February Tourism Highlights

I hear a lot of people say there is nothing to do in Selma.  I have to laugh at them because there is ALWAYS something going on here!  Just in February, we have had events going on each week and hundreds (possibly even thousands) of visitors in our city.  Here are just a few of the great things happening with Selma and Dallas County Tourism: 

At the beginning of the month, we went to Orange Beach, Alabama to participate in the Alabama Lifestyles Expo and to encourage thousands of snowbirds to visit Selma.  Most of the attendees were from the northern states or from Canada and would be driving back home within a few weeks - with a good bit of them planning on stopping in Selma!

Selma held its first Mardi Gras parade on February 7.  I grew up in Mobile, so it was especially exciting for me to see another Alabama city celebrating Mardi Gras. Selma was first recorded on a map in the 1700s as Écor Bienville and I think it's wonderful to celebrate this part of Selma's history. There were hundreds of people out there - a great turnout for this to be the first Mardi Gras parade in Selma.

ArtsRevive held its opening of "The Spider Martin Restrospective" exhibt on February 7 and continues to show the exhibit