Relief!

It was a hot and humid day. You could tell what lay ahead as the sun rose behind the trees...all orange and big and flaming! Before noon, the bank thermometer downtown hit 102 degrees F. Record highs were crippling air conditioning systems all across town. Flowers wilted on a street corner despite a misty spray that battled to satisfy their thirst. Then, just before supper, thunder boomed, a breeze blew, and precious rain fell in sheets, giving the dog reason to rise from her spot in the garage and move away from the storm. Houses and tempers are much cooler tonight!

Dallas Academy

School started Thursday in Selma's city schools. Much too hot to be in school in my opinion, but that's another story. Here is Dallas Academy, Selma's first-ever public school, although it started as a private school back in 1888. There aren't any school children here today since it closed in the 1960s, but the kids you see out front were waiting for an arts class way back the beginning of the summer (hence, the green trees- they are very dry now!) The building is used today for arts and civic purposes, and a ceramics center is located in the basement, probably the coolest place in town!

Gems Amid the Heat

The heat this time of year is a bit more bearable when you come across downtown planters filled with colorful flowers. They lift my spirits amid suffocating humidity. These sunshine-yellow gems greet people by The Downtowner Restaurant parking lot.

Speaking of heat and humidity, Thursday's forecast is for 103-degree temps and a 110-degree plus heat index followed by more of the same the rest of the week. Air conditioners are struggling to keep up, and you know it's hot when it's 80 degrees inside both at work and at home! And I know we're not alone. Much of the nation is baking today.

The Restaurant on Grumbles Alley

If you want a flavorful, healthy meal in Selma and don't mind waiting longer than fast-food service, The Restaurant on Grumbles Alley may be the place to dine. Located on Water Avenue and Grumbles Alley right by the river, you get homemade food in an historic building.

The meals in this 1800's structure vary from soups and sandwiches to full-course entrees. Try the famous marinated grilled chicken breast sandwich for lunch and cheesecake for dessert. Fried foods such as chicken fingers, crab claws, shrimp and catfish are coated with a light batter and served with vegetables and salads rather than cole slaw and French fries. Red beans and rice is now a staple, and soups are rotated to include anything from chili to clam chowder.

The restaurant was revived in 2005 by the daughter of former Selma Mayor Joe T. Smitherman, who returned to her hometown after a legal career, so naturally the decor features Selma art, photographs and tributes to her father.

Located near an old steamboat landing, the building was once an auction center back in the days when cotton was king.

Artesian Air Conditioning

HOT! It is hot here with temps hovering around 100 degrees F. and heat indexes in the 110- degree range. Our air conditioner is running nonstop, still unable to keep up with the heat and humidity by mid-afternoon. So, how did people survive this weather in the 19th Century in a sticky, swampy environment?

At Cahawba, E.M. Perine pumped cold water from an artesian well through pipes in his mansion, creating the first air-conditioned house in Alabama. The house is long gone, but the well is still there, and this sign at Old Cahawba Archealogical Park marks the spot.

Remembering "Cap" Swift

Selma lost one of its best citizens and biggest promoters August 4 with the passing of George "Cap" Swift. This photo was taken in May at Sturdivant Hall when he received The Tim Bjelke Preservation Award presented to the "Historic Preservationist of the Year."

The 86-year-old Selma native spent the past 20 years operating a visitor information center out of his house on the busiest intersection in town. The center was open from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m. year round, and he maintained that schedule with minimal help until this past January when he finally retired to an assisted living facility. Visitors from around the world received a welcome to Selma from this southern gentleman who was there to open the door and tell them a bit about Selma history. The center sold Selma souvenirs including local and regional books in The Book Nook and published Selma Showcase Magazine. The magazine was Cap's way of promoting what he called "the tangibles" of his town well beyond his town and state. In later years, he had 20,000 copies printed each year, and they were provided free to advertisers, the Chamber of Commerce, state tourism department and welcome centers, restaurants and motels, local schools and of course, welcome center visitors, which in 2002 numbered more than 15,000. While more than half the visitors came from Alabama, the rest were from Canada, Germany, Japan, United Kingdom, Australia and even some from the Netherlands, Russia, Vietnam, France, Lithuania, Turkey, Mexico, Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, Belgium, Zimbabwe, Sweden, just to name a few!

Prior to the visitor center, Swift served in the military during World War II, operated several local businesses such as Swift Drugs, Toy Arcade and Radio Shack, served as a Selma city councilman, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce, and received numerous awards including The Book of Golden Deeds and Governor's Tourism award. In his younger days, Swift played bass fiddle as part of various dance bands that toured the South.

Among his greatest civic accomplishments was his leadership in the Committee of 100, a group of 100 men who sought industry in Dallas County during the turbulent 1960s. They were successful in bringing Hammermill Paper Company to the county, now owned by International Paper. He also fought to save the old Hotel Albert, which finally had to be razed due to lack of funding for preservation. He was instrumental in helping raise funds for the city's purchase of Sturdivant Hall, which has since been restored to a quality museum.

Some advice he gave my son, who worked several years at his visitors' center, was "When you have an idea, write it down," and "Always think positive."

Even during his short "retirement," he was thinking of ways to promote his hometown. Among his last visions for Selma were an easily accessible arts center, revitalization of historic Water Avenue with restaurants, galleries, a riverside amphitheatre and specialty shops; coordinated Selma tours with a trolley system, and increased promotion of tourism. He firmly believed there was no better place than Selma to live: four hours from Atlanta, three hours from the beach, an hour from the state capital, and on a river in the middle of sportsmen's paradise.

To read more about Swift, check here and here.

Thrift Store Shopping

I don't need a thing, but thrift stores are so much fun to visit. I found this store on Selma Avenue the other day, and it is operated by SisterHood Ministries. Proceeds go toward a girls' ranch that they want to build for Dallas and surrounding counties. The shop was full of yard-sale and better finds...party dresses, dishes, figurines, troll dolls (remember those?), costume jewelry, lampshades, books, pictures and just lots of nostalgic bric-a-brac. Maybe I'll go back.

Performing Arts Center

Where there's a performing arts center, there is culture! Here's ours. It features a renovated theater that once was a favorite Saturday spot for youngsters to watch westerns, offices, spacious rooms for workshops, arts and crafts shows and a courtyard. The theater features free classic movies for senior citizens, children's activities and has a modern stage and auditorium for performances.
In years past, I have seen the locally produced "Oklahoma" and "The Best Little Christmas Pageant Ever" here as well as the Dallas County High School performance of "A Christmas Carol."

Central Alabama Farmers' Co-op

Whatever you need, this place probably has it! This is the Central Alabama Farmers' Co-op, and it would have made a great "The Color Red" theme day photo, huh? Anyhow, the co-op has flowers and seeds for your gardens, hardy outdoor work clothes, hunting clothes and equipment, horse supplies, dog pens, bird houses, lawnmowers, ag equipment, fencing, all kinds of feed, weed killers, and even boxes of frozen catfish fillets. If you want to have a meeting or a reception, check out the large conference room with a full kitchen and room for around 100. I've been to everything from barbecues to Valentine's banquets there, and I hear folks have used it for retirement parties and even wedding receptions.

Fire at the Fish Camp

Selma lost one of its most popular restaurants 10 days ago when Mac's Fish Camp burned. Our family was among the last patrons to dine there. The Alabama River restaurant went up in smoke several hours after we left! About a week later, I took this photo of a menu among the ashes and ceiling insulation. The rustic establishment had been in business for more than a quarter century and featured all-you-can-eat, southern-fried catfish as well as frog legs, shrimp, oysters and stuffed crab.