Easter is coming to our world!
That is really evident over at Pringle Petals Flower Studio
on Broad Street where the bunnies are all dressed up.
Linking to Our World Tuesday
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Monday, March 30, 2015
Blue Monday, The Awning with Blue Stripes
It's "Blue Monday" meme day, and not much could be a prettier
shade of blue than the awning at Butler Truax Jewelers.
The history of this store dates back to 1845, and during the Civil War,
its owner, S.F. Hobbs, a native of Maine, went off to fight for the South.
The story of how his bride saved the store's silver and jewelry
during the Battle of Selma in 1865 is told here.
The business changed locations through the decades, and in 2002,
Butler Truax renovated and moved into the former Kress building
on Broad Street. It's a real beauty!
Linking to Blue Monday
Friday, March 27, 2015
A Fence with Character
When I look back at old photos of Selma, it seems every yard had a fence,
but maybe that is because Selma had ironworks, so good fences
were readily available. But many yards had pretty wooden fences,
and while many of these relics are gone, it is still refreshing to walk down
streets that have fences with character.
Linking to Good Fences
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Signs, Signs (Ecor Bienville)
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Wednesday, March 25, 2015
K is for Kenan's Mill Painting
Alabama Plein Air artists painted scenes at KENAN'S MILL
during the Selma Historic Pilgrimage this past weekend,
and here is a beauty by Jack Kidd.
Many plein air paintings sold at the Selma Art Guild's
Wet Paint Sale Saturday, but some are still available
this Friday and Saturday from 12-4.
Kenan's Mill is an 1860's gristmill that stayed in business more than a century,
producing stone-ground grits and cornmeal. The mill is open to the public
during Selma's Historic Pilgrimage in March and for the Kenan's Mill Festival
in early November.
The Kenan's Mill park can be rented for special occasions.
It includes the mill, mill house, covered stage, swinging bridge
across Valley Creek, brick charcoal kiln and barn area with restrooms.
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Our World, Colors of Spring
Selma welcomed Spring with its 40th annual Pilgrimage, and on Friday night,
these lovely young ladies greeted guests on the front porch
of the Evening House Tour and Reception.
To see more Pilgrimage photos, visit Selma's Historic Pilgrimage Facebook page.
Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs
Monday, March 23, 2015
Loving These Blues
Many yards and curbs turn blue in March
with the appearance of these dainty blue flowers.
I hate to watch them fade, but when they do,
then the dogwoods and azaleas are peaking,
and oh what a glorious sight!
Saturday, March 21, 2015
The Jordan House Parlor
The light and colors and curves of this exquisite Italianate home are a work
of architectural art. I just love that the residents have furnished
it with period antiques, even the chairs and couches,
and kept its interior simple yet elegant.
The home was built in 1869 for Gus Jordan (related to the famous Auburn Coach
Ralph "Shug" Jordan). Coach Jordan grew up in Selma, and locals
remember him visiting here and playing catch in the yard!
The home remained in the Jordan family until 1978.
You can tour this home today from 1-5 p.m. on Selma's Historic Pilgrimage.
Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs
Friday, March 20, 2015
Pilgrimage Arrives with Spring
Selma's 40th Historic Pilgrimage arrives with the first day of Spring today,
and St. Andrew's Hall is among the tour venues.
The hall at Queen of Peace Catholic Church is said to have been rebuilt
from a Masonic building that was downriver at Cahaba, first capital of Alabama.
For more Pilgrimage information, visit the Pilgrimage website, and keep up
with photos on Selma's Historic Pilgrimage Facebook page.
Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs
Thursday, March 19, 2015
The Battle of Selma Historic Trail
Several Battle of Selma historic markers have been installed around town
in recent weeks, and more will be erected before April's 150th anniversary
of one of the last battles of the War Between the States.
This marker is located at the St. James Hotel and tells the story
of its occupation by Union Gen. James H. Wilson. The hotel, known back then
as The Gee House Hotel, was managed by Benjamin Sterling Turner,
a slave who was freed after the battle and went on to become
the first African American U.S. congressman from Alabama.
Turner is buried in Old Live Oak Cemetery.
