This marker is in front of the university's public safety building, just across the street from the…read moremain gates. It sits at the literal threshold between the campus that produced generations of Black civic leaders and the city whose political structure those leaders fought to reform. Its excellent condition and high visibility make it a quiet but powerful reminder that the modern civil rights landscape was shaped not only by national figures but by sustained, local, community-driven action. The marker reads, "The Tuskegee Civic Association, whose offices were located here, started out of The Men's Meeting of the 1920s and the Tuskegee Men's Club of the 1930s. On April 13, 1941, in order to increase its effectiveness and to embrace all segments of the population, the club amended its constitution and changed its name to The Tuskegee Civic Association (TCA). The organization focused on civic education, voter registration, political education, community welfare and economic education. Consequently, due to Tuskegee's all white city government's attempt to disenfranchise black voters by gerrymandering the city limits, the TCA decided to initiate a city-wide selective buying campaign (Trade With Your Friends). This prompted an immediate response by State of Alabama officials to begin efforts to suppress it by discouraging and discrediting its members. By the end of July 1957, the state attorney-general (and future governor) John Patterson led multiple raids against the TCA offices. The TCA continued its successful boycott until 1960." It is marker number 5 and it was erected in 2019 by the City of Tuskegee and the Tuskegee University Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation. In 1957, Alabama legislators passed Local Act 140, redrawing Tuskegee's city limits into a bizarre twenty‑eight‑sided shape that excluded all but five Black voters while retaining every white voter. I find this particularly timely as 2026 seems to be a year of gerrymandering and disenfranchisement by both parties at state levels, working to suppress votes of their opponents while highlighting the votes of their supporters. The more things change, the more they stay the same? [Review 466 of 2026 - 290 in Alabama - 25649 overall]

As Confederate memorial statues go, this one is in unusually good shape. It's taller than many…read morecourthouse‑square soldiers and the condition is remarkably strong for something erected in 1910, with very little visible aging on either the figure or the plinth. The carving remains crisp, the soldier's posture still clear, and even the inscriptions show only modest weathering for a monument that has stood through more than a century of Alabama summers. The original setting for the Lee County Confederate Memorial was the courthouse lawn, where it stood from its dedication in 1911 until its removal in 2020. It's here on what appears to me to be private property not far from the courthouse, so it will likely stand here for some time. The north face reads, "To Our Confederate Dead and Lee County Veterans," the west face carries a stanza adapted from Theodore O'Hara's Bivouac of the Dead, and the east face offers the Lost Cause‑era reassurance "Defeated, yet without a stain." The monument was erected by the Robert E. Lee Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, part of the same wave of early twentieth‑century memorialization that shaped courthouse squares across the South. The whole monument reads more like a historical artifact than an active civic statement. It's a reminder of how these memorials can change meaning when their surroundings change, and how a shift from public to private land can alter the way a community encounters its own past. [Review 285 of 2026 - 268 in Alabama - 25474 overall]

We were following the GPS toward the university campus and it routed us around the back way, which…read moreturned out to be a very secure service entrance leading up toward the VA hospital. I made a quick U-turn, but not before spotting this marker tucked along the roadside, a reminder that this campus holds layers of history beyond the university itself. It reads, "The Tuskegee Veterans Administration Hospital (VA), established in 1923, is significant as the first VA hospital in the nation to be administered by an all African American medical staff. "After WWI, African American veterans found it difficult to secure proper treatment in segregated hospitals, especially in the South. Despite violent threats, the second Tuskegee University president, Robert R. Moton; John Andrew Hospital director, John Kenney; African American media; and others convinced the Veterans Bureau to approve an African American staffed hospital. President Calvin Coolidge ordered it. "The Tuskegee VA Hospital held rank with the four leading Veterans Bureau hospitals. By 1930, there were 52 permanent buildings and 97 professional staff providing treatment in all branches of medicine/surgery and ancillary services such as clinical laboratories, roentgenology, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, dietetics and a medical library. "The Tuskegee VA continued to be staffed by African Americans until full integration at veteran hospitals. It was listed in the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage on April 14, 1992." The marker was erected by the Alabama Historical Commission. It does not have a number. What the marker doesn't mention is just how intense the national debate was when the hospital opened. White supremacist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan, staged protests and attempted to block the hiring of Black physicians, arguing that Black doctors should not be allowed to treat white veterans. The Veterans Bureau initially caved to that pressure, appointing a white superintendent, but the backlash from African American newspapers, civic groups, and Tuskegee Institute leadership was so strong that the federal government reversed course. By 1924 the hospital was fully staffed by Black physicians, nurses, and administrators, making it a landmark in both medical and civil rights history. Today the facility is part of the Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System, and while the staff is fully integrated, the campus still reflects its origins. Several of the original 1920s buildings survive, and the hospital remains one of the most historically significant VA sites in the country, both for its medical contributions and for the civil rights struggle that shaped its founding. A surprising amount of history tucked into a quick U-turn. [Review 293 of 2026 - 275 in Alabama - 25482 overall]

