Alabama state

After the battle came the night. It was the night of March 27,  1814.  The
soldiers stretched wearily by the campfires. General Andrew Jackson  sat  in
his tent at Horseshoe Bend and thought of the great victory. At last he  had
broken the power of the Creek Indians. Hundreds of warriors lay dead in  the
sweeping bend of the Tallapoosa River.
  Across the river, deep in the forest, a man stood motionless and alone. He
was William Weatherford, also known as Red Eagle, a leader  of  the  Creeks.
He had escaped from the battle, and he would be hunted.
  Yet Red Eagle did not flee. He thought of the  Creek  women  and  children
hiding in the forest without food  or  protection.  He  sighed  and  made  a
decision. He would offer his life in exchange for food and  safety  for  his
people.
  Red Eagle crossed the dark river and stood  before  Jackson,  waiting  for
death. But Jack-son, admiring his courage, allowed Red  Eagle  to  leave  in
peace. Before long the Creeks and other tribes left  Alabama,  and  settlers
took the land.
  One of Alabama's nicknames, Heart of Dixie, comes from the fact  that  the
state is located in the heart, or center, of the South.  There  are  several
stories about the origin of the word  "Dixie."  Perhaps  it  came  from  the
French word dix, meaning "ten." This word was printed on $10 bills  used  in
the state of Louisiana before the Civil War. The bills were  called  dixies,
and the name Dixie, or Dixie Land, came to  be  used  for  all  the  cotton-
growing states.
  Alabama has a long history as a farming area. The Indians were  its  first
farmers. Long before European settlers came to the New  World,  the  Indians
cleared the thickets-thick growths of shrubs, bushes, and vines
—along Alabama's rivers and carried on agriculture. Then settlers  took  the
land, and fields of fluffy cotton  began  to  stretch  across  Alabama.  For
years the state was known as a land  of  cotton.  But  the  time  came  when
Alabama's farmers realized that it was not wise to depend on a single  crop.
They began to grow. many  different  kinds  of  crops  and  to  raise  hogs,
cattle, and chickens. Today leaders of the state say  that  Alabama's  farms
can produce enough foods to give every one of its citizens  a  well-balanced
diet without having to repeat a menu for 30 days.
  Roaring blast furnaces at Birmingham show that factories as well as  farms
are important in Alabama. Birmingham is  known  as  the  Pittsburgh  of  the
South because of its steel mills. It is the largest of Alabama's  industrial
cities. There are many others.
  The U.S. Army's Redstone Arsenal, located at Huntsville, took Alabama into
the space age. Here scientists worked on the Jupiter C rocket.  This  rocket
hurled the nation's first successful satellite  into  orbit.  Huntsville  is
also known for the Redstone III rocket and  the  Saturn.  The  Redstone  III
boosted the nation's first astronaut into outer space.  The  Saturn  enabled
U.S. astronauts to land on the moon. Later, the space shuttle was tested  at
Huntsville.
  The map on the state seal proudly displays  Alabama's  rivers.  They  have
always
been important for transportation. Dams in some of  the  rivers  have  great
power plants. These plants supply electric power  to  help  light  Alabama's
farms and cities and to run its factories. The dams also create  strings  of
sparkling lakes, where residents and visitors can  enjoy  fishing,  boating,
and other forms of recreation. Besides its rivers and lakes, Alabama  has  a
share of the Gulf of Mexico. Mobile, on beautiful Mobile Bay, is one of  the
important ports of the nation.
  Timber from the forest and fish from the sea add to Alabama's wealth. Many
of the people still grow cotton  and  corn,  but  agriculture  alone  is  no
longer the main concern of the state.
CAPITAL: Montgomery.
STATEHOOD: December 14, 1819; the 22nd state. SIZE: 133.915 km2  (51,705  sq
mi); rank, 29th.
POPULATION: 3.893,888 (1980 census); rank, 22nd.
ORIGIN OF NAME: From the Alibamu. or Alabamu. tribe of Indians,  members  of
the Creek Confederacy. The name may have come  from  words  in  the  Choctaw
language, alba ayamule, meaning "I clear the thicket."
ABBREVIATIONS: Ala.; AL.

NICKNAMES: Heart of Dixie, from its location in the center of the Deep
South. Yellowhammer State, from Civil Wa'r times, when troops from Alabama
were called Yellowhammers.
STATE SONG: "Alabama," by Julia S. Tutwiler; music by Edna Goeckel Gussen.
STATE MOTTO: Audemus jura nostra defendere (We " dare defend our rights).
STATE SEAL: A map of Alabama showing  the  bordering  states,  the  Gulf  of
Mexico, and the major rivers.
STATE COAT OF ARMS: The shield in the center contains the emblems of five
governments that have ruled over Alabama—France (upper left), Spain (upper
right), Great Britain (lower left), the Confederacy (lower right), and the
United States (center). The eagles on each side of the shield represent
courage. They stand on a banner that carries the state motto. The ship
above the shield shows that Alabama borders on water.
STATE FLAG A crimson field. cross of St. Andrew on a white.


                            THE LAND
  Alabama is one of the East South Central group  of  states.  It  could  be
called an Appalachian state or a  Gulf  state.  The  southern  end  of  the
Appalachian  Mountain  system  extends  into   Alabama   and   covers   the
northeastern part of the state. The  Gulf  of  Mexico  forms  a  small  but
important part of Alabama's southern border.

