Digital Alabama (https://digitalalabama.com/article/alabama-counties/limestone-county-alabama)
Limestone-County-Alabama
Map Of Alabama Highlighting Limestone County
Concerned over the possibility of Federal gunboats destroying any pontoon bridge he might deploy, along with the absence of Nathan Bedford Forrest’s horseman to bring him intelligence, Hood changed his course to Decatur.
Decatur, Alabama, located in north central Alabama on the Tennessee River, was a strategic point for the South because of the fact that the Memphis and Charleston railroad crossed the Tennessee River.
The Sauta Cave National Wildlife Refuge was once called the Blowing Wind Cave National Wildlife Refuge. In the past, the cave served a variety of uses. Cherokee natives mined the soil to make saltpeter for gunpowder. Saltpeter mining continued on occasion across the War of 1812, and the American Civil War.
Key Cave National Wildlife Refuge has large open fields managed for warm-season native grasses interspersed with small patches of deciduous woodland and the seasonal sinkhole wetland. The refuge is gradually being converted from crops to native warm-season grasslands.
Limestone County is in the rolling foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in northern Alabama. Filled with friendly people and progressive communities, the county stretches from the northern bank of the mighty Tennessee River to the southern boundary of the State of Tennessee.
Mooresville Alabama is home to two historic churches, including the old white clapboard Church of Christ where President James A. Garfield once preached. The Brick Church, the Post Office, and the Stagecoach Inn and Tavern are maintained by the town’s residents in an effort to preserve some pieces of history. Often referred to as “Alabama’s Williamsburg,” the entire town of Mooresville is now included in the current listings of the National Register of Historic Places.
Alabama Veterans Museum & Archives in Athens, Alabama, is dedicated to educating the public while preserving our military history and house military artifacts from dating from the Revolutionary War to the present day. Located at 100 Pryor Street in Athens Alabama, Limestone County Alabama, the Veterans Museum holds a monthly “Coffee Call” the first Saturday of each month. Breakfast of biscuits and gravy, sausage, ham or bologna biscuits, pastries, fruit and juice are provided free of charge to the 140-180 who attend. Each Coffee Call is sponsored by a local business or group of veterans or civilians to honor these men and women who gave of themselves on our behalf. Hours of operations are Monday – Saturday from 9:00AM – 3:00PM – Scheduled group tours available.
LIMESTONE COUNTY MAIN PAGE
The Athens Community Archery Park was the first archery facility in the country to be developed through a partnership between a state fish and wildlife agency, city government, and the Archery Trade Association. Location: The range is located directly behind the Athens High School (SE corner near band room and tennis courts) in Limestone County. Parking is available directly adjacent to the range along with other recreational facilities including a playground, pavilion, tennis courts, and walking trail. Please click on the google map link to view an aerial image of the range location.
Affair At Madison Station
May 17, 1864
The largest engagement of the Civil War in Madison County Alabama was fought during a driving rainstorm in Madison, Alabama at the site of the railroad depot. Under the command of Col. Josiah Patterson, the Confederate forces (~1000 cavalry and a battery of artillery) crossed the Tennessee River near Triana and attacked a garrison of ~350 men of the 13th Illinois Infantry. Union forces fell back along the railroad toward Huntsville to Indian Creek. They counterattacked after being reinforced by infantry from Huntsville.
Rails to Trails
One of the best-kept secrets of the south, this 10.2 mile trail winds its way past the site of the Battle of Sulphur Creek Trestle. Walkers can retrace the same steps as civil war heroes. This trail offers a back-to-nature getaway for thousands of local residents and tourists. Hikers, bikers, joggers, bird watchers, horseback riders, as well as naturalists, students and historians are just some of the groups who enjoy the great variety of opportunities created by the trail. The trail is also accessible to wheelchairs so that everyone can enjoy the wonder and beauty of this trail. The trailheads are located on Piney Chapel Road just north of Athens and Veto, Alabama at the Tennessee state line. Newly constructed at the Piney Chapel trailhead, is a pavilion with restrooms, parking lot for vehicles/horse trailers,and hitching posts. Also at the Veto trailhead, is the restoration of a 1800’s community church and new restroom facilities. The trail hours are daylight to sunset.
On May 2, 1862, Athens was seized by Union forces under the command of Colonel John Basil Turchin. Business were hit first, and anything of value that could be carried away were looted and anything that could not be was simply destroyed. After rampaging through stores the soldiers plundered private homes. A slave girl was raped. The soldiers also attempted to rape a servant girl. The violent behavior of the soldiers caused a pregnant woman to suffer a miscarriage and die. The townpeople estimated the damage to be fifty-five thousand dollars. The resulting pillage and plunder came to be known as the Rape of Athens. The Rape of Athens Alabama
ALABAMA CIVIL WAR MAIN PAGE
U.S. Space Rocket Center
Huntsville AL
Madison County Alabama
The U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama is a museum operated by the government of Alabama, showcasing rockets, achievements, and artifacts of the U.S. space program. Sometimes billed as “Earth’s largest space museum”, astronaut Owen Garriott described the place as, “a great way to learn about space in a town that has embraced the space program from the very beginning.”[3][4]
Wikipedia contributors, “U.S. Space & Rocket Center,” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=U.S._Space_%26_Rocket_Center&oldid=622682324 (accessed September 1, 2014).
