Step Back in time and stroll down the streets of historic Selma. This one-mile route will take you by some of the

most important places in our beautiful city. You’ll understand why the largest historic district in the state

has been named a “Preserve America” Community. You’ll see sites from the Civil War era to the Voting

Rights movement which not only impacted the United States but the entire world. When other cities were

“modernizing” their downtowns, Selma began to save hers. Spend a few minutes in the heart of this city and

she’ll touch yours.

A WALKING TOUR OF

SELMA ALABAMA

MAP 1. Selma-Dallas County Public Library

2. City of Selma Municipal Complex

3. First Presbyterian Church

4. First Baptist Church

5. Church Street United Methodist Church

6. Centre for Commerce

7. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

8. The Performing Arts Center (Selma Walton Theater)

9. Dallas County Courthouse

10. Federal Building

11. Vaughan Smitherman Museum

12. Arsenal Place Pillars

13. Old Carneal Auto Building (ArtsRevive)

14. The Bienville Monument

15. The Harmony Club

16. The Selma Times -- Journal

17. The Edmund Winston Pettus Bridge

18. National Voting Rights Museum & Institute

19. “Songs of Selma” Park

20. Lafayette Park Bridge Tender’s House

21. The St. James Hotel 22. Riverfront Park

23. Phoenix Park 24. Selma Interpretive Center

25. Kress Building 26. The Selma Welcome Center

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Walking Tour of Downtown Selma

Selma was incorporated in 1820 and given the name of Selma by William Rufus King, one of Alabama’s first U. S. Senators, who was later elected Vice President of the United States under Franklin Pierce. The name Selma, meaning high seat or throne, was selected from a collection of poems, “The Song of Selma”, written by Ossian, a 13th century blind poet. The Selma Land Company, headed by King, planned the development of the city of Selma in a pattern with a series of rectangular blocks crested by wide roads. Four lots were set aside for the four major church denominations and two blocks were designated for a pub-lic square and a market square. Due to demand for commercial property, these public squares were later sold. Selma soon became the cotton capital of Alabama and a cultural and commercial cen-ter of the state. A major munitions supplier for the Confederacy during the Civil War, Selma was a prime target for Union Troops. Two-thirds of Selma was burned by General J. H. Wilson and his troops during the Battle of Selma on April 2, 1865. After the Civil War, cotton speculation created a boom from around 1870 to 1890. New buildings replaced those burned during the Civil War. In 1865, one of the last battles of the Civil War was fought in Selma. Nearly 100 years later, in March of 1965 , Selma once again emerged into the national spotlight as the loca-tion for mass demonstrations led by African Americans to achieve voting rights. The March from Selma to Montgomery led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. that took place on March 21, 1965 was one of the most significant Civil Rights protest in American History. The events that took place in Selma led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Voting Rights Act forever changed the political life of the South as well as the United States as a whole.

1. Your tour begins at the Selma-Dallas County Public Library originally established in 1904, as a Carnegie Library. It was built in 1976, on the site of the Academy of Music, which houses a wonderful children’s department and adult learning Center. The Selma-Dallas County Public Library has grown into a 25,000 square foot

community center located in the heart of downtown.

2. Walking north along Broad Street, to your right is the City of Selma Municipal Complex, which was the former site of the old Hotel Albert. It was completed in 1976 during the same time the Selma-Dallas County Public Library and the Carl C. Morgan Convention Center, which is right

behind City Hall, was constructed. The three buildings in the City Complex were designed to blend in with the historic district surrounding them. The Municipal Building contains photographs of Selma’s Mayors and other historic photographs. The Carl C. Morgan Convention Center serves as the location for small conventions, meetings and social occasions. The complex grounds contains a historic marker, fountain, and the Brooke Cannon. The Brooke Cannon is to the right of the building and was manufactured in Selma in August of 1863. It was delivered by steamboat to Mobile in 1864 and placed aboard the Confederate ironclad “Tennessee.” The cannon was returned to Selma in August of 1981.

3. As you cross the street, to your right is the First Presbyterian Church. The church was organized in 1833 and moved to current location in 1893. It houses Selma’s official City Clock which is 6 feet in diameter. The Rev. Richard Small served the congregation during the Civil War and died in the Battle of Selma. Legend says that the Lady Banksia rosebush by the manse shed lost all its petal when the pastor’s body was brought to the manse. This bush was saved when the 1985 manse was later demolished and replanted next to the current educational building located on the same site.

