Alabama Heritage’s History

In 1985, then-chair of the University of Alabama’s department of history, Bill Barnard, had an idea–what if the state of Alabama have its first historical magazine? He pitched the idea to his department, garnering support. The magazine was conceived with a broad conception of “heritage,” incorporating more than traditional history. Barnard would then recruit Suzanne Wolfe as editor. In the summer of 1986, Alabama Heritage magazine first debuted.

In the more than 35 years since its founding, Alabama Heritage has become the state’s premier historical publication. Featuring dozens of topics from anthropology to literature and so much more, the magazine has become an esteemed quarterly that serves not only the state, but also the southeastern region. The magazine provides rich educational resources to its readers and has been cited in various works as a reliable reference.

Faced with an overwhelming strain on the state’s educational budgets, the community came to the magazine’s aid in the mid-1990s, creating “Friends of Alabama Heritage” which continues to be the lifeblood of the publication. The magazine is also currently funded by the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the Alabama Department of Archives and History. 

Through the support of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Alabama Heritage can be found in every school throughout the state. Alabama Heritage is especially thankful for the continuous support and understanding of educating the state’s history.

In its history, there have been four editors/directors who have overseen the publication’s success, along with a myriad of other important players and vendors. Currently, there are four full-time employees at the magazine along with several editorial assistants. The staff continues to produce top-notch content while also fact-checking everything with a fine-tooth comb. The team is proud of its work and the mission they continue to serve. 

Major Awards Presented to Alabama Heritage 

Alabama Heritage has won numerous regional and national awards, most of which were presented by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), the largest and most prestigious judge of university publications in North America. Included among the competitors in the various magazine categories are 3,000 public and private universities in the United States and Canada. The names of the competition categories change occasionally, and we were not always informed of who the other winners were each year, but the following list of awards suggests the scope of the competition.

