Issue 38, Fall 1995

General Overview: The image appears to be a cover from a magazine or brochure titled “Alabama HERITAGE.” The central focus is on a person, whose face is obscured, wearing a red shirt and a wide-brimmed hat. The overall theme seems to be vintage or historical, evoking a sense of the past. Specific Elements or Objects: Title Text: At the top of the image, we see the title “Alabama HERITAGE” rendered in elegant red and black fonts. Just below the title, there’s another line of text, but unfortunately, it’s not clear enough to read. Main Character: The foreground features an individual dressed in cowboy attire, including a red shirt and a wide-brimmed hat. The man is looking down, with a smile on his face. Background Scene: The background depicts an action-packed scenario reminiscent of a rodeo or similar event. We see people on horseback, possibly wranglers or rodeo performers, along with cattle. The artistic style of the background suggests a vibrant and dynamic scene.

Issue 38, Fall 1995

On the cover: Alabama’s Johnny Mack Brown became one of the nation’s most popular Western movie stars. During the 1950s, Brown also starred in a comic book series. (Courtesy Dothan Landmarks Foundation)

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Features

The photograph captures an aged and weathered building adorned with a prominent sign that reads “RICKWOOD FIELD.” Here are the specifics: Building Appearance: The structure exhibits signs of wear and tear, its paint faded to a muted green hue. Signage: The words “RICKWOOD FIELD” are prominently displayed on the upper part of the building. Entrances or Garage Doors: At the base of the building, there are four large, dark openings. These could serve as entrances or perhaps function as garage doors. Windows: Above these openings, we see a series of windows. Some of these windows appear to be boarded up, hinting at possible abandonment or disrepair. Architectural Style: The building’s architectural features evoke a sense of classic design, reminiscent of structures from the early to mid-20th century. Sky: The partly cloudy sky provides a backdrop, with patches of blue peeking through. Text Recognition: The sign reads “RICKWOOD FIELD.”
Dedicated in 1910, Rickwood Field served as the home of the Birmingham Barons of the Southern League and the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro American League. (Photo courtesy Robin McDonald)

Rickwood Field: Grand Lady of Baseball

By Paige Wainwright

Rickwood Field has actually housed two teams since its opening day in 1910. From 1924 until 1962, the Birmingham Black Barons leased the stadium from creator and owner Rick Woodward and played on alternating weekends. It was home of pitcher Satchel Paige, who completed 184 strikeouts in 1929. Another rookie named Willie Mays also began his legendary career as a Black Baron. With the onset of the civil rights movement, the Barons decided “to fold rather than to integrate.” In 1964, an integrated Barons team returned and played at Rickwood until 1987. At that time a new owner, Art Clarkson, moved the Barons to the team’s current home, the Hoover Met. In 1991, after the demolition of Chicago’s Comiskey Park, Rickwood became the oldest standing baseball stadium in the United States. In 1992, a nonprofit organization called “Friends of Rickwood” was organized to aid in the preservation and restoration of this historical site.

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This image appears to be a vintage movie poster for a film titled “The SHERIFF OF MEDICINE BOW.” The main character, portrayed by Johnny Mack Brown, is featured prominently. Key elements in the image: Johnny Mack Brown: The main character stands in the center, wearing a cowboy hat and attire. He is depicted holding onto a tree. Title: The title “The SHERIFF OF MEDICINE BOW” is written in bold yellow letters against a red background at the center of the poster. Credits: At the bottom, there are credits for the film, including names such as RAYMOND HATTON, MAX TERHUNE, and EVELYN FINLEY. Production Details: The poster also provides information about the film’s production, including the producer (BARNEY A. SAIRECKY), director (LAMBERT HILLYER), and screenplay writer (J. Benton Cheney). Here’s the text extracted from the image: JOHNNY MACK BROWN “The SHERIFF OF MEDICINE BOW” Starring: RAYMOND HATTON MAX TERHUNE EVELYN FINLEY Produced by BARNEY A. SAIRECKY Directed by LAMBERT HILLYER Screenplay by J. Benton Cheney This vintage movie poster captures the essence of a classic Western film.
A movie poster for “The Sheriff of Medicine Bow.”

The Story of Johnny Mack Brown

By Philip D. Beidler

This issue chronicles the adventures of the CSS Alabama, the Confederacy’s deadliest raider, including the discovery of her wreck off the coast of France and recent salvage efforts. Though the Alabama never once berthed in a Confederate port, her exploits boosted the morale of Southerners as she made an epic–and deadly–maritime journey around the world. During the Alabama’s 22-month campaign, her commander, Captain Raphael Semmes of Mobile and his crew captured or sank 65 Union merchant vessels at a cost of approximately $6 million to the Union. Author Christopher Henze, a U. S. diplomat for 25 years, served as a cultural attaché at the American embassy in Paris and acted as liaison between the French and the American sides in negotiations over ownership of the Alabama artifacts.