The cemetery will open Saturday evening during Spring Pilgrimage
for "ghost tours" as its residents tell their stories.
Also, visitors can follow the battle trail via these signs.
Linking to Signs, Signs
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
J is for The JEWELER'S House
The walls of this 1837 home in Old Town have quite a story to tell!
During the War Between the States, its owner, S.F. Hobbs,
owned a JEWELRY store in downtown Selma.
A native of Maine, he became southern after he moved South
and served in the Confederate Army in opposition to his six northern brothers.
When Union troops moved toward Selma in the spring of 1865,
his wife (a true Southern Belle) hid the jewelry store silver inside the walls
of their home and sewed the fine JEWELRY into her petticoat.
Then when the Yankees knocked on her door, she kindly offered them
pieces of costume jewelry to take home to their sweethearts,
thus saving the silver and the jewels.
There is more to the story, and perhaps you will hear it
at the Selma Pilgrimage's Evening Tour and Reception
this Friday, March 20 from 6:30-8 p.m.
Linking to ABC Wednesday
where the Letter of the Week is J
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
The Next Big Thing...Pilgrimage!
The next big thing in Our World is the 40th Historic Selma Pilgrimage this weekend!
This file photo shows a tour of the Vaughan-Smitherman Museum,
which is Pilgrimage Headquarters where visitors can purchase tickets,
have refreshments and tour the building.
The 2015 tour features homes, churches and museums that chronicle
our Civil War to Civil Rights history. After all, this is the 50th anniversary
of the Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches and the 150th anniversary
of the Battle of Selma. Visit the Selma Pilgrimage website for more information!
Linking to Our World Tuesday
Monday, March 16, 2015
All Dressed Up
The Bridgetender's House is all dressed up
to welcome warmer weather and hopefully, sunnier skies!
Privately owned, the house where the bridge tender lived
and was on duty to open the old swing bridge,
recently was renovated and is nestled
by the river in Lafayette Park.
It is a favorite subject in Selma for photographers and artists.
Linking to Monday Mellow Yellows
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Spring is Coming
Spring is coming with plenty of rainy days, so these calves
sure do appreciate a newly unrolled dry bed of hay!
Linking to Camera Critters
Friday, March 13, 2015
Winding Walkway
The winding walkway through Riverfront Park
gave some Selma visitors a welcome respite
from the downtown crowds of this past weekend's
Bridge Crossing Jubilee.
Linking to Good Fences
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Signs, Signs, Welcome to Sensational Selma
"Welcome to Sensational Selma" is the quilt square made
I love the bright colors, and I love the library, where the employees
are just the nicest folks around. Take a few minutes to read this great article,
"Public Officials and Employees Could Learn from Those Working
at the Selma Public Library," about their service during
Bridge Crossing Jubilee's 50th anniversary as observed
by one of AL.com's writers.
#selma50
Linking to Signs, Signs
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
I is for "I Was There"
It's "I" Week at ABC Wednesday, and much of the 50th anniversary
of the Selma-to-Montgomery Voting Rights marches this month has focused
on the "I Was There" theme honoring foot soldiers.
I happened to be in Songs of Selma Park on Sunday trying to get
a decent picture of the bridge filled with thousands of people
when Foot Soldier George Sallie walked up accompanied by his niece.
They were there to get a picture too, and I noticed the medal around his neck.
He told me that when he returned home to Selma
after serving his country in Korea, he thought he had earned
the privilege to vote. So he began working to help secure voting rights.
Sallie was 35 years old on "Bloody Sunday." and when he saw the line
of law enforcement officers on the Selmont side of the bridge,
he and a friend tried to quickly figure out whether they should
move forward toward the line, turn around toward Selma
or jump off the bridge. They turned around and ran but not before
he was hit on the head. He still wears a visible scar on his forehead,
"just a little laceration," according to Sallie, who still lives just across the bridge.
Linking to ABC Wednesday
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Our World, The Terrace View
While thousands of people literally packed the Pettus Bridge on Sunday,
a few others found the perfect place to view the Bridge Crossing
in the comfort of chairs on the back terrace of the St. James Hotel.
