These 12 Hidden Gems In Alabama Hold Historic Keys To The Past

Many hidden gems are located throughout Alabama. And some of them even hold historic keys to the state's past. Let’s take a look at 12 of these historic hidden gems.

Please note, Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site is temporarily closed.

1. Town of Mooresville

Located in Limestone County, Mooresville is one of the oldest incorporated towns in Alabama (November 16, 1818). The entire town is included on the National Register of Historic Places, and it's also home to the oldest operating post office (pictured) in Alabama.

2. Edmund Pettus Bridge

Built in 1940, and located in Selma, Alabama, the Edmund Pettus Bridge was the site of Bloody Sunday on March 7, 1965 during the Civil Rights Movement.

3. USS Alabama (BB-60)

The USS Alabama (BB-60) was the sixth ship of the United States Navy. It was commissioned in 1942 and served in WWII. It retired in 1962 and is currently a museum (Battleship Memorial Park) in Mobile, Alabama.

4. Ivy Green

Built in 1820, and located in Tuscumbia, Alabama, Ivy Green is the childhood home of Helen Keller - First Lady of Courage.

5. Fort Morgan

Fort Morgan is a historic masonry star fort located at the mouth of Mobile Bay, Alabama. It was built during the years 1819-1834, and in 1960, it became a National Historic Landmark.

6. Tannehill Ironworks (Tannehill Furnace)

Built during the years 1859-1862, and located near McCalla, Alabama, Tannehill Ironworks was a major supplier of iron for Confederate ordnance.

7. Horseshoe Bend National Military Park

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, located in Tallapoosa County, is the site of the last battle of the Creek War, which took place on March 27, 1814. During the Creek War, more than 800 Upper Creeks died while defending their homeland.

8. Moundville Archaeological Site

The Moundville Archeological Site, located on the Black Warrior River near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, includes 29 platform mounds and was occupied by Native Americans of the Mississippian culture from around 1000 AD to 1450 AD.

9. Rosenbaum House

Built in 1940, and located in Florence, the Rosenbaum House is the only structure in Alabama designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It's also one of only 26 pre-World War II Usonian houses.

10. Coldwater Covered Bridge

Located in Oxford, the Coldwater Covered Bridge, (also known as the Hughes Mill Covered Bridge,) was built in 1850, making it Alabama's oldest covered bridge.

11. Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site

The Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, located at Moton Field in Tuskegee, was the site of primary flight training for the Tuskegee Airmen - America's first African-American military aviators.

12. Oakleigh Historic Complex

The Oakleigh Historic Complex is a group of buildings, including the following: a working-class raised cottage, Union Barracks and a modern archives building. Oakleigh (pictured), built in 1833, is a historic house museum. This historic house museum is also the centerpiece of the Oakleigh Historic Complex.

Have you visited any of these historic hidden gems?