4. To your left is First Baptist Church organized in May 1842. The first church was located on Church Street and Alabama Ave and during the 1900 the congregation decided to build at the current location. The architecture reflects the admiration of the period for High Gothic. Gargoyles serve as rain spouts on the massive stone tower. Stained glass windows from the original church were saved and installed in the new

structure. Among these are the splendid windows and a magnificent tile mosaic designed by Selma artist Clara Weaver Parrish when she was with the Tiffany Company of New York. Continue on Dallas Avenue making a left onto Church Street.

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Tour 5. To your left is Church Street United Methodist Church. The Methodists were the first denomination to organize in Selma and the only church remaining on the original plot of ground assigned to them by the Selma Land Company. The architectural style is Romanesque, the marble baptismal front in the sanctuary was a gift to the congrega-tion from the Temple Mishkan Israel; a gift to show their gratefulness for being allowed to hold service in the church while their own temple

was being erected. Turn left onto Selma Avenue.

6. To your right is the Centre for Commerce. It was constructed in 1904 as the first Carnegie Library and later housed the Dallas County School Board. It was refurbished and now houses the of-fices for the Selma-Dallas County Economic Development Author-ity, The Chamber of Commerce, Selma Tourism and Leadership Selma-Dallas County.

7. At the corner of Lauderdale Street and Selma Avenue to your left is St. Paul’s Episcopal Church which was first organized in 1838 and moved to the present building in 1875. Historically St. Paul’s has played a major role in the affairs of the Episcopal Church in Alabama and the nation. Five of the eleven Alabama Bishops have been elected or consecrated in Dallas County ether at St. Paul ‘s in Selma or at St. Paul’s in Carlowville. Two rec-tors have become bishops and in 1926 a former member of the vestry, John G. Murray, was elected the first Presiding Bishop of the Church in the

United States. The rose window above the front door, with its symbols of evangelists and the sacraments, was given to the church by the Sunday School members. The last two nave windows on the left facing the alter were executed by the Lewis comfort Tiffany Company of New York. Clara Weaver Parrish, a member of this parish, worked as a de-signer for Tiffany and those windows were made as memorials for her parents and her husband.

8. As you cross Selma Avenue you will see the Performing Arts Center, originally known as the Walton Theater in 1914. In 1980 the theater was purchased by Larry D. Striplin, Jr. and donated to the city for the use of community activities and to host many special events throughout the year. In October 2011, the City of Selma partnered with J. David & Sharon Jackson to reopen the Walton Theater as a first-run movie theater. The theater under went many upgrades includ-ing a new state- of- the- art digital projection and sound sys-tems. On January 13, 2012, the Selma Walton Theater held its Grand Opening and has been showing movies since.

9. As you travel down Lauderdale Street you will see the Dallas County Courthouse on your right, originally a neo-classic building built in 1910. In 1957, the clock tower collapsed and necessitated the reworking of the façade. The exterior was covered with a synthetic marble in 1959 and in 1999 a stucco-like material was added. In 1965 protesters from Brown Chapel AME

Church marched down Alabama Avenue to the Dallas County Courthouse in an effort to register to vote.

10. Across the street is the Federal Building which was built in 1909 and listed on the Na-tional Register of Historic American Places. The arch in front of the building is in honor of Selma’s two great senators, General John Tyler Morgan and General Edmund Winston Pettus, whom had the distinction of serving in the U. S. Senate at the same time, were from the same state, and were from the same city, SELMA. ( Turn right and continue straight on Alabama to-wards Church Street.)

11. As you come upon Church Street you will see Vaughan Smitherman Museum at the end of Alabama Avenue. It was originally constructed by the Masonic Order to house a school, later it was used as a Confederate hospital, courthouse, and regional hospital. The building is now owned by the city and named after Selma’s long time Mayor, Joseph T. Smitherman

and Sr. Samuel Watkins Vaughn, founder of the Vaughan Hospital. The museum is also used for weddings, receptions, meetings, and other social functions. (Make a left on Church and continue towards Water Avenue)

12. To your right are the Arsenal Place Pillars, presented to the City of Selma in May of 1931 when the Alabama Division met in Selma. This memorial marks the site of the Confederate Arsenal, a unit of the great ordinance works in Selma, destroyed by the Un-ion Army April 2, 1865.

13. As you continue to the corner of Church Street and Water, you will notice the Old Carneal Auto Building now the home of ArtsRevive. A grand old building, The Carneal Building has been anchored at the end of Water Ave-nue for many years. ArtsRevive purchased the building in 2008 and started renovations. The building now offers office space, areas for art shows, art

workshops, and other community needs.

14. You are now entering the Historic Water Avenue District. The Bienville Monument on your right commemorates D`anville’s mapping of this area in the 1700’s. Selma was later named “High Soap-stone Bluff”, then “Moore’s Bluff” and finally “Selma” which

means high seat or throne.