 Landforms
  Within the state of Alabama there are three major landforms. They are  the
Interior Low Plateau,  the  Appalachian  Highlands,  and  the  Gulf  Coastal
Plain. The Gulf Coastal Plain is the largest of the three regions.  It  lies
south of a line that begins in the northwestern corner of  the  state,  runs
southeastward through the city of Tuscaloosa, and continues to Phenix  City,
on the eastern border.
  The Interior Low Plateau enters Alabama from the state  of  Tennessee  and
covers a small area in the extreme northwest. The average elevation of  this
part of Alabama is 210 meters (700 feet). It is a region  of  knobby  hills,
cut through by the broad valley of the Tennessee River.
The Appalachian Highlands include three areas.  They  arc  the  Appalachian
Plateau, the Appalachian Ridge and Valley Region, and the Piedmont Plateau.
The average elevation of the highlands varies from 150 to 200  meters  (500
to 700 feet), with most of the highest  points  in  the  Ridge  and  Valley
Region.
  The Appalachian Plateau, also known as the Cumberland Plateau, enters the
northeast corner of the state and extends southwest-ward. This  plateau  is
rather rugged. It has some good farmland, but  it  is  mainly  an  area  of
lumbering and mining.
  The Appalachian Ridge and Valley Region is  made  up  of  narrow  valleys
between steep mountain ridges. It is  known  for  its  mineral  riches  and
forests of oak and pine.
  The Piedmont Plateau is a wedge-shaped area southeast of  the  Ridge  and
Valley Region. It gets its name from the word pied-mont, which means "lying
at the base, or foot, of mountains." This region is generally  hilly,  with
some rolling land. The most rugged part is in the northwest,  where  Cheaha
Mountain rises to 734 meters (2,407 feet).
The Gulf Coastal Plain is mainly a flat to rolling plain. Ages ago  it  was
covered by oceans. The part adjoining the Appalachian
Highlands is called the Upper Coastal Plain. This is  the  oldest  part,  as
well as the highest in elevation. South of it is a  strip  of  nearly  level
land known as  the  Black  Belt  because  of  its  dark-colored  soils.  The
southeastern quarter of the state is known as the Wire  Grass  area  because
it was once covered with a kind of coarse grass called wire grass.
 For many years the Coastal Plain was the heart of the cotton fields. It is
changing gradually to an area  where  livestock  graze  and  many  different
crops are grown.

Rivers, Lakes, and Coastal Waters
  Alabama is drained by three major river systems. The Tennessee River  dips
down' into Alabama from the state of Tennessee. It flows  westward  through
northern Alabama and then northward to join the Ohio River. The other major
rivers of Alabama flow toward the Gulf of Mexico. The Mobile  River  system
is made up of several important rivers. The Tombigbee River  and  its  main
tributary, the Black Warrior River, drain the western part  of  the  state.
The Coosa and the Talla-poosa rivers flow through east central and  eastern
Alabama. They join near Montgomery to form the Alabama River,  which  flows
southwestward toward the Tombigbee. North of Mobile, the  Alabama  and  the
Tombigbee rivers join to form the Mobile River, which drains southward into
Mobile Bay. The Chat-tnhoochee is the major river of southeastern  Alabama.
Guntcrsvillc Lake is the largest of the many lakes in the state.
  The  Tennessee-Tombigbee  (Tenn-Tom)  Waterway  project  was  designed  to
provide a water route from the Tennessee Valley to the Gulf of  Mexico,  by
way of the Tombigbee River. It includes a canal in the northeastern  corner
of Mississippi that links the rivers.
  Alabama's general coastline on the Gulf of Mexico  is  85  kilometers  (53
miles) long. If the shorelines of inlets, bays, and  offshore  islands  are
added, the total shoreline is 977 kilometers (607 miles).

Climate
 People sometimes think of Alabama as an uncomfortably hot, tropical state,
but this impression is false. Actually, there is a wide variety  of  climate
from the highlands of the north to the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico.
  Winter temperatures in the southern half of the state  rarely  drop  below
freezing. Snow is so rare that many children have never seen a snowfall.  In
the northern part of the state, winters are not  so  mild.  Northwest  winds
bring cold snaps, but they are  usually  short  and  are  followed  by  mild
weather.
  Summer temperatures tend to be about the same over the state.  The  summer
is long, but extended heat waves are almost unknown.  Along  the  coast  the
hot days are relieved by frequent  breezes  blowing  in  from  the  Gulf  of
Mexico. Nights are cool and comfortable even in  midsummer.  In  the  north,
summer temperatures are relieved by the higher altitudes and by cool  forest
shade. Spring and autumn are long and delightful. Autumn extends from  early
September to well after Thanksgiving.



                                  THE LAND
LOCATION: Latitude—30° 13' N to 35" N
.Longitude—84" to 53' W to 88° 28' W.
Tennessee to the north, Mississippi on the west, the Florida panhandle and
the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Georgia on the east.

