icon and testament to community, faith, and social justice. Serving an active downtown congregation, this historic landmark provides services, Christian education programs, music performances and fine arts offerings as well as hosting an urban mission program at Baytreat Lodge facility. Furthermore, Coffee Club and Meals on Wheels programs make an important impactful statement about how powerful community connections can be.
USS Alabama
USS Alabama is one of the world’s most iconic warships and is now housed as a museum in Mobile. Since opening its doors to visitors back in 1965, over 15 million have visited its exhibit.
World War II saw this battleship earn nine battle stars across both Atlantic and Pacific theaters of war. She deployed on patrol missions against Gilbert Islands and Philippine carriers, while her big guns downed 22 Japanese aircraft.
Today, the USS Alabama hosts numerous exhibits including a memorial to its fallen. Additionally, its museum boasts historic aircraft such as C47 Skytrain and B52 Stratofortress aircraft as well as an A-12 Blackbird spy plane from Cold War-era which visitors can look inside of as part of its popular features.
