The Five Capitals of Alabama: The Story of Alabama's Capital Cities from St. Stephens to Montgomery

The story of Alabama's five capitals--St. Stephens, Huntsville, Cahawba, Tuscaloosa, and Montgomery--begins in a rough semi-civilized Washington County village and ends at the old cotton town in central Alabama. Between these bookending governmental centers, the capitals have criss-crossed the state from north to south and east to west, following the political powers and fortunes of the times, and amid more noble arguments that the capital should be near the center of the state. It is the story of Alabama's government, buildings, and laws. It is the story of towns, some that sprang up and died when the capital moniker left. Most of all, the story of Alabama's capitals is the story of its people: some whose undying devotion to statehood brought Alabama to life; some who used state government in their rise to power and financial prominence; some whose generosity and pureness of heart kept Alabama on solid moral and financial ground; and some whose prejudices held back this state when it should have moved forward. The Five Capitals of Alabama paints a dramatic picture of where we began, where we are today, and the twisting journey taken along the way.

Author: Tom Bailey
Publisher: NewSouth Books
Published: 09/22/2020
Pages: 216
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 2.75lbs
Size: 12.10h x 9.20w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781588384270

About the Author
Bailey, Tom: - Tom Bailey is an Alabama native who grew up in the northeast Jefferson County community of Pinson, attended Jacksonville State University, and spent most of his career as a writer and editor. He worked for The Anniston Star, Department of the Army's Soldiers magazine, and The Birmingham News. After retiring from the News, he joined his wife, Jan, at Seacoast Publishing, a small regional book publishing company they operated until 2014. Bailey has written thirteen biographies of notable Alabamians for the middle-grade Alabama Roots Biography series. He has also written books about Gulf of Mexico fishing and diving, seafood cooking, and tall tales. He lives in Hoover, Alabama, and has two grown children and four grandchildren.McDonald, Robin: - Robin McDonald is an independent graphic designer and photographer based in Leeds, Alabama. From 1979 to 1989, he was the art director of Horizon, a national magazine of the arts. Since 1991, he has been the designer and principal photographer for Alabama Heritage magazine. He is the author of two books of photographs of Alabama: Heart of a Small Town: Photographs of Alabama Towns(2003) and Visions of the Black Belt: A Cultural Survey of the Heart of Alabama (2015).Meripol, Art: - Art Meripol began his career as a newspaper photojournalist before joining Southern Living Magazineas Senior Photographer for Travel. After twenty-four years for the magazine, Art began freelancing in 2013, shooting for a variety of local and national publications. Art was the photographer for the U.S. Civil Rights Trail and What Happened Here Changed the World, which documented iconic civil rights sites across the South and won the National Addy Award.