ELEVATION: Highest—Cheaha Mountain, 734 m (2,407 ft). Lowest—Sea level,
along the Gulf of Mexico.
LANDFORMS:  Highlands  (the  Interior  Low  Plateau  and  the   Appalachian
Highlands) in the northern part of the state; lowlands  (the  Gulf  Coastal
Plain) in the south and west.
SURFACE WATERS: Major rivers—Tennessee; Tombigbee, with its main tributary,
the Black Warrior; Coosa and Tallapoosa, which join to form the Alabama;
Mobile, formed by the joining of the Alabama and the Tombigbee;
Chattahoochee. Major artificial lakes—Pickwick, Wilson, Wheeler, and
Guntersville, on the Tennessee River; Lay, Mitchell, Weiss, and Jordan, on
.the Coosa; Martin and Thurlow, on the Tallapoosa; Holt Reservoir on the
Black Warrior.
CLIMATE: Temperature—July average, about 27°C (80°F) statewide. January
average, about 7°C (44°F) in north, 12°C (53°F) in south.
Precipitation—Rainfall average, 1,350 mm (53 in); varies from 1,320 mm (52
in) in north to 1,730 mm (68 in) along the coast. Growing season—Varies
from about 200 days in north to 300 days in south.
                              Natural Resources
  Leaders of the state like to say that Alabama has more  natural  resources
than any other area of its  size  in  the  world.  These  resources  include
soils, minerals, forests, and water.
  Soils. Alabama may be divided into several major  soil  areas.  Along  the
Coosa and the Tennessee rivers, there are valleys called limestone  valleys.
The soils in these valleys are mainly red clay loams. They  were  formed  by
the weathering of limestone rock. The soils of the Appalachian  Plateau  are
mainly sandy loams. Red sandy  loams  and  clay  loams  cover  much  pf  the
Piedmont Plateau. The soils of the  Gulf  Coastal  Plain  were  formed  from
sediment laid down in the oceans that once covered the plain. Most of  these
soils are sandy loams or clay soils.
  Long years of growing cotton and corn lowered the fertility  of  Alabama's
soils. The abundant rainfall also caused the topsoil to be washed  away.  In
many places, especially in the Piedmont Plateau and the  Black  Belt,  farms
are now planted in grasses to improve  the  soil  and  provide  pasture  for
cattle.
  Forests. About 60 per cent of all the land of Alabama  is  forested.  Many
kinds of trees are found, but the soft pine is the most common. It  is  also
the most valuable for wood pulp, which is used for making  paper.  The  pine
forests grow mainly in the central and southern parts of the state.
  To improve worn-out soils, farmers have  developed  many  tree  farms  for
future harvest. Paper companies, farmers, and the government all help  in  a
continuing program of reforestation.
  Minerals. Most of Alabama's minerals are  in  the  northern  half  of  the
state. Coal and iron ore are found in the Appalachian  Plateau  and  in  the
Ridge and Valley Region. One of the largest deposits, or fields, of coal  is
the Warrior field. It extends through all of  Walker  County  and  parts  of
Fayette, Tuscaloosa, and Jefferson counties. Some of the best beds  of  iron
ore are in the Birmingham area.
  Limestone occurs in the Tennessee Valley  and  in  the  Ridge  and  Valley
Region, as well as in areas of the Gulf Coastal Plain. Marble  is  found  in
Coosa and Talladega counties.

Petroleum is the most important mineral of the Gulf Coastal  Plain.  It  has
been found in the extreme southwestern counties. There  are  important  salt
deposits north of Mobile. Henry and  Barbour  counties,  as  well  as  other
parts of the state, have deposits of bauxite, a claylike mineral from  which
aluminum is obtained.



|            POPULATION                         |
|TOTAL: 3,893,888 (1980 census). Density—29.6   |
|persons to each square kilometer (76.7 persons |
|to each square mile).                          |
|GROWTH SINCE 1820                              |
|Year                 Population                |
|Year                    Population             |
|1820                    127,901                |
|1920                      2,348,174            |
|1860                    964,201                |
|1960                      3,266,740            |
|1880                 1,262,505                 |
|1970                     3,444,354             |
|1900                 1,828,697                 |
|1980                      3,893,888            |
|Gain Between 1970 and 1980—13.1 percent        |
|CITIES: Fifteen of Alabama's cities have a     |
|population of more than 25,000 (1980 census).  |
|Birmingham 284,413 Prichard 39,541             |
|Mobile 200,452 Florence 37,029                 |
|Montgomery 177,857 Bessemer 31,729             |
|Huntsville 142,513 Anniston 29,523             |
|Tuscaloosa 75,211 Auburn 28,471                |
|Dothan 48,750 Phenix City 26,928               |
|Gadsden 47,565 Selma 26,684                    |
|Decatur 42,002                                 |


    Waters. Alabama's water is one  of  its  most  valuable  resources.  The
  supply is abundant. Mainly it is soft, pure water that  does  not  require
  treatment before being used in homes and industries.
    Hydroelectric   plants   line   the   Coosa,   Talla-poosa,   Tennessee,
  Chattahoochee, and Black Warrior rivers. Along the rivers there  arc  also
  steam power plants, fed by Alabama's coal. Additional plants are now being
  built or planned. They will provide ample power for years to come.
    Wildlife. Alabama has more than 300 species of birds. Among the  largest
  are bald eagles, hawks, ospreys,  and  wild  turkeys,  ducks,  and  geese.
  Rabbits, squirrels, raccoons, foxes, and white-tailed deer  are  found  in
  most of the state, and black bears in some areas. Fresh-water fish include
  bass, perch, bluegill, and trout.  Some  fisheries  have  been  closed  by
  mercury pollution.
    In 1955 the tarpon was named the state salt-water  fish.  It  is  a  big
  fighting fish found in the warm, blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico. It has
  no commercial value. The main products of the sea  fisheries  are  shrimp,
  oysters, and crabs.

                          THE PEOPLE AND THEIR WORK

     There are very few foreign-born people living in Alabama. The  majority
are descend
ants of European settlers who came to the area in colonial times. About  one
third of the people are blacks whose ancestors were brought to the South  as
slaves. Among the people of  Indian  heritage,  the  most  active  organized
group is the Creek Nation East of the Mississippi, at Atmore.
  In 1960, for the first time, more Alabam-ians  lived  in  cities  than  in
rural areas. The number of persons who work on farms  has  dropped  steadily
since the 1940's. And the number who work in manufacturing and  other  kinds
of jobs has continued to grow.

Industries and Products

  For some time the value of products manufactured in Alabama has  been  far
greater than the value of livestock and crops and of the different kinds  of
minerals that are produced in the state.
Manufacturing. The mast important industries are the ones  that  manufacture
metals, textiles, chemicals, and forest products.  Many  of  the  industries
make use of Alabama's own raw materials.
  The areas around Birmingham and Gadsden are the only places in the  nation
where iron ore, coal, and limestone are  found  close  together.  These  are
basic raw materials needed in the making of steel. About 90 percent  of  all
the steel making in the South is  carried  on  in  Alabama,  mostly  in  and
around Birmingham, Anniston, and Gadsden. New factories that  make  products
from iron and steel continue to  spring  up  throughout  the  state,  mainly
along the water routes.
  Around Mobile, as well as in other areas, there are  plants  that  extract
aluminum from bauxite. These plants  provide  metal  for  factories  in  the
Tennessee Valley that make aluminum products. A  large  copper-tubing  plant
at Decatur, on the Tennessee River, is a new development for Alabama.
  The textile industry produces yarn and thread,  woven  fabrics,  clothing,
and other goods. Textile mills are spread throughout the state.