  • 2018 – Digital History Award, Alabama Historical Association. The AHA Digital History Award recognizes excellence in projects that contribute to promulgating state and local Alabama history by digital means. Projects are reviewed on their delivery of exceptional and hidden information about Alabama’s past using websites, blogs, social media, and other forms of digital media. This is only the second year that the Digital History Award has been given. ​
  • 2017 – Nominee, FOLIO: Ozzie Design Award, “Association/Nonprofit Magazines.” The issue nominated is our Issue 123, Winter 2017. This competition is awarded by FOLIO:, which is the leading publication serving the entire magazine media industry. Winners will be announced October 11, 2017.
  • 2005 – Bronze Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Special Interest  Magazines.” This competition, judged at Dartmouth College, considered more than 40 magazines from colleges and universities across the country including the medical schools at Harvard and Yale.
  • 2004 – The Grand Award, CASE District III Advancement Awards, “Other Magazines.” Selected for this award from a total of 26 other entries, Alabama Heritage was regarded as “a superb publication and an excellent reflection on the state of Alabama.” Magazines were judged on content, writing, editing, design, photography, and printing. 
  • 2003 – Award of Excellence,  CASE District III Advancement  Awards, “Other Magazines.” The Communications Office at the University of Georgia judged the competition among 24 entries.
  • 2002 – The Grand Award, CASE District III Advancement Awards, “Other Magazines.” Selected for this award from a total of eighteen other  entries, Alabama Heritage was heralded as a “beautiful magazine! The photographs are outstanding and the content is excellent.”
  • 2001 – Award of  Excellence, CASE District III Advancement Awards, “Other Magazines.” This competition, judged by the development office of the Episcopal Diocese of  Virginia, offered comments from the judges: “Great look. It could probably beat  ‘Smithsonian’ in a competition.” “I like the writing. It is warm and  informative. The editor is doing a good job.” “This is an excellent example of  cooperation between two major universities.” 
  • 2000 – Certificate of Commendation from the American Association for State and Local History, a prestigious national organization whose award program extends throughout North America. 
  • 1999 – Bronze Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Special Interest Magazines.” This competition, judged at the University of Portland, considered more than 50 magazines from across the country.
  • 1999 – Finalist, Southern Environmental Law Center Reed Environmental Writing Award for Outstanding Writing on the Southern Environment. Todd Keith’s article, “Alabama’s Heart River: The Cahaba,” (Alabama Heritage, Fall 1998) was a top-contender in this regional competition recognizing the South’s best writing about the environment.
  • 1998 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Other Magazines.” This competition was judged at Auburn University.
  • 1997 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Other Magazines.” This competition was judged at Mississippi State University.
  • 1997 – Gold Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Special Interest Magazines.” This competition–sponsored by Newsweek magazine, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and Ford Motor Company Fund–was judged at the University of Notre Dame. The judges considered 42 magazines from across the country.
  • 1997 – Southeast Society of Architectural Historians Award for Best Article. Given for Delos D. Hughes’s article “Jefferson’s ‘Academical Village'” which was published in the Spring, 1997 issue of Alabama Heritage.
  • 1996 – Silver Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Special Interest Magazines.” This competition–sponsored by Newsweek magazine, 
    The Chronicle of Higher Education, and Ford Motor Company Fund–was judged at the University of Kansas. The judges considered 48 entries.
  • 1995 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Institutional Publications.” This competition was judged at The University of Alabama  in Birmingham.
  • 1995 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Other Magazines.” This competition was judged at Clark Atlanta University.
  • 1995 – Heritage Education Award, Tuscaloosa County Preservation Society “for the magazine’s ongoing contributions to publicizing the plight of not only Tuscaloosa County’s historic resources, but those scattered throughout  Alabama.”
  • 1995 – Alabama Humanities Award, presented by the Alabama Humanities Foundation to Suzanne Wolfe, editor of Alabama Heritage, for “exemplary contributions to public understanding and appreciation of the humanities in Alabama.”
  • 1994 – Bronze Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Visual Design in Print.” The judges at Marietta College, Ohio, considered 297 entries. 
  • 1994 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Special Interest Magazines.”
  • 1993 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Other Magazines.” This competition was judged at Memphis State University.
  • 1993 – Award of Special Merit, CASE District III, “Institutional Publications.” Judged at Auburn University. 
  • 1992 – Gold  Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Special Interest Magazines.” Sixty-one entries were considered and one Gold Medal was awarded. The competition was judged at Washington State University.
  • 1992 – Grand Award, CASE District III, “Other Magazines.” This competition was judged at Duke University.
  • 1992 – Special Merit Award, CASE District III, “Institutional Publications.” This competition was judged at the University of Kentucky.
  • 1991 – Award of Excellence, CASE District III, “Institutional Publications.” 
  • 1991 – Certificate of Commendation, Mobile Historic Development Commission, Mobile, Alabama, for “excellence in publishing a high-quality magazine on the history of the state.” 
  • 1991 – Gold Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Special Interest Magazines.” This competition was judged at Oregon State University. The judges considered 73 entries and awarded two Gold Medals.
  • 1991 – Gold Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “Top Ten Magazines.” 
    This competition was judged by a panel of editors from Newsweek. Other top ten winners included magazines published by Dartmouth College, Duke University, the University of Notre Dame, Johns Hopkins University, Radcliffe College, Tulane University, the University of Pittsburgh, Arizona State University, and Southern  Methodist University.
  • 1990 – Honor Award, Alabama Preservation Alliance: “In recognition of outstanding contributions to the people of Alabama in the preservation and conservation of the historical resources of our state.”
  • 1990 – Bronze Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “University Magazines.”
  • 1990 – Grand Award, CASE District III, “Institutional Publications.”
  • 1990 – Grand Award, CASE District III, “University Magazines.”
  • 1989 – Bronze Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “University Magazines.” This competition was judged at Swarthmore College.
  • 1989 – Grand Award, CASE District III, “Other Magazines.” (“Other Magazines” means non-alumni magazines.) This competition was judged at Duke University.
  • 1989 – Bronze Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “University Magazines.” The judges at Pomona College, California, considered 125 entries.
  • 1989 – Grand Award, CASE District III, “Institutional Publications.” This competition was judged at Georgia Institute of Technology.
  • 1987 – Gold Medal Award, CASE National Competition, “University Magazines.” 
    The judges–a panel from Newsweek–evaluated 90 entries in this competition and awarded 10 Gold Medals. “The judges were very impressed with a new magazine, 
    Alabama Heritage. They felt that the content, design, and writing worked beautifully together to effectively meet the magazine’s goal–to present the history of the state of Alabama in its diversity.” Other gold medal winners: Harvard University, Duke University, Cornell University, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Portland, Stanford  University, George Mason University.
  • 1987 – Best of Category, CASE District III, “University Magazines.” (District III includes North Carolina, South Carolina, Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and Alabama.)
Issue 1
Issue 1, Summer 1986
The image appears to be a magazine cover titled “ALABAMA HERITAGE.” The central visual element on the cover is a photograph of a historic building’s cupola. The cupola is made of wood and painted white, with architectural details highlighted in grey. Its roof is dome-shaped and topped with a weathervane. The cupola stands out against a clear blue sky. Red borders frame both the entire magazine cover and the central photograph. At the bottom of the cover, there is text that reads: “ALABAMA HERITAGE PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AND THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM.
Issue 42, Fall 1996
The image appears to be the cover of a magazine titled “Alabama Heritage.” It’s the 100th issue from Spring 2011. The sepia-toned photograph features Booker T. Washington, who is sitting in a chair with one arm resting on a table, holding what seems to be a book or papers. His face has been obscured by a gray rectangle for privacy reasons. The magazine is published by the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the Alabama Department of Archives and History.
Issue 100, Spring 2011
The image is the cover of a magazine titled “Alabama Heritage”. The tagline on the cover reads: “Stories of Alabama that Educate, Inspire, and Entertain Since 1986.” The magazine is Issue No. 152 from Spring 2024, and it is priced at . The cover features a captivating black and white photograph. In the image, an older individual is seen sitting in an antique car. The individual appears to be a man with wispy hair. He is wearing a grey suit. His right hand is resting outside of the vehicle. Just next to the car are several microphones from various news agencies. The cover also highlights several articles within the magazine: “Alabama and the American Presidency” “Bloody Tuesday” “Battle of Mobile Bay” “Sen. James B. Allen” Overall, the magazine cover exudes a sense of history, nostalgia, and pride in Alabama’s heritage and stories.
Issue 152, Spring 2024
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