Linking to Our World Tuesday
Monday, March 9, 2015
Monday Murals, The Picture Venue
A local photographer set up a giant picture backdrop Sunday where people
who attended the 50th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday" could have their photos taken.
The venue proved very popular!
More photos of the Bridge Crossing Jubilee can be seen
on Selma, Ala., Daily Photo Facebook page.
Linking to: Monday Murals
Friday, March 6, 2015
Banner Spring
It's a Banner Spring for Selma this year as the banner
on the balcony at City Hall shows!
We hope the weather will stay at least partly cloudy like the skies above
for this weekend's 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Marches
and later in April for the 150th anniversary of the Civil War Battle of Selma.
At left the sign proclaims Selma's Civil War to Civil Rights history, and at right,
it proclaims the "I Was There" theme for the Civil Rights events.
Selma's Historic Spring Pilgrimage March 20-21 will also reflect
our Civil War to Civil Rights heritage, and we would love to have you here!
Linking to Skywatch Friday
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Signs, Signs (The New One at the Bridge)
People are already in town ahead of this weekend's big events.
These women from Atlanta took pictures of the Edmund Pettus Bridge
and the brand-new sign just erected by the Alabama Tourism Department.
The sign updates Selma's history to include not only the 50th anniversary
of "Bloody Sunday"and date of the Voting Rights Act but the 2007 campaign visits
by Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton as well as the recent "Selma" movie.
Linking to Signs, Signs
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
H is for HEART and HOME
ABC Wednesday is celebrating the letter H this week,
and Willie Carlyle is a Selma native who moved
up north at the age of 19, but his HEART was HERE,
and he came HOME to retire.
I was taking pictures of renovations at the Old Depot Museum recently,
and he appeared to be a tourist looking at Civil Rights displays
when he mentioned that he was there!
He was there crossing the bridge on "Bloody Sunday"
and there on Highway 80 in the Selma-to-Montgomery March.
"I was just 16 and a student at R.B. Hudson High School," he said,
and was not hurt during the melee,
"but I was chased by horses back across the bridge."
While his mother was treated for a long-term illness in an out-of-town facility,
he lived with his aunt and her 10 children and spent some of his free time
working as a delivery boy at Post Office Drugs. The owner helped him learn
to drive and get his driver's license "so I could deliver medicines by car
instead of by bike." He worked at a few other Selma businesses
before moving to Michigan and getting a job with General Motors.
There, he worked on an assembly line,
became a team leader, troubleshooter and later an inspector.
The plant closed just two years before he was due to retire, so he returned
to Alabama and finished his automotive career in Tuscaloosa.
He bought a house in Selma and later became a school bus driver.
Now, he's really retired, he said, "and when I look back over my life,
I realize that I have come a long way!"
Linking to ABC Wednesday
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
Our World, Amphitheater
The amphitheater at Riverfront Park is almost finished!
The former warehouse anchors one side of the park that will include
pavilions and playgrounds in the future.
This photo is the view as seen from the Pettus Bridge.
Linking to Our World Tuesday
Monday, March 2, 2015
Selma Unity March
Hundreds of people from Selma's churches came together Sunday
for the Selma Unity March (One Selma: Coming Home...United in Faith).
They crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge from the Selmont side back into town
to symbolize that God is working to unify the city for His Kingdom.
The 176-block quilt was made by various churches, organizations
and individuals and will be on display at the public library.
From the sounding of shofars to prayers of repentance
and restoration, downtown Selma overflowed with enthusiasm.
Please visit the Selma, Ala., Photo Facebook page for more pictures of this event.
Linking to Monday Murals
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Aging (City Daily Photo Theme Day)
Monuments in Old Live Oak Cemetery have been
showing their ages for a long, long time!
The Washington Smith marker may have a bit of tarnish,
but his story still sparkles.
Smith was a Selma banker, and before Yankee troops
invaded town in April 1865, he hid the bank's gold in a column on his house.
The downstairs was used to treat injured Union soldiers after the Battle of Selma,
but during their stay they never found the bank's assets. When the Yankees
were gone, the gold was retrieved by cutting a hole in the bottom of the column.
Linking to City Daily Photo Blogs
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