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Alabama

16 Interesting Things You May Not Know About Alabama

By Jennifer Young | Published April 30, 2015

If you thought you knew everything there is to know about Alabama, you might want to think again. There are so many interesting things about this state, so it’s not surprising Alabama is such a GREAT place to live! Here are 16 things about Alabama that I found to be very interesting.

1.) Magnolia Springs is the only city in the U.S. with an all-water mail route.

2.) The first game played between the University of Alabama and Auburn University took place on February 22, 1893.

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3.) Alabama introduced Mardis Gras to the Western World in Mobile in 1703 - 15 years before it started in Louisiana.

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4.) Workers here in Alabama built the first rocket to put humans on the moon - Apollo 11.

5.) In 1931, when Birmingham Airport opened its runway, it took 19 hours to fly 1,803 miles across the country to Los Angeles, which meant the plane only flew about 95 mph.

6.) In 1995, Alabama crowned Heather Whitestone as Miss America - the first Miss America to be chosen with a disability.

7.) The Boll Weevil Monument, initially built to encourage farmers to grow crops other than cotton, is the only monument in the world that's dedicated to an insect pest. The monument is located in Enterprise.

8.) In 1836, Alabama became the first state in the U.S. to declare Christmas a legal holiday.

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9.) Alabama is the only state that has the ability to produce iron and steel with its own natural resources.

10.) Alabama is home to the Coon Dog Cemetery - the only cemetery of its kind in the world.

11.) Windshield wipers and airbags were invented in Alabama.

12.) The first electric streetcar in the world ran down Dexter Avenue in Montgomery.

13.) If you've ever lost your luggage while flying, chances are it ended up here at Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro.

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14.) The Super Soaker was invented in Alabama by Lonnie Johnson in 1982. It was invented by accident and remains one of the top-selling toys today.

15.) Even though Lynyrd Skynyrd's #1 song is Sweet Home Alabama, none of the members are actually from Alabama.

16.) The first 911 call in the U.S. was made in Haleyville on February 16, 1968.

This is just a short list of the many interesting things about Alabama. Can you add anything else that’s interesting about this great state?

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