May Tourism Highlights

May is not nearly as busy as April in terms of events; however, we still have hundreds of tourists coming to Selma to walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge and visit our many historic sites.  It is also the beginning of the summer family reunion season and wedding season, so we are constantly fulfilling information requests.

We had our first planning meeting for the Selma Museum Tours and it is going to be an even better event than last year.  Last year, we partnered with our local museums to offer visitors the opportunity to tour 7 sites for only 7 dollars!  This year, we have 10 sites for 10 dollars.  More information will be released as plans are finalized, but go ahead and save the date for the Selma Museum Tours on August 7 and 8, 2015.

In a previous blog post, I encouraged readers to vote for the Edmund Pettus Bridge for Best Historic Southern Attraction.  This national landmark was nominated by USA Today for this 10Best Readers' Choice Award.  Voting closed on May 25 and winners were announced at the end of the week - the Edmund Pettus Bridge was ranked 4th!  Out of the 20 nominations, only the top 10 are chosen for this recognition and we came in 4th, which isn't too bad when you think of how many historic attractions there are in all of the southern states.  We are proud to have been nominated and thrilled to be listed in the top 10!

A large portion of my time this month was devoted to finalizing our Audio Tour project.  After coordinating with each site and placing flags in all 75 locations for the posts to be installed, I then had to give all of the signs to Public Works for them to drill holes in each sign.  After the holes are finished, we will begin installing posts at all 75 sites and we will have an unveiling to officially announce the completion of the project.  Stay tuned for a blog post later this month about the Audio Tours!

Edmund Pettus Bridge - USA Today Nomination

We have great news!

Photo from the Alabama Tourism Department

The Edmund Pettus Bridge has been nominated for Best Historic Southern Attraction by USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards.  It is truly an honor just to be nominated.  Think about it.  Out of all of the Southern states, only 20 attractions were nominated for this title.  Out of the 20 nominations, only three attractions were chosen from Alabama.  All three attractions are civil rights sites, but only one has become a symbol of the bravery and sacrifice of the foot soldiers.  Don't get me wrong, each of these sites are significant historic attractions.  But were any others just visited by the President of the United States and his family, former President and First Lady, and over 100,000 other people?  Were any of the other sites broadcast GLOBALLY?

The Edmund Pettus Bridge will be 75 years old this year and the opening celebration was May 24-26, 1940.  The last day to vote for this category is May 25 - coincidence?

Our most famous Selma attraction should no doubt win the title of Best Historic Southern Attraction, but we need YOUR help!  Please follow this link and vote everyday until May 25.  Share with your family, friends, and the media.  We need you!

March Tourism Highlights

Where do I even begin for March tourism?  As you probably already know, we had quite a few visitors (easily over 100,000) in Selma the first weekend in March for the annual Bridge Crossing Jubilee and also for President Obama's speech the day before.  It was definitely an experience I will never forget.  I had the privilege of helping at the Joint Information Center with the media crews that were covering the events.  We answered any questions they had and provided water, coffee, and free Wi-Fi for them.  Many of the crews were there for 24 hours a day for 3 to 4 days straight to cover the events.  I also had the opportunity to hear President Obama's speech along with 41,000 other people in attendance and millions of viewers throughout the nation.

Just a small portion of the 41,000 people in attendance for President Obama's speech.

Leading up to this 50th Anniversary, the local faith community came together on March 1 for a Faith and Unity Walk.  Over 2,000 locals walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge for this event to show the world that Selma is united as one.

Over 2,000 locals came together to show unity in Selma.

March 5 - 9 was busy with events to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Movement and the brave men and women who fought for equal rights.  At one point I was standing right beside Martin Luther King, III and all I could do was stare at him because I just could not believe that was really him.  (Sorry for staring, Martin!).

Over 100,000 people in Selma at one time to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

The next week, the April 1865 Society unveiled the fifth in a series of historic markers.  These are some of the most advanced historic markers because they feature a map and QR Code on the back.  About a week later, they unveiled the sixth marker with plans to install four more before the annual Battle of Selma Re-enactment April 23 - 26.

Historic Marker #5: Located at Battery Avenue and Summerfield Road

Historic Marker #6: Located at Lapsley Street and the Railroad Track.

March 20 - 21, the Selma-Dallas County Historic Preservation Society held the 40th Annual Historic Selma Pilgrimage, which featured both Civil War and Civil Rights sites.  I personally visited every site and even rode the welcome wagon and I did not realize how many churches had such beautiful stained glass windows!  All seven churches on the tour had magnificent stained glass windows and if you ever have the opportunity to tour them - do it! You will not regret it.

Stained glass window at St. Paul's Episcopal Church designed by Clara Weaver Parrish.

Immediately following Pilgrimage, I traveled to Shreveport, Louisiana to represent Selma and Dallas County at the Travel South Showcase.  I spoke one on one with dozens of writers and travel companies to encourage them to visit Selma.  Many of them had no idea that Selma had so much to offer!  I suspect many of them will be booking tours to Selma and writing stories about Selma, especially since we just had a global audience.  Also, I won a gift card by putting at the Group Tour Media booth!

