Fun, Eccentric, & Offbeat Sites To Visit In Birmingham, Alabama, By Leroy Worley

 Our friend Neala enjoys offbeat attractions and destinations just as much as we do. As a child I use to visit a the Smokey Mountains with my parents and each time we went I made sure to stop by and give a Choc-cola to the bear that lived there. He loved it, although I doubt he's still there today. While traveling in Alabama you can find many fun, eccentric, and offbeat sites to visit, and while these attractions are often overlooked, they are worth visiting just to say I've been there. So, Neala, this is for you!

A Bear Of Another Kind - A visit to the Grave of Paul “Bear” Bryant might not be the highlight on everyone's list of things to do. Then again for Football fans it just might be a great way to pay tribute to a legend. Adoring fans recognized the growling voice of “Bear,” the athletic director and head football coach at Tuscaloosa’s University of Alabama for 25 years, who was also the college football’s winningest coach.

His nickname “Bear” came from a childhood encounter at a carnival that was passing through near his Arkansas home. One of the attractions was a bear whose trainer offered a dollar a minute to anybody who would wrestle the beast. Bryant accepted. He pinned the bear solidly, and the trainer began to whisper to Bryant, “Let him up. Let him up!” The carnival man wanted some action to hold his crowd. Years later when Bryant recalled the story, he’d say, “Hell, for a dollar a minute, I wanted to hold him ‘til he died.”

 Under his leadership the Alabama Crimson Tide won six national championships and 13 Southeastern Conference titles.  His Alabama team played in 24 consecutive bowl games. Bryant retired in December 1982. On January 26, 1983, he died in Tuscaloosa of a massive heart attack. Bryant was buried in Birmingham’s Elmwood Cemetery. Ten of thousands of grief-stricken admirers lined the 50-mile funeral procession from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham.

Bear’s last resting place sits on a small shady hill in the Birmingham cemetery. Since his death, the gravesite has attracted so many visitors that cemetery personnel, weary of giving directions, finally painted a crimson line from the entrance gates to his Block 30 grave. It's a shame Bear wasn't around to be there when Mark Ingram, player for the University of Alabama, won The Heisman Trophy, but we're sure he was smiling just the same.

What Is That In Joe Minter’s Yard? - It may have been the question on everyone's mind when they passed. Located on Nassau Street, Joe, a construction worker by trade was called to build his visionary sculptures when God spoke to him and told him to plant a garden of memory. His breathtaking collection of folk art structures fill the entire side yard, and you may notice his African heritage is a dominant theme in Joe’s work. The garden is a blaze with yellow, green, red and black, traditional colors of the flags of many African nations. You'll discover bands of African warriors rise high above the other sculptures, their heads fashioned from bowling balls or the hoods of old hairdryers.

Then there is the moving sculpture that pays tribute to the four little girls killed in the 1963 bombing of Birmingham’s 16th Street Baptist Church. Placards of wood are painted with each child’s name and sit on empty folding chairs. Nearby a jail cell surrounds a discarded commode, a scene representing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous jailing in Birmingham during the Civil Rights era. The toilet tank is covered with block lettering detailing the event. Joe Minter takes little credit for his creation and simply says, “All of this is really just the hand of God.”

 Bring Along Your Camera And Visit The Temple of Sibyl - Located at the intersection of Highway 31 and Shades Crest Road, this Greek reproduction gives no hint of its weird history. It was once located on the grand estate of former mayor of Birmingham, George Ward, who in 1924, was so inspired by the Temple of the Vestal Virgins in Rome he decided to build his own in Birmingham. Ward enjoyed Greek and Roman history, and when he returned he constructed Vesta Via, meaning “home by the road” in a Birmingham suburb where his. This was the site of many Greek-style parties with togas and all.

Sandal-footed and wreath-crowned, Ward and his guests roamed the grounds of this elegant estate, along with a bevy of his hound dogs that bore names such as Zeus and Aphrodite. The Temple of Sibyl was an addition near Ward's summerhouse located at the entrance of the estate. After Ward’s death, his grand estate fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1971, yet the Temple of Sibyl was moved to its present location atop the mountain four years later. And, from this majestic vantage point you can enjoy a sweeping view of the surrounding area.

Soul Food at Miss B’s on Fourth - When we traveled with Neala through the Florida Keys we had to try the Key Lime Pie at each location we stopped along with the refreshing sweet tea. When in the South you must stop and savor a taste of Birmingham at Miss B’s on Fourth, where you'll enjoy pork ribs, fried whiting, turnip greens with ham hocks, fresh tomatoes, fried okra, squash, macaroni & cheese, fried chicken, black-eyed peas, cornbread without sugar added, peach cobbler, banana pudding and refreshing sweet tea!

Plan Your Trip

To plan your trip to Birmingham visit www.birminghamal.org.

To explore events and attractions in Alabama visit http://www.alabama.travel/