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Historical Scene: The image portrays a historical setting, reminiscent of an old photograph. A stone bridge with several arches takes center stage. The bridge appears to be either partially damaged or under construction. Atop the bridge, there is a large structure, which could be a building or some form of machinery. A few people are visible near this structure, suggesting human activity. The overall monochromatic tone adds to the vintage feel of the image. Background and Surroundings: Due to the aged quality of the photo, the background and surroundings remain somewhat unclear. The image evokes a sense of timelessness and invites curiosity about the context and purpose of the bridge and its associated structure.
Lock No. 2, Coosa River, c. 1900. While watching water flow through this flume, William Patrick Lay is said to have envisioned the beginnings of what later became the Alabama Power Company. (Courtesy Scarboro Photography, Gadsden, Alabama)

Taming the Coosa

By Harvey H. Jackson III

One of the wildest rivers in the Southeast, the Coosa defied nineteenth-century efforts to tame her. Before hydroelectric dams turned it into a series of elongated lakes, the Coosa was really two rivers, one deep and navigable, another nearly one hundred miles of dangerous rocks and reefs. From the late 1860s until the early part of the 1900s, state and federally funded projects studied and improved the navigability of the Coosa River, creating a waterway for the expanding commerce of Alabama and Georgia. Harvey H. Jackson III, professor and head of the History Department at Jacksonville State University, details the Coosa’s history that parallels Alabama’s commercial development after the Civil War. This article is an outgrowth of Jackson’s research for Rivers of History: Life on the Coosa, Tallapoosa, Cahaba, and Alabama, recently published by the University of Alabama Press.

The image portrays a small white house with text written all over its exterior walls. The house features a blue porch and is surrounded by greenery, including trees and grass. In the background, another similar structure is partially visible. The main focus of the image is a gabled-roof white house. The walls are covered in text, although it’s not clear enough to read the content. The house has a blue porch with steps leading up to it. The surrounding area includes trees and grass, suggesting a rural or suburban setting. To the left in the background, there’s another structure similar to the main house, partially obscured by trees.
Snow Hill cottages. (Courtesy Robin McDonald)

Alabama’s Most Endangered Historic Places, 1995

By the Alabama Historical Commission and Alabama Preservation Alliance Endangered Historic Places Committee

This year’s Most Endangered Historic Places include a school on the National Register of Historic Places, and an African-American cemetery which contains the graves of three of the young victims of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing in 1963. As part of the effort to raise awareness of endangered properties around the state, the “Places in Peril” listing is published each year in the fall issue of Alabama Heritage. The 1995 “Places in Peril” are: Christian Science Church, Tuscaloosa; Osborne House, Mobile; the Eastern shore of Mobile Bay, Baldwin County; Snow Hill Institute, Wilcox County; Greenwood-Woodlawn Cemetery, Birmingham; Old Alabama State Penitentiary, Elmore County; Old Memphis and Charleston Railroad Depot, Scottsboro; “Old Stagecoach Inn” (Moore-Hill House), Lamar County; Aldrich Mines, Montevallo; Virginia City Mines, Hueytown; Cedar Haven, Marengo County; The Forks of Cypress Ruins, Lauderdale County; and Mt. Vernon Arsenal/Searcy Hospital Complex, Mobile County. Also included is the “Update on 1994 Endangered Historic Places.”

Departments

From the Archives

An Alabama Legacy: Images of a State

By Alice Knierim 

Photographs are part of a shared legacy passed down from one generation to another. By capturing moments that words alone cannot evoke, photographs offer a direct link to the past. In 1995, the Friends of the Alabama Archives and the Alabama Department of Archives and History published a pictorial history entitled An Alabama Legacy: Images of a State. Alice Knierim discusses the photographs found in this collection.

The photograph is in black and white and captures a moment of celebration or gathering. A group of people is dancing in a circle, holding hands. They appear to be in an indoor setting. The individuals are dressed in formal attire, including dresses and suits. Decorations can be seen hanging from the ceiling, suggesting an event or party atmosphere. Overall, the image has a vintage or historical feel due to its monochromatic color scheme.
The Fourth Aviation Squadron dance for members of the Girls Service Organization, Montgomery, 1942. (Courtesy Alabama Department of Archives and History)
The central focus of the image appears to be a small, shiny object with an irregular shape. It resembles a rock or mineral, and its reflective surface suggests that it might be wet or inherently shiny. The surrounding area is dark and damp, possibly indicating that this scene was captured outdoors after a rain. The object glistens due to moisture or some reflective quality inherent to it. Its irregular shape adds an abstract quality to the image. The background is blurred out, drawing attention primarily to the central object.
A Tulotoma magnifica, Alabama’s live-bearing snail, clings to the underside of an overturned rock, Weogufka Creek, Coosa County. (Photograph by L. J Davenport)

The Nature Journal

Tulotoma, The Alabama Live-Bearing Snail

By L. J. Davenport

Extinction is forever–this truth is undeniable. However, the case of Tulotoma magnifica, the Alabama live-bearing snail, calls this truth into question. Once declared extinct, then rediscovered in huge numbers, the tulotoma–Alabama’s only federally listed endangered snail–clings tightly to life.

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