A late arrival on the Southern landscape, the city of Birmingham was not incorporated until after the Civil War. In fact, from 1820 to 1871, what is now Birmingham was known as the hamlet of Elyton, a small crossroads set in the rolling foothills of the Appalachian Mountains where several Pony Express and stage routes crossed paths. When two railroads eventually intersected at this point—where, significantly, all the ingredients necessary to make iron existed in close proximity—the region’s growth exploded. Birmingham’s history is not a story of the grace and vanished grandeur of an antebellum past, but rather, a dynamic story of modern American industrialization.Sites covered include: Hollywood, Alabama State Fairgrounds, Vulcan Park, Mountain Brook Village, The Old Mill, Avondale Park, Highland Park, Woodlawn High, Quinlan Castle, Five Points South, Bottega Favorita, Old Jefferson County Courthouse, Capitol Park, Tutwiler Hotel, Twentieth Street, Louise Wooster Brothel, Alabama Theatre, Kress Department Store, Joy Young Restaurant, Terminal Station, Molton Hotel, Lovemans, Massey Building, Bright Star, Temple of Sibyl, Sloss Furnaces, Red Mountain and Legion Field.

HISTORIC PHOTOS OF BIRMINGHAM captures the remarkable journey of this cultural city of the South, with still photography from the finest archives of city, state and private collections. Through the late 1800's, the roaring Twenties, two World Wars and into the modern era, Birmingham has continued to grow and prosper by maintaining the strong, independent culture of its citizens. With hundreds of archival photos reproduced in stunning duotone on heavy art paper, this book is the perfect addition to any historian's collection.

Birmingham's surrounding hills comprise the only place in the world with a plentiful supply of all the ingredients for iron making. This spurred the city of Birmingham's charter in 1871 around the crossing of two railroads. The city's development into a leading industrial center is shown here in photographs and postcard views, some a century old.

Some of Birmingham Alabama's history has been lost. This book takes a look at this lost history and brings it back to life. Birmingham has many notable historic landmarks today, but so many more are all but forgotten. The Bangor Cave Casino was once a world-renowned speakeasy. The Thomas Jefferson Hotel featured a zeppelin mooring station, drawing lots of attention from tourists. Other significant sites from the past, such as Hillman Hospital and the buildings on the "Heaviest Corner on Earth," are unknown even to natives now. Local author Beverly Crider presents an intriguing and educational tour through these and more hidden treasures.

In 1963 Birmingham, Alabama, was the site of cataclysmic racial violence: Police commissioner "Bull" Connor attacked black demonstrators with dogs and water cannons, Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote his famous letter from the Birmingham jail, and four black children were killed in a church bombing. This incendiary period in Birmingham's history is the centerpiece of an intense and affecting memoir. A disaffected Birmingham native, Paul Hemphill decides to live in his hometown once again, to capture the events and essence of that summer and explore the depth of social change in Birmingham in the years since -- even as he tries to come to terms with his family, and with himself. -- back cover.

Few cities have undergone such a radical transformation over the last few decades as Birmingham. Culturally and architecturally, it has been in a state of perpetual flux and regeneration, with new communities moving in, then out, and iconic post-war landmarks making way for brighter-coloured, 21st century flourishes. Much like the city itself, the characters in the stories gathered here are often living through moments of profound change, closing in on a personal or societal turning point, that carries as much threat as it does promise. Set against key moments of history – from Malcolm X’s visit to Smethwick in 1965, to the Handsworth riots two decades later, from the demise of the city’s manufacturing in the 70s and 80s, to the on-going tensions between communities in recent years – these stories celebrate the cultural dynamism that makes this complex, often divided ‘second city’ far more than just the sum of its parts.

Between 1950 and 1979, Birmingham, Alabama, experienced some of the most dramatic growth and change in its history. Booming suburbs, desegregation, the fall of steel and the rise of medical and educational research, a new emphasis on the fine arts, and other changes imparted to Birmingham a radical new look over that thirty-year period. Historic Photos of Birmingham in the 50s, 60s, and 70s highlights the changes that took place through pictures of busy shoppers, amusing advertising ploys, eager audiences, cultural achievements, towering buildings, influential citizens, new institutions, famous actors, and violent protests and demonstrations. Nearly 200 photographs, vividly reproduced in black-and-white with captions and introductions, give a clear idea of what the Birmingham landscape and environment was like during these years. This look back is the perfect reminiscence for those who remember the era and an ideal resource for those new to the city who may not.