Interesting Alabama Facts 2023 (Things You Should Know)

Alabama Facts For Kids

Alabama is located in the southeastern region of the United States.

It was the 22^nd state in the nation and is the 30^th largest state by area.

The state is known for its iron and steel natural resources, Southern hospitality, sweet tea, and football—especially the fierce rivalry between the Auburn Tigers and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Key Facts

Capital: Montgomery
Population: 5 million
Nickname: The Yellowhammer State, Cotton State, Heart of Dixie
Key Cities: Birmingham, Mobile, Montgomery, Huntsville
Postal Abbreviation: AL
Major Industries: Automotive, chemicals, information technology, forestry, aerospace

History

How did Alabama get its name: The state was named after the Alabama River, which got its name from the Indian tribe that lived in the territory.

The name “Alabama” comes from a combination of two Choctaw words: “Alba,” meaning vegetation or plants and “Amo,” meaning gatherer or picker.

The Alabama Indians cleared and farmed the land, so “vegetation gatherers” is an accurate description of the tribe.

Date admitted to the Union: Tuesday, December 14, 1819.

Geography

Size: 52,419 sq. miles
Lowest point: Gulf of Mexico at sea level
Highest point: Cheaha Mountain at 2,407 feet
Counties: 67
Famous locations: Vulcan Statue, USS Alabama (BB-60), U.S. Space and Rocket Center, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

Famous People from Alabama

Nat “King” Cole – entertainer
Henry Louis (Hank) Aaron – baseball player
Helen Keller – author and activist
Rosa Parks – Civil Rights activist

Channing Tatum – actor
Terrell Owens – football player

Fun Facts About Alabama

In Creek Indian language, the name Alabama means “tribal town“.
In 1886, Montgomery introduced the world’s first electric trolley system.
In 1861, the Confederate flag was developed and flown for the first time in Alabama.
Washington County is Alabama’s oldest county.
Alabama’s lowest mean elevation point is 500 feet above sea level.
Alabama’s official nut is the pecan.
The first rocket to put humans on the moon was built at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
In 1836, Alabama became the first state to recognize Christmas as an official holiday.
It was also the first state in the nation to celebrate Veteran’s Day, with the first Veteran’s Day Parade taking place in Birmingham, Alabama in 1947.
Alabama’s state constitution has over 300,000 words and over 775 amendments. That makes it longest state constitution and the most amended state constitution in the world! Related: US Constitution
In Aniston, Alabama, you can visit the World’s Largest Office Chair. It’s made from 10 tons of steel—probably about three times the weight of your family’s car!
Alabama is home to the United States’ largest snail population. Believe it or not, 43% of all snails in the United States live in Alabama.
The last all-water mail route in the United States is in Magnolia Springs, Alabama.
Magnolia Springs is the only city in the United States where the mail is delivered completely by boat.
Wrestling a Bear is a crime in Alabama. Selling, purchasing, possessing, or training a bear for bear wrestling is unlawful in Alabama. In Alabama, bear wrestling bouts used to be a big deal. They were so popular that Alabama passed a legislation prohibiting “bear exploitation” which specifically prohibits anyone from participating in bear wrestling competitions.
Alabama is the only state in the United States with an official alcoholic beverage.
Alabama is known as the Yellowhammer State, the Heart of Dixie, and the Cotton State, but no official nickname has been assigned to it.
The first 911 call in the United States happened in Alabama.
Alabama is where windshield wipers were first invented. On the winter of 1903, Alabaman Mary Anderson visited New York and observed how the driver had to exit the vehicle and clear the snow and sleet. So Anderson devised a swinging arm with a rubber blade that the driver could employ inside the vehicle.
In 1703, Alabama was the first state to hold a Mardi Gras celebration.
You can go entirely by boat from Alabama to the Great Lakes. To get to Chicago, one can travel 1,300 miles via the interior waterways, passing through a variety of rivers and locks.
In Alabama around 400 million pounds of peanuts are farmed every year, with most of them grown within just a 100-mile radius of Dothan. With 900+ farms, Alabama is the 2nd largest producer of peanuts in the United States.
Alabama was not only a major player in the Civil War, but it was also where it all began. Confederate Secretary of War Leroy Pope Walker transmitted the telegraph from Montgomery that sparked the Civil War.

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