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Tour 15. The Harmony Club is a Renaissance Revival three story commercial building with a cast iron storefront. The Harmony Club was built in 1909 as a social club by Selma’s Jewish community. In December 2010 it was featured in the New York Times as a feature story on how revitalization is so important to historic cities.

16. To your right you will see The Selma Times–Journal, the local news-paper, housed in an Italianate Victorian Storefront building typical of the early 1870’s. This newspaper has been published continually since 1828. Earlier uses of this building included a wholesale gro-cery business and an agricultural implementation business.

17. The Edmund Winston Pettus Bridge, is to your right. The Bridge was erected in 1939 and was named after the U.S. Senator Edmund Winston Pettus. This is also the scene of the Selma to Montgomery March in 1965. The demonstrations that occurred here led to the U.S. Voting Rights Act

of 1965. For more information about the bridge, please read the historical marker.

18. Across the bridge is the National Voting Rights Museum and Insti-tute. The museum’s memorabilia honors participants in the Voting Rights Movement. This movement overcame “Bloody Sunday” and the prejudices of others, to attain the right to vote. The U. S. Voting Rights Act of 1965 is their victory as well as each of ours.

19. The “Songs of Selma” Park was created by the City from a vacant lot where the Baker Building once stood. The Baker building housed a general merchandise store, a hardware store and at the time of burning a fine dining restaurant. The park’s name came from the book “The poems of Ossian” containing the poem “Song of Selma” from which Selma is named.

20. Traveling down Water Avenue you can see typical commercial riv-erfront buildings as you approach Lafayette Park (the brick area lo-cated next to the St. James Hotel) which commemorates Lafayette’s visit to Selma. At the foot of the Park is the Bridge Tender’s House that was used by the bridge tender when Selma’s turn bridge was in operation. Please feel free to read the Historical Marker.

Tour 21. The St. James Hotel is the only existing antebellum riverfront hotel in the Southeast. Renovation of the hotel started in 1994 and was completed in 1997 as a public-private partnership. The hotel boasts a restaurant, drinking room, ballrooms, and great views. The common areas are fur-nished with period antiques and guestrooms with period reproductions. A little history about the hotel is that the first owner, Dr. James Dee had to be absent from the hotel during the War Between the States. During his

absences, he entrusted Benjamin Sterling Turner, his former slave to run the St. James Hotel. Mr. Turner, who owned a livery stable was the first African American elected in the United States Congress. In 1865 the Union Army seized the city and set up its head quarters in the hotel. After the War, the hotel flourished until the completion of the magnificent Hotel Albert (under construction prior to the War Between the States) which caused the St. James Hotel to close. Another interesting fact is that the outlaws Jesse and Frank James were visitors to the St. James in the 1880’s.

22. Riverfront Park. The City of Selma has completed the master plan for the Riverfront Park that will cover approximately seven acres along the historic bluff of the Alabama River. This space will be used as a multi-use recreational, educational and cultural park that will serve as a catalyst for future economic development. The master plan fits the needs of both the citizenry and downtown businesses and has the clarity to serve as a guide , ensuring Riverfront Park develops into a cherished asset for generations. Anchored by an amphitheatre and traversed by walking and biking trails, Riverfront Park will be a place where our history and natural beauty overlap. (Cross Water Avenue and make a left and headed back towards Broad Street.)

23. Phoenix Park was opened in June 2011 for the enjoyment of visitors and citizens of Selma. Future uses for the site are being discussed but some ideas include Movies in the Park, Art in the Park, Yoga classes, picnics, and can be rented for private parties.

24. Selma Interpretive Center serves as the Welcome Center for the Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail, which was established in Congress in 1996 to commemorate the events, people and route of the 1965 Voting Rights March in Ala-bama. Inside you will find a video exhibit and a small bookstore. The Center is owned by the City of Selma and is operated by the Na-tional Park Service.

132 Broad Street Selma, AL 36701 334-874-4764

1-800-457-3562 info@selmaalabama.com Www.selmaalabma.com

S E L M A - D A L L A S C O U N T Y T O U R I S M D E P A R T M E N T

25. Further on Broad Street you will see the 1930’s Kress Building. The decorative Art Deco Style structure prominently features the Kress name accented by four-color terra cotta tiles. New occupied by Butler-Truax Jewelers, the building has been given a new lease on life.

26. The last stop on your tour will be The Selma Welcome Center. Their doors were open in December of 2009 to welcome visitors and tourists to our historic city. They have a wonderful collection of area attractions and brochures on each of our museums, self guided tours which includes the Selma’s Wind-shield Tour, Selma’s Ghost Tour, Old Live Oak Cemetery Tour, and a one mile walking tour of historic downtown Selma. They also have listings of local hotels and restaurants as well as special events.

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