Do not expect a comprehensive review of the city by any stretch. I do not live in Auburn, or…read moreAlabama and know next to nothing about the town. This was my first time even stepping in the state. I did snap a pic for those interested in reading a history from 1865 to Present if that helps. What I will provide in my write up is a week choke-full of observations from a glorious time. First of all when I rolled into town I immediately looked on my Yelp app for coffee shops. I get up early, well sometimes I never go to sleep and need my morning Joe. I was stunned to not find one Starbucks... I am not saying this is bad. There were a lot of local shops that fit the bill quite nicely. Toomers Coffee Co. was my fave. This is a college town, duh! What I mean is you cannot separate out the college from the town, the town from the college. They are one part in my opinion. Any place you drive their are personalized license plates and stickers on both students and locals cars of AU. Off campus homes in residential areas have flags hanging from the porch, or garden signs with AU. Businesses downtown have AU in every shape and form imaginable. As well store that sell merchandising such as J&M Bookstore and Auburn Art. This is a city that is united in it's love of the Tigers. I found the Auburn police presence to be quite strong. It appears the school does not have a police force. The black and white Auburn patrol cars were like stealth ninja's at every corner you looked. When walking downtown one day I witnessed a rear end collision. I called the police to respond and boy did they. Within a minutes lights and sirens were converging from every direction. You would almost think this is Mayberry and they had nothing else to do. I have no problem with police presence and I am assuming they have a little less to do in the Summer. Auburn almost completely subsidizes it's use of the Frank Brown Recreation Center to it's citizens. When I say almost... all that residents have to pay is a lifetime $25 for a swipe card to use all of the in-house facilities, classes are of course extra. A sore spot for me was that they do not allow non-residents to purchase a day pass. The town has a lot to be proud of, much more than I saw in a week. However, some of my favorite recreational and cultural places were Louise Kreher Forest Ecology Preserve that is associated with AU, Davis Arboretum, AU associated, Jule Collins Smith Museum again AU associated and Chewacia State Park which is in city limits of Auburn. I spent a great deal of time in the heart of downtown on my visit. The AU campus rolls right into Toomer's Corner which is the beginning of Auburn's downtown. The streets and sidewalks are clean. The business take care of their store fronts and show community pride. Pulling off a neat and clean atmosphere cannot be easy with college kids that party in bars late at night. So kudo's to the Auburn city sanitation workers who do a magnificent job everyday. I did not see store vacancies which shows me this is thriving business district. Finally a town is about it's people. For visitors that come for a short time a first impression is formed quickly. From the hotel clerk who checked me in to the server at Mellow Mushroom to the young man that rang up my first lemonade at Toomer's Drugs to the coach who checked my son into the dorm for camp. I had a positive attitude and warm feeling of the town immediately. There is something that is very special and unique at Auburn. Those that reside in Auburn already know what I learned in a week. This is a grand old Southern college town that welcomes all with open arms and a charm that has you wanting to plan a return visit in the near future.

Well since this is where I spent a good amount of my youth growing up and where my family still…read morelives, I have to say it was a pretty good little town. It is the "Loveliest Village on the Plains" of course...

Located in front of the current school, this marker points the 100 year old history of schools in…read morethis area. It is located by the side of the road and is in good condition. The marker has the same text on both sides, reading "Montgomery County's first school to consolidate rural, one-room school houses into grades one through twelve opened November 11, 1918. The school was built by the Montgomery County Board of Education on 30 acres of land at a cost of $40,000 with monies loaned and donated by families from surrounding settlements. Hailed by the U.S. Commissioner of Education when it was featured in the Alabama Exhibit at the 1926 Sesquicentennial International Exposition in Philadelphia, the school subsequently attracted foreign educators from Europe and South America interested in observing the system. The last graduating class was in 1945; the school remained a junior high school until its closing in May 1970." The marker is in the front of the yard so you'll need to park in the school driveway and walk over to read it. [Review 19873 overall - 220 in Alabama - 846 of 2023.]

Located under a tree at a street-level crossing near downtown Aubutn, this marker recalls some of…read morethe railroad history of the area. The marker has different text, front and back. On the front, "The Crescent was an exclusive train of Southern Railway (SR) and Alabama affiliates, Western Railway of Alabama (WRA), Atlanta & West Point Railway (AWPR), and Louisville & Nashville Railway (LNR). Excepting SR, these lines provided passenger service to Auburn and its college. In 1925, these trains, collectively named the Crescent Limited, ran between Washington, DC, and New Orleans. SR covered Washington to Atlanta, AWPR and WRA served Atlanta to Montgomery and LNR ran from Montgomery to New Orleans. These locomotives hauled 12 to 15 passenger cars, about 700-1000 tons, at 80 mph, with averages of 50 to 60 mph. Engines used 14,000 gallons of water during the 150 miles between stops while 16 tons of coal fueled the distance." On the reverse, "The Atlanta & West Point Railway engine, No. 290, a 4-6-2 heavy Pacific engine that traveled from Atlanta to Montgomery, is housed in the Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth, GA. Its Southern Railway sister engine, No. 1401, is in the Smithsonian. In 1938 the train was renamed the Crescent and remained so for 40 years. By 1941, steam engines were no longer the power for the flagship train, being replaced by diesel engines. The last AWP/WRA trains stopped in Auburn in January, 1970. By then all of the luxurious features of the Crescent had been discontinued for lack of patrons, with the rail line only using day coaches." [Review 17339 overall - 197 in Alabama - 857 of 2022.]

The police officer was very professional and kind. I had…read moreseen a man walking down my street and started to walk up my drive way. Saw me and a friend sitting on front porch and continue up the hill. Then saw him darting from behind a car straight toward a house a few houses up from mine Knew he was upto no good so I called 911 and the policeman got here and I described the man and what he was wearing,etc. He said he would chk the area and around the nieborhood.

I read about these amazing men who volunteered to become pilots during WW2. When I toured Moton…read moreAirfield where the training occurred I was dismayed at the fact that weeds were growing and nothing was being maintained. What was worse is that the facilities were closed on Sunday for this west coaster I was excited to see this, I guess no one visits on the weekends? It was a ghost town, when I walked around...in some ways good for me, in others how sad and pathetic are we that we can run air condition in empty buildings, but not staff it with any park rangers.