They even put my name on the board!

March did not disappoint with all of the exciting Tourism events and April will bring just as many.  Stay tuned for next month's blog on the April events!

January Tourism Highlights

There were a number of great events throughout the month of January, but the two I want to highlight on this post are the Prayer Vigil/Concert/Red Carpet event and the Centre for Commerce Annual meeting in which we presented the first annual Tourism Awards.

On January 18, stars from the "Selma" movie visited Selma to participate in a Prayer Vigil at City Hall, which ended with a march from City Hall to the Edmund Pettus Bridge.  At the Bridge, John Legend and Common performed their Academy Award winning song "Glory." The cast, director, and producers of the film, along with Alabama officials then attended a red carpet screening of "Selma" at the historic Walton Theatre.  After the screening, the cast, director, and producers took the stage for a question and answer session on the film.

Front Row (L-R): Ava DuVernay ("Selma" Director), David Oyelowo (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.), Oprah Winfrey (Annie Lee Cooper), Dede Gardner (Producer), Jeremy Kleiner (Producer). Back Row (L-R): Paul Garnes (Producer), Common (James Bevel and co-writer of "Glory"), and John Legend (co-writer of "Glory")

Later that week on January 22, the Centre for Commerce held its annual meeting at the Convention Center.  At the end of the meeting, we presented the first annual Tourism Awards.  The community voted on Event of the Year and Attraction of the Year and there were almost 500 votes for these awards.  We also surprised the crowd and presented two additional awards - Tourism Partner of the Year and Media Advocate of the Year.  Thank you to One Way Book Store for creating these beautiful awards!

Congratulations to the winners of the 2014 Tourism Awards!  Attraction of the Year - Old Cahawba Archaeological Park; Event of the Year - Integrity Worldwide 5K; Media Advocate of the Year - Selma Times-Journal; and Tourism Partner of the Year - Madden & Associates.

Congratulations to Dr. Alston Fitts, III for being inducted into the Blackbelt Hall of Fame on January 30!

Be sure to check the blog on the first Monday in March for the next Tourism update.

Bridge Crossing Jubilee

It was such a pleasure to experience the annual Bridge Crossing Jubilee and to witness thousands of people come together to commemorate one of the most important events in our nation's history.

Next year is the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery march and I look forward to walking across the bridge again with thousands upon thousands of people.  The next Bridge Crossing Jubilee is March 5 - 9, 2015, so mark your calendars!  Also, be sure to visit dreammarcheson.com for events leading up to the 50th Anniversary!

Enjoy a few pictures from this year's Bridge Crossing Jubilee:

Mayor George Evans welcomes everyone to Selma at the Welcome Reception

Jimmy Lee Jackson play in Selma

Step Show

Step Show

See you next year for the 50th Anniversary! March 5 - 9, 2015

Jeffrey's Adventure to the Bridgetender's House

Jeffrey visited the Bridgetender's House today!  This small cottage is located next to the historic St. James Hotel on the bluff of the Alabama River.  It is the site of Selma's first bridge across the Alabama River and is listed on the National Historic Register.  The turning operation of the toll bridge required a bridge tender to manually turn the capstan to open the span.  The bridge tender lived in this house with his family and was on duty 24 hours a day!  Tolls were collected until 1900 when the county bought the bridge and made it free to cross.  The bridge was then removed in 1940 when the Edmund Pettus Bridge was opened.  

Jeffrey's Adventure to the Edmund Pettus Bridge

I bet you haven't seen this view of the Edmund Pettus Bridge before!  It is actually very accessible with stairs and clear paths for visitors to enjoy the views.  Jeffrey loves coming down here because it is so peaceful, beautiful, and the view just gets better and better as you keep walking.  If you didn't already know, the Edmund Pettus Bridge became a National Historic Landmark earlier this year due to its significance as a site of a major turning point in the Civil Rights Movement.  Tourists come from all over the world to see the Edmund Pettus Bridge, but they have probably never seen it from this angle.

Jeffrey's Adventure to Riverfront Park

Did you see Jeffrey at Riverfront Park today?? He spent hours walking on the concrete path along the Alabama River, sitting in the grass, and playing with the birds.  He plans on watching tonight's sunset there because he says it has the best view of the river and the bridge!

Riverfront Park is located a few blocks from the Edmund Pettus bridge.  At the entrance to the park is the newest addition, a gaslight commemorating those who fought in the civil rights movement.  To learn more about the gaslight, view our blog post here.  To learn about the upcoming renovations at Riverfront Park, click here.

Where do you think Jeffrey will go tomorrow?

Labor Day Fireworks Celebration

Yesterday, Selma had its first ever Labor Day Fireworks Celebration! The July 4th Celebration was postponed due to inclement weather and the date was moved to Labor Day.  There were hundreds of viewers gathered at Riverfront Park, the St. James hotel, the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and even in the Alabama River to watch the spectacular fireworks show! We hope you were among the viewers last night, but we have some pictures to share for those of you that couldn't make it.

All photos were taken by Ashley Brooke Mason