                            WHAT ALABAMA PRODUCES


MANUFACTURED GOODS: Primary metals, paper and related products, chemicals
and related products, fabricated metal products, textiles, rubber and
plastic products, clothing, processed foods.
AGRICULTURAL  PRODUCTS:  Broilers,  cattle  and  calves,   soybeans,   eggs,
peanuts, cotton, milk.
MINERALS: Coal, petroleum, natural gas. Iron ore, cement, stone, sand and
gravel, lime.
  Many of the chemical industries make use of coal tar, a tar that  is  left
from the process of making coke. Some of the by-products  of  coal  tar  are
medicines, explosives, dyes, and plastics. The  salt  deposits  near  Mobile
provide raw material for the making of chlorine products, such as  bleaches,
disinfectants,  and  water  purifiers.  At  Muscle  Shoals  in  northwestern
Alabama there is  a  federal  plant  where  fertilizers  and  munitions  are
developed for the benefit of agriculture and industry.
  Alabama ranks among the first five timber producers  in  the  nation.  The
forests supply lumber for furniture and other wood products as well as  wood
pulp for the paper industries. The first pulp and paper plant in  the  state
was built at Tuscaloosa in 1929. Other  cities  that  now  have  large  pulp
mills are Mobile and Brewton, in southern Alabama, and  De-mopolis,  in  the
western part of the state. Most of the pulp is made into  finished  products
such as newsprint, stationery, corrugated  boxes,  and  kraft  paper.  Kraft
paper is the strong brown paper used in grocery bags.
  Agriculture. In Enterprise, Alabama, there  is  a  monument  to  the  boll
weevil. It is perhaps the only monument in the world to an insect pest.  The
monument was erected in 1919 after the  boll  weevil  destroyed  the  cotton
crops. It reminds Alabama's farmers of the part that the boll weevil  played
in teaching them not to depend on cotton alone for their living.
  For a long time cotton ranked  first  among  Alabama's  crops,  but  today
cotton brings only a fraction of the total income from crops.  Alabama  also
produces  substantial  amounts  of  soybeans,  peanuts,  corn,  hay,   sweet
potatoes and other garden vegetables, and fruits and pecans. Some crops  are
identified with particular areas. Soybeans  are  grown  extensively  in  the
Black Belt and around Mobile Bay. Peanuts are a main crop in the Wire  Grass
area. Strawberries are grown commercially around Cullman in Cullman  County,
Clanton in Chilton County, and Georgiana in Butler County. Clanton  is  also
known for peaches. Truck farming is carried on in many areas.
  An interesting  fact  about  Alabama's  agriculture  is  that  since  1958
livestock sales have brought more  income  than  crops.  Cattle  are  raised
chiefly in the Black Belt and hogs in the Wire Grass area.  Poultry  raising
is concentrated north of Birmingham. Dairying is carried on  throughout  the
state.
Mining. Alabama is well-known  for  its  production  of  coal,  cement,  and
limestone. A number of other' minerals are produced  in  varying  quantities
including petroleum, iron ore, clays  and  shale,  mica,  sand  and  gravel,
bauxite, gold, silver, and manganese.  Marble  from  Alabama's  quarries  is
sold throughout the United States.
  The first producing oil well began operating near Gilbertown,  in  Choctaw
County,  in  1944.  Later,  oil  was  found  in  Escambia  County  and  near
Citronelle, in Mobile County. There arc more than  200  producing  wells  in
southwestern Alabama. In the northwest a large natural gas  field  is  being
developed.

Transportation and Communication
  Waterways, railroads, highways, and  airways  connect  Alabama  to  other
parts of tlic nation. The port of Mobile connects the state to the seaports
of the world.
  Waterways. Alabama has the finest river system in the  nation.  The  U.S.
Corps of  Engineers   classifies    large   portions    of  its  rivers  as
suitable for navigation. Millions of dollars have been spent to develop the
harbor and build docks at Mobile, to widen and deepen the channels  of  the
rivers, and to build public docks along the waterways.
  The Black Warrior and Tombigbee waterway extends all  the  way  from  the
 port of Mobile to Jefferson and  Walker  counties.  This  waterway  carries
 great quantities of limestone as well as millions of tons of cargo for  the
 industries of Birmingham and other cities along  the  rivers.  The  Alabama
 River provides water transportation between Mobile and  the  capital  city,
 Montgomery. The Tennessee  River  is  the  main  water  route  of  northern
 Alabama. The Chattahoochee waterway, on  the  east  border  of  the  state,
 serves the cities of Columbia, Eufaula, and Phenix City.
  Railroads and Highways.   Alabama was  among  the  pioneers  in  railroad
 building. Its  first  railway,  between  Decatur  and  Muscle  Shoals,  was
 completed in 1832. Today Alabama's railroads are used largely for  freight.
 Hubs of state, federal, and interstate highway systems are  Birmingham  and
 Montgomery.
  Airlines.   Several airlines provide  commercial  flights  to  cities  in
 different parts of the state. Frequent daily schedules are  available  from
 major centers.  Most  of  the  interstate  traffic  uses  the  airports  at
 Birmingham, Huntsville, and Mobile. Alabama's system  of  local  airfields,
 with paved and lighted runways for smaller  planes,  is  considered  to  be
 among the best in the nation.
  Newspapers, Radio, and Television. Almost every city has  its  own  local
 newspaper. More than 100 newspapers are published in the  state,  but  only
 about 20 are dailies. Among the more influential daily newspapers  are  the
 Alabama  Journal  and  the  Montgomery  Advertiser,   both   published   at
 Montgomery, and the Birmingham News. The Mobile Press-Register,  originally
 the Gazette, is one of the oldest newspapers in the state. It  was  founded
 in 1815.
  Birmingham had the state's first licensed radio station, WBRC,  in  1925,
 and the first television stations, WABT and WBRC-TV, both in 1949. In  1955
 Alabama began operating one of the first state-owned educational television
 networks (ETV) in the nation. Stations  of  this  network  are  capable  of
 reaching almost all the people in the state.

