After seceding, Alabama joined the Confederate States of America, and the Confederacy’s capital was initially at Montgomery. Alabama contributed about 120,000 soldiers to the war effort, though few battles were fought in the state.

High-profile events such as the Selma to Montgomery marches made Alabama a major focal point of the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s.

The first Constitutional Convention for Alabama was held in Huntsville from July 5 to August 2, 1819.

American football, particularly at the college level, plays a major part in Alabama’s culture.

The removal of the Ten Commandments statue in Alabama led to protests around the capitol, with many people in favor of keeping the monument.

The northern part of Alabama, along the Tennessee River Valley, is most vulnerable to tornadoes.

Alabama’s economy shifted away from traditional industries like lumber, steel, and textiles due to increased foreign competition. New industries, such as technology and automobile manufacturing, emerged, with Huntsville benefiting from the opening of the George C. Marshall Space Flight ...Read more

Thomas Bassett was a loyalist to the British monarchy during the Revolutionary era and one of the earliest white settlers in Alabama outside Mobile. He settled in the Tombigbee District during the early 1770s.

Hurricane Ivan, a category 3 storm upon landfall, struck Alabama in 2004, causing over $18 billion in damage. It was one of the most destructive storms in the state’s modern history.