Historic places in Birmingham

Historic places in Birmingham

1. See

   16th Street Baptist Church

   On September 15, 1963, in the aftermath of the Birmingham campaign (and at the beginning of the first school year in which the city's public schools were integrated), four members of the Ku Klux Klan bombed this oldest African-American church in Birmingham with dynamite, killing four young girls at choir practice and further outraging the nation and solidifying support in Congress for civil rights legislation. The church was rebuilt and remains in operation today, welcoming visitors both to Sunday services (10:45AM) and to the basement exhibition space featuring historical photographs and displays related to the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham.

   Tours: Tue-Sat 10AM-4PM (last tour starts at 3PM); Worship Service: Sun 10:45AM·Adults: $10, Students aged 18 and under: $%

2. See

   Alabama Sports Hall of Fame

   The museum presents the athletic history of the state of Alabama, and is one of the biggest in the U.S with over 6,000 pieces of sports memorabilia.

   Mon-Sat 9AM-5PM·Adults $5, seniors 60+ $4, students $3

3. Do

   Alabama Theatre

   Numerous performances including concerts, comedians and movies take place at this 2,200-seat, exquisitely preserved old vaudeville and movie palace built by Paramount in 1927.

4. See

   Arlington Antebellum Home and Gardens

   The home is a perfectly-preserved emblem of Southern heritage. Staff are well-versed in how the home, which is older than the city, has been involved in many pivotal points of Birmingham's development. It's an interesting and inexpensive way to learn about the city's heritage and the civil rights struggle. The home, on Birmingham's West End, is in a somewhat blighted neighborhood. However, visiting during daylight hours carries very little risk. And the home is accessible through main artery roads off of Interstate 65 at the Green Springs Avenue exit. Homeowners on the street adjacent to Arlington have well-manicured properties, symbolic of efforts by West End leaders to strengthen this historic part of town.

5. See

   Ballard House

   The home and office of Dr. Edward H. Ballard, an African-American physician who hosted meetings of local Civil Rights activists here beginning in 1959, and who offered medical treatment to victims of police violence during the Birmingham campaign of 1963. The not-for-profit Ballard House Project is hard at work restoring the building and hosting events and exhibitions related to local Civil Rights history and other cultural themes.

   Wed-Sat 10AM-2PM or by appointment

6. See

   Birmingham Jail

   Dr. Martin Luther King spent eight days in April 1963 incarcerated here, from his arrest on the 12th for violating an injunction against the demonstrations he and the SCLC were leading in the streets of Birmingham through his release on the 20th under pressure from the Kennedy administration. While there, he wrote his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail, addressing various criticisms that had been leveled against him and his movement — both an essay written by a group of local white clergymen and published in the local newspaper the day before his arrest, and more broadly from white moderates nationwide as well as certain "opposing forces in the Negro community". The prison is still in operation as such, so no tours are offered, but there is a historic plaque and other interpretive material outside.

7. See

   Birmingham Museum of Art

   Visual art from all over the world, from ancient Egyptian to contemporary American. In particular, its Asian section is considered the best in the southeastern U.S.

   Tue-Sat 10AM-5PM, Sun noon-5PM·Free

8. Buy

   Eastwood Village

   The erstwhile Eastwood Mall was reborn in 2007 as a non-enclosed shopping center anchored by Walmart and also including locations of Party City, Ross Dress For Less, Office Depot, and Tuesday Morning. For retail history buffs, there's a small historical exhibit inside the "Retail Center" entrance of Walmart with a brief history of the mall, which was the first enclosed shopping mall in Birmingham and only the second one in the South, as well as several photos.

9. See

   Historic Bethel Baptist Church

   Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth was agitating for racial justice in Birmingham for years before Dr. King came to town, and the church where he preached was a focal point of action in the period immediately previous to the Birmingham campaign: it was the designated point of contact in Alabama for the Freedom Riders, who in 1961 successfully forced the desegregation of interstate buses in the South, and was firebombed by white supremacists no fewer than three times, including on Christmas Day 1956.

