Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for alabama
A Blast in Alabama
By Linda Tancs
A testament to America’s coming of industrial age, Alabama’s Sloss Furnaces is the only 20th century blast furnace in America being preserved and interpreted as a historic industrial site. Located in Birmingham, the facility contains two 400-ton blast furnaces and 40 other buildings although nothing remains of the original furnace complex. Nevertheless, the oldest building on the site dates from 1902 and houses the eight steam-driven “blowing-engines” used to provide air for combustion in the furnaces, vintage engines that drove (no pun intended) the Industrial Revolution. Sloss produced iron for nearly 90 years, rendering Birmingham a great industrial hub of the South that earned it the nickname The Magic City.
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Courage Up Close
By Linda Tancs
A symbol of courage, the USS Alabama (nicknamed the Mighty A), saw 37 months of active duty during World War II, earning nine battle stars and becoming one of America’s most decorated battleships. Now anchored at Battleship Memorial Park in Mobile, you can experience courage up close. The park’s Wall of Honor inside the Medal of Honor Aircraft Pavilion honors the 9,583 Alabama citizens who have died in combat since World War I. The pavilion honors those 29 Alabama citizens who have received the Medal of Honor, the highest military honor given by the United States of America.
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Shrimp to Shore
By Linda Tancs
For 40 years now Gulf Shores, Alabama has been the place to be for the National Shrimp Festival. Taking place from 13 to 16 October at the Gulf State Park Pavilion, the annual fest draws 300,000 visitors each year to sample the local fare. But that’s not all. There’s live music playing from two stages, over 200 artists, and a children’s activity village. The festival is free; why not apply those unused funds to a little break in the Gulf Coast. Stay and play at any of the local hotels, campgrounds, cottages or condos. There is a shuttle that leaves for the festival hourly from the Winn Dixie grocery store parking lot at only a dollar each way.
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Preserving the Past in Alabama
By Linda Tancs
At Fort Rucker, Alabama, they preserve the past for the future. That’s where you’ll find the Army Aviation Museum, exhibiting over 160 military aircraft, including one of the largest collections of military helicopters in the world. Aviation students, researchers, and authors will love the library (available by appointment only), housing more than 1,600 technical and field manuals, more than 2,000 films, an aviation history reference section, and approximately 95,000 photographs. Guided tours are available on request (call ahead to ensure that access to the installation is not restricted due to security requirements), and admission is free.
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U.S. Fishing Tournaments
By Linda Tancs
Sport fishing is a popular activity. Tournaments abound throughout the U.S. for this competitive pastime. Learn more about these nationwide events for grown-up peeps and pee wees alike at Travelrific® Radio.
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