                                  EDUCATION

  Alabama is proud of its natural resources and its  industrial  development
in recent years. State and community leaders also recognize the  importance
of developing its educational and cultural institutions.

Schools and Colleges
  The first teachers in Alabama were probably French and Spanish priests who
gave instruction to the Indians. In 1799 a  New  England  cotton  merchant,
John Pierce, opened a school for the children of wealthy  settlers  in  the
Mobile Bay area. It was the kind of pioneer school known as a blab  .school
because the pupils studied by repeating their lessons aloud.
  When Alabama became a state in 1819, an attempt was made  to  establish  a
system of public schools. The attempt failed, as did others in later years,
largely because of a lack of money. Private schools sprang  up  to  educate
the children of parents who could afford to pay. It was not until after the
Civil War that the state was able to make progress toward establishing  its
present system of public elementary schools, high schools, and colleges.
  Alabama has more than 50 institutions of higher education. About  half  of
these are 2-year institutions, mainly state-supported junior  or  community
colleges. The others are universities and senior colleges.
  The University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa (post office address,  University)
is Alabama's oldest college. It was established by the legislature in 1820.
Other state-supported  universities  are  located  at  Auburn,  Birmingham,
Florence,  Huntsville,  Jacksonville,   Livingston,   Mobile,   Montcvallo,
Montgomery,  Normal,  and  Troy.  Tuskegcc  Institute,  the  famous  school
established by Booker T. Washington in 1881, is  partly  supported  by  the
state.

Libraries
 Throughout the state there are many pub lic  and  private  libraries.  The
largest public libraries are in  Birmingham,  Montgomery,  and  Mobile.  The
Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library, on the campus of the University of Alabama,  is
one of the largest libraries in the entire South.

Fine Arts and Museums
 Most high schools and junior high schools  in  the  state  have  bands  or
orchestras. The Birmingham Civic  Symphony  gives  annual  concerts  in  the
city. It also tours the state.
  Before the Civil War, architecture was one of  the  most  important  fine
 arts. Some of the beautiful homes that were built before  the  war  may  be
 seen in the older cities, such as Selma, Huntsville,  Eufaula,  Greensboro,
 Mobile, Tuscaloosa, and Montgomery.
  The Art Museum at Birmingham and the Museum of Fine  Arts  at  Montgomery
 have large collections of paintings. The  following  arc  among  the  other
 noted museums:
The Alabama Museum of Natural History, at
the University of Alabama, has an excellent display of rocks and minerals.
Mound  State  Monument,  a  state  park  and  museum  at  Moundville,   near
Tuscaloosa, preserves ancient mounds that Indians built for  their  temples,
council" houses, and burial places. Relics from the  grounds  in  the  park,
such as skeletons, tools, ornaments,  and  pottery,  are  displayed  in  the
museum.
 The Regar Museum of Natural  History,  at  Anniston,  contains  an  unusual
 display of 900 specimens of birds, with nests and eggs.

                             PLACES OF INTEREST
  Some of the many other interesting places have been made by people. Some,
 such as mountains, forests, and white sand beaches, arc nature's own work.

 Historic Places
  Many historic treasures are preserved in Alabama's museums. The following
 are a few of the historic places in various parts of the state:

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, on
 the Tallapoosa River, marks the site of General  Andrew  Jackson's  victory
 over the Creek Indians.
   The Natchez Trace Parkway crosses the northwestern corner of Alabama.  It
 extends from Natchez, Mississippi, to  Nashville,  Tennessee.  The  parkway
 commemorates a famous Indian trail and pioneer highway.
   Russell Cave National Monument, at Bridgeport in northeast  Alabama,  was
 established in 1961. In the cave, scientists have found records  of  almost
 continuous human habitation from at least 6000 b.c. to about a.d. 1650.
  Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site includes Tuskegee Institute, the
George Washington Carver  Museum,  and  Booker  T.  Washington's  home.  The
museum includes displays of  African  art  and  George  Washington  Carver's
agricultural experiments.
The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception,
at Mobile, stands on land that the first settlers used as a burying ground.
 The  State  Capitol,  Montgomery,  is  a  stately  building,  similar   in
appearance to the National Capitol. For the first few months  of  the  Civil
War, it served as the capitol of the Confederacy.
 Jefferson Davis' Home, in Montgomery, is known as the first White House of
the Confederacy  because  it  was  here  that  President  Davis  lived  when
Montgomery was the Confederate capital.

                              Parks and Forests

  Alabama has four national forests. The Talladega National Forest  has  two
sections, one in the central part of the state and the other  in  the  east.
The  William  B.  Bankhead  National  Forest,  formerly  the  Black  Warrior
National Forest,  is  in  the  northwest.  The  Tuskegee,  smallest  of  the
national forests, is in the east, and the Conecuh is in the south.
  State parks and forests total about 30. They are planned to  conserve  the
natural beauty of the state and to provide places where people  may  go  for
outdoor recreation—picnicking, camping, hiking  and  nature  study,  fishing
and other water sports.

Other Attractions
  The following are among other places that attract visitors from  all  over
the nation and the world:

  Ave Maria Grotto, at St. Bernard, near Cull-man, displays  more  than  100
small reproductions of famous religious buildings of the world.
  The Azalea Trail, in Mobile, is a 55-kilometer (35-mile) trail of  flowers
that leads through residential parts of the city, past historic  homes  and
buildings.
  Bellingrath  Gardens  and  Home,  south  of  Mobile,  is   a   beautifully
"landscaped estate. Here the finest flowers, shrubs, and  trees  have  been
brought together in a setting of great natural beauty. The  home  is  noted
for its rich furnishings and priceless art objects.
  Cathedral Caverns,  north  ofGuntersville,  contains  a  large  forest  of
stalagmites and one cavern 27 meters (90 feet) deep.
  Ivy Green, in Tuscumbia, is Helen Keller's birthplace and childhood home.
  Vulcan Statue, at the summit of Red Mountain, Birmingham, is a  statue  of
the god of fire. It was made of iron from the local area and is said to  be
one of the largest statues in the world.
Annual Events
   Many of Alabama's annual events center upon sports, the products  of  the
 state, and the interests and traditions  of  the  people.  From  the  early
 French settlers. Mobile inherited the celebration of Mardi  Gras.  Mobile's
 Mardi Gras festival is the oldest such celebration in the United States. It
 begins on the Friday before the first day of  Lent  and  reaches  its  high
 point on the night of Shrove Tuesday, or Mardi Gras.
   Mobile celebrates the azalea season from late February  to  early  April,
 when thousands of visitors tour the  Azalea  Trail.  The  Deep-Sea  Fishing
 Rodeo, at Mobile and Dauphin Island, climaxes the fishing  season,  usually
 late in July or early in August.
   Other events include the state fair at Birmingham, in September, and  the
 River Boat Regatta at Guntersville, in August.

                                   CITIES
  No one region claims all or most of the cities. Large cities are found  in
each part of the state—central, north and south.

Montgomery
   Besides being the capital, Montgomery is a center of  agricultural  trade
 and the leading cattle market of  southeastern  United  States.  The  large
 ranches and herds of cattle in the area remind one of Texas. Industries  of
 the  city  include  textile  mills,  meat-packing  plants,  and   furniture
 factories.
   Montgomery  has  several  institutions  of  higher  education,  including
 Alabama State University, campuses of Troy State and  Auburn  universities,
 and Huntingdon College, a private senior college.  The  Air  University  at
 Maxwell Air Force Base is a national center for research and for  education
 and training of U.S. Air Force personnel.

 Birmingham
  Alabama's largest city is located at the southern end of  the  Ridge  and
 Valley Region. It is sometimes called the Magic City because of  its  rapid
 growth. Since it was founded in 1871 as the town of Ely ton, it  has  grown
 into a metropolitan area of about 850,000 people. It is  the  South's  only
 major producer of iron and steel. The hundreds of other industries  in  the
 area manufacture such items as cast-iron pipe, heavy machinery,  chemicals,
 textiles, and wood and paper products.
  Birmingham is a leading educational and cultural center. It is also  noted
for mountain scenery and places of outdoor recreation.

Mobile
  The second-largest city and only seaport is known as Alabama's Gateway  to
the World. It was founded by  the  French  and  was  named  for  the  Mobile
Indians, who lived in the area. Today it is a busy  industrial  center  with
chemical plants, shipyards, and seafood industries. It is  also  a  gracious
and beautiful resort city, known for  its  flowers  and  ancient  oak  trees
draped with Spanish moss.
Other Cities
  The following are some of the other important cities:

 Huntsville, now the Rocket City, was one of Alabama's  first  settlements.
It remained  a  small  farming  community  for  more  than  125  years.  Its
population was only 16,000 in 1950.  About  that  time  the  Army  began  to
develop a rocket and  guided-missile  center  at  the  Redstone  Arsenal  at
Huntsville. Thousands of scientists and other workers came to the  area.  So
did dozens of  new  industries.  Within  20  years  Huntsville's  population
increased to  more  than  135,000.  In  1960  a  part  of  the  arsenal  was
transferred to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This  part
was named the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center.
  Tuscaloosa, the home of the University of  Alabama,  is  located  on  the
 Black Warrior River at the edge of the Appalachian Plateau. Its name  comes
 from the Indian words tuska, meaning "black," and lusa, meaning  "warrior."
 The city's many industries include a large paper mill, a rubber-tire plant,
 textile mills, oil refineries, and plants that make metal products.
  Gailstleii, northeast of Birmingham,  is  an  important  iron  and  steel
 center, as well as a distribution point for livestock and grain produced in
 the surrounding area.
  Duthan, leading city of  southeastern  Alabama,  is  located  in  a  rich
 farming area. The main crop is peanuts. Industries in the city  manufacture
 such products as peanut oil, hosiery, and cigars.

                                 GOVERNMENT
   The legislative department of the state government  is  made  up  of  the
 Senate and the House of Representatives. The members of both bodies serve 4-
 year terms. An amendment  to  the  state  constitution,  adopted  in  1975,
 provided for annual legislative sessions, beginning in 1976.  Before  that,
 regular sessions had been held every other year.
   The chief executive is the governor, who is elected by  the  people.  The
 people also elect a  lieutenant  governor,  secretary  of  state,  attorney
 general, treasurer, auditor, and commissioner of agriculture and  industry,
 as well as the members of the state board of education.
   The highest state court is the supreme court.  It  consists  of  a  chief
 justice and eight associate justices elected statewide  for  6-year  terms.
 The court of appeals is divided into two courts, one to hear civil  appeals
 and one to hear criminal appeals. The major trial courts in Alabama are its
 numerous circuit courts.

                                 GOVERNMENT
 Capital—Montgomery. Number of counties—67. Representation in Congress—U.S.
 senators, 2; U.S. representatives, 7. State Legislature—Senate, 35
 members; House of Representatives, 105 members;
 all 4-year terms. Governor—4-year term. Elections— Primary elections to
 select candidates, first Tuesday in May; general and state elections,
 Tuesday after first Monday in November

  The state is divided into 67 counties. Each county is governed by a  board
of commissioners, known as the county commission.

                                FAMOUS PEOPLE
  Alabama  claims  many  persons  who  did  important  work  in  government,
education, the law, military affairs, business, and the arts. The following
are some of the honored names:
  William Wyatt Bibb (1781-1820) was Alabama's  only  territorial  governor
 and the first governor of the state. He was born in Georgia.
  Josiah Gorgas (1818-83), born in Pennsylvania, was a teacher and an  army
 officer. He became  an  Alabamian  after  his  marriage  to  Amelia  Gayle,
 daughter of John Gayle, governor of Alabama from 1831 to 1835.  During  the
 Civil War, Josiah Gorgas was chief of military supplies, and  eventually  a
 brigadier general, in the Confederate Army. Later he served for a  year  as
 president of the University of Alabama. His son, William C.  Gorgas  (1854-
 1920), who was born near Mobile, is world famous as the U.S.  Army  surgeon
 and sanitation expert who stamped out yellow fever in the  Canal  Zone  and
 made possible the building of the Panama Canal.
  Julia Strudwick Tufwiler  (1841-1916)  was  born  in  Greene  County.  She
established several girls'  vocational  schools  and  secured  admission  of
women to the University of Alabama. She was also active  in  prison  reform.
She wrote the words of "Alabama," the state song.
  Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) is known  throughout  the  world  as  the
founder of Tuskegec Institute and as an educator, author, and  lecturer.  He
was born in Virginia and was educated at Hampton  Institute.  His  biography
is included in Volume W.
  George Washington Carver (1864-1943), botanist and agricultural scientist,
gained international fame for his work in agricultural research at  Tuskegee
Institute. He taught improvement of  the  soil  and  developed  hundreds  of
products from the peanut, sweet potato, and soybean. A biography  of  George
Washington Carver, who was  born  in  Missouri  and  educated  in  Iowa,  is
included in Volume C.
  William Brockman Bankhead (1874-1940) was born in Moscow (now  Sulligent),
Alabama. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1917  to  1940.
He was speaker of the House  from  1936  to  1940.  His  daughter,  Tallulah
Brockman  Bankhead,  became  one  of  America's  best-known  actresses.  His
father, John H. Bank-head, and his brother,  John  H.  Bankhead,  Jr.,  were
both U.S. senators.
  Helen Adams Keller, who was born in Tus-cumbia in 1880,  lost  both  sight
and hearing before she was 2 years old. Because  she  could  not  hear,  she
also lost the ability to speak. In spite of her disabilities, she gained  an
education, learned to speak, and then spent her life lecturing  and  writing
to raise money for the training of other disabled persons. Her biography  is
included in Volume K.
  George Corley Wallace (1919- ) was born in Clio, Alabama. He was  a  judge
and state legislator before his election in 1962 as governor of Alabama.  He
was re-elected to that office in  1970,  1974,  and  1982.  He  was  also  a
presidential candidate in 1964, 1968, 1972,  and  1976.  A  bullet  from  an
assassination attempt during the 1972 campaign left him disabled.

  Three Alabamians have become justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. Justices
John McKinley and John A. Campbell, who served during  the  I  800's,  were
born in other states. Hugo L. Black, who became a justice in 1937, was born
in Clay County, Alabama.
  Writers, musicians, and entertainers who were  born  in  Alabama  include
novelists Nelle  Harper  Lee  (Monroeville)  and  Bordcn  Deal(Tuscaloosa),
composer  William  C.  Handy  (Florence),  and  singer  Nat   "King"   Cole
(Montgomery).
  Famous names in sports include heavyweight champion Joe Louis  (born  Joe
Louis Barrow, Lafayette); baseball players  Henry  "Hank"  Aaron  (Mobile),
Frank Lary (North-port), and Willie Mays (Fairfield); and sports  announcer
Mel Alien (born Melvin Alien Israel, Birmingham).

                                   HISTORY

  At the time of Columbus, Alabama was inhabited  by  four  main  groups  of
Indians.  They  were  the  Cherokees,  Creeks,  Choctaws,  and  Chickasaws.
Sometimes there were skirmishes resulting from border disputes. But usually
the Indians  lived  in  peace,  hunting,  fishing,  and  raising  corn  and
vegetables on small plots of land.

Exploration and Settlement
   During the early 1500's Spanish explorers sailed along the coast  of  the
 Gulf of Mexico. But Europeans were not seen  in  the  interior  of  Alabama
 until 1540, when Hernando de Soto passed through with a band of  well-armed
 soldiers. De Soto forced the peaceful Indians to provide him with food  and
 servants, and his harsh methods stirred up resentment. When he reached  the
 land governed by the gigantic Choctaw chieftain, Tuskaloosa,  he  ran  into
 trouble. De Soto captured the chief and took him to  the  tribe's  strongly
 fortified village. Here the Indians rose up to free their chief.  For  many
 hours the bloody battle raged. The Spanish soldiers slaughtered Indian men,
 women, and children alike. When the battle was over,  the  village  was  in
 ruins and its population was destroyed.  De  Soto's  troops  also  suffered
 heavy losses. Later, in 1559, Spanish colonists  started  a  settlement  on
 Mobile Bay, but storms and other troubles caused the settlers to leave.
   English traders from the Carolinas and Georgia traded  with  the  Indians
 during the late 1600's, but the English made no  permanent  settlements  in
 Alabama at that time. In 1702 the French established Fort Louis  on  Mobile
 Bay. This settlement was moved, in 1711, to the present site of Mobile.  It
 became the first permanent white settlement in what is now Alabama.
   During the 1700's the French and the British fought over  the  territory
  of which Alabama was a part. After the French and Indian War,  the  Treaty
  of Paris, in 1763, gave the territory to England. Spain, Georgia, and  the
  Carolinas still argued over who owned the land. It was not until 1813 that
  all of what is now Alabama passed into undisputed possession of the United
  States and became part of the Mississippi Territory.
   After 1800 more and more settlers came into Alabama from the  states  on
  the Atlantic Coast. The invention of the cotton gin and the growth of  the
  cotton textile industry in  England  made  cotton  a  valuable  crop.  The
  settlers grew cotton on most of the land that they cleared.  But  settling
  the territory was not without its perils. Much of the  good  farmland  was
  already being used by the Indians, whose ways of living easily adapted  to
  the settlers' ways. The Indians resisted the theft  of  their  lands.  The
  Creeks, who held more than half the land in the

|IMPORTANT DATES                                      |
|1540 Hernando de Soto marched across Alabama,        |
|exploring and searching for gold.                    |
|1559 Tristan de Luna, Spanish colonizer, started a   |
|temporary settlement on Mobile Bay.                  |
|1699 An expedition under the. French explorer Pierre |
|Lemoyne, Sieur d'lberville, explored the coast and   |
|claimed the area for France.                         |
|1702 Pierre Lemoyne's brother, Jean Baptiste Lemoyne,|
|Sieur de Bienville, founded Fort Louis de la Mobile. |
|1711 The French moved Fort Louis to the present site |
|of Mobile.                                           |
|1763 At the end of the French and Indian War, France |
|gave the area east of the Mississippi River,         |
|including Alabama, to Great Britain.                 |
|1783 After the Revolutionary War, Great Britain gave |
|the Mobile area to Spain and the rest of Alabama to  |
|the United States.                                   |
|1813 United States captured Mobile and added it to   |
|the Mississippi Territory.                           |
|1814 General Andrew Jackson defeated the Creek       |
|Indians.                                             |
|1817 Congress created the Alabama Territory.         |
|1819 Alabama admitted to Union December 14, as 22nd  |
|state.                                               |
|1847 Montgomery became state capital.                |
|1861 Alabama seceded from the Union January 11 and   |
|formed the Republic of Alabama, which lasted until   |
|February 8, when Alabama joined the Confederacy. 1868|
|Alabama re-admitted to the Union.                    |
|1875 A new constitution adopted, ending the period of|
|Reconstruction.                                      |
|1888 First steel produced in Birmingham.             |
|1901 Present state constitution adopted.             |
|1944 First petroleum produced near Gilbertown.       |
|1949 Redstone Arsenal, at Huntsville, became a center|
|for rocket and missile research.                     |
|1970 Black Alabamians won seats (two) In the state   |
|legislature for the first time since Reconstruction. |
|1981 Tuskegee Institute celebrated its 100th         |
|anniversary.                                         |


   territory,were
especially bitter. They sided with the British  in  the  War  of  1812.  The
Indians raided Fort Mims and killed several hundred  settlers.  In  a  final
battle at Horseshoe Bend, the Creeks were defeated,  and  before  long  they
were moved out of the territory. The Cherokees, who had remained neutral  in
the war, were later moved from their lands. They were the  most  progressive
of the Indian tribes. They  lived  in  brick  houses,  grew  cotton,  raised
rattle, and even had a written language.

Alabama Becomes a State
  When Mississippi  became  a  state  in  1817,  the  eastern  half  of  the
 Mississippi Territory was removed  and  made  the  Alabama  Territory.  Its
 capital was St. Stephens, a small town lo the north of Mobile. At that time
 settlers were found mainly in three regions—in the Tennessee Valley, around
 Huntsville; along Ihc Tombigbee and Black Warrior rivers, with  centers  at
 St. Stephens and Tusca-loosa; and along the Alabama and Coosa rivers,  near
 such towns as Wetumpka and Montgomery.
  Alabama was not a territory very long.  With  the  approval  of  Congress,
 leading citi-/cns met at Huntsville on July 5, 1819, and drafted  Alabama's
 first constitution. Soon after, on December  14,  1819,  Alabama  became  a
 state. The capital was situated at Ca-haba, a  town  built  for  just  this
 purpose at the junction of the Cahaba and the Alabama rivers. The choice of
 this town was bad. It lay in low, swampy land that  flooded  regularly.  In
 1825 the session of the legislature could be held only on the second  floor
 of the capital, and the legislators had to get there by  row-boat.  Because
 of this situation the state capital was moved in 1827 to Tuscaloosa,  where
 it stayed for 20 years. In  1847  the  increase  in  wealth  and  political
 strength of the cotton planters of the Black Belt caused  another  move  of
 the state capital—this time to Montgomery, where it is today.

King Cotton, Slavery, and the Civil War
 Between 1820 and 1860 Alabama's economy was closely tied to  slavery.  The
large cotton plantations could not be worked profitably without  slaves.  In
the 1840's Alabama was one of the wealthiest states in the  Union.  In  1860
forces in the North moved toward
the  abolition  of  slavery.  The  leaders  of   Alabama   opposed   federal
interference in the affairs of their state. They proposed  secession.  After
a special election among the people, a convention was held in Montgomery  on
January 7, 1861. On January 11 a resolution of secession  was  adopted,  and
Alabama invited all the other southern states to meet in Montgomery to  form
a new union.
  On February 4, 1861, the convention met and drew up the constitution  for
 the Confederate States of America. Jefferson Davis  was  sworn  in  as  the
 president on February 18, 1861.
  During the Civil War there were many minor battles in the state. No major
 battles took place within its borders, but the state was badly hurt by  the
 fighting. When the war was over, Alabama's economy was destroyed.
  Between 1865 and 1875 Alabama lived under a  partly  military  government
 called the Reconstruction. These were harsh times—  times  of  agricultural
 failures, general poverty, and great political confusion.  In  1875  a  new
 constitution was adopted and approved by Congress. Between  1875  and  1900
 Alabama went through a period of economic recovery. Cotton was still  king,
 but industry grew.

Modern Times and the Future
   After the Reconstruction era, blacks in Alabama were  stripped  of  their
 newly won civil rights, including the right to vote.  They  had  to  attend
 different schools from whites. Racial segregation of many kinds was the law
 in Alabama for a long time.
   In the 1960's, however, federal legislation enabled blacks in Alabama  to
 vote in large numbers. Progress has also been made against  many  forms  of
 racial segregation. Much of this progress in Alabama resulted from peaceful
 protest conducted under the leadership of Martin Luther King.
Alabama has undergone many  other.  changes  recently.  Industry  has  grown
rapidly. The state's waterways are being enlarged  and  improved.  With  its
abundance of raw mate-trials, and its vital people, Alabama should  continue
to be the industrial heart of the New South.