   Tours Mon Wed Fri 10AM-3PM, Tue Thu by appointment

10. See

    Red Mountain Park

    It's under development as of August 2019, but still lots of fun and exploring awaits. Zip-lining over the tree canopies of the beautiful and historic Red Mountain and miles of bike, hiking and walking trails. When the park is complete it will span nearly 1,200 acres (485 ha), making Birmingham the city with the most green space per capita in the country.

    Daily 7AM-5PM

11. See

    Sloss Furnaces

    The Sloss Iron and Steel Company was one of the first industrial concerns to set up shop in the then-brand new city of Birmingham. It eventually grew into one of the largest manufacturers of pig iron in the world (it should be said, largely on the backs of African-American convict labor — a form of legal slavery common in the Jim Crow era whereby local blacks would be rounded up and arrested on trumped-up charges and then leased out to private companies like Sloss for use as unpaid workers). Abandoned in 1972, their Furnace No. 1 was deemed an eyesore and slated for demolition, but saved at the last minute by historic preservationists and opened to the public as... well, it's hard to say exactly what this place is nowadays. Strolling around the old ovens, smokestacks, conveyor belts, and other abandoned equipment, you almost get the feeling of being in a giant art exhibit (the modern-day metal sculptures peppered around the site certainly don't do anything to discourage that sentiment). There is also a visitors' center with museum-style exhibits relating Birmingham's industrial history, and a full calendar of concerts and events at this one-of-a-kind venue.

    Tue-Sat 10AM-4PM·Free

12. See

    Southern Museum of Flight

    If you're interested in aviation history, this is the place to go. The museum has more than 100 aircraft on display, both civilian and military (among them a Wright flyer replica), as well as plane parts, photographs and other artifacts.

    Tue-Sat 9:30AM-4:30PM·Adults $5, seniors & students $4, children under 4 and active military members free

13. Do

    Taste of 4th Avenue Jazz Festival

    The end of August sees the Historic 4th Avenue Business District, once the most prominent African-American commercial center in the city, swing to the strains of jazz music courtesy of a bevy of acts both locally-based and nationally-known. Bring the youngsters down to the Kids' Zone, learn to swing dance, or tuck in to a meal from one of Birmingham's best food trucks (they don't call it the "Taste" of 4th Avenue for nothing!)

    End of August

14. See

    Vulcan Park

    What better way to pay homage to the mighty steel industry of early-20th century Birmingham than with an enormous statue of the Roman god of fire and metalsmithing? The world's largest cast iron statue at a height of, Vulcan was forged in 1903 as Birmingham's contribution to the St. Louis World's Fair, then spent a few decades welcoming visitors at the state fairgrounds in West Birmingham before being re-erected and rededicated in 1936 at the summit of Red Mountain by the Works Progress Administration. Vulcan now stands atop a sandstone pedestal with an observation deck near the top that provides a panoramic view of Birmingham and vicinity. Nearby is a small museum with exhibits on local industrial history.

    Park: daily 7AM-10PM; Museum: Mon-Sat 10AM-6PM, Sun 1-6PM; Observation Balcony: Mon-Sat 10AM-10PM, Sun 1-10PM

15. Do Not mapped

    Birmingham Barons

    Birmingham's minor-league team is the heir to one of the oldest baseball traditions in the country, dating back to 1885. Today, the Barons are the Chicago White Sox's Double-A farm team in the Southern League, and are perhaps most famous for having had basketball legend Michael Jordan on its roster during his first retirement from that sport in 1994. All home games are played at downtown, with one exception: the annual Rickwood Classic held in late May or early June, where the Barons return to historic, their home from 1910 through 1987. It is the oldest professional baseball park in the United States.

16. Do Not mapped

    Magic City Classic

    Of special interest to visitors interested in African-American culture is this October college football event featuring the state's two largest historically black universities, Alabama A&M and Alabama State. The game, which consistently draws bigger crowds than both the Birmingham Bowl and regular-season UAB home games, caps off a week of festivities that draws nearly 200,000 attendees, many of them having no connection to either school. Many African-American celebrities and public figures participate, either as attendees or featured guests.

17. Do Not mapped

    Sidewalk Film Festival

    Over three days in late September, seven historic venues in downtown Birmingham — including the restored Alabama Theatre and the Lyric Theatre — screen some of the year's best new releases in independent film.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Birmingham (CC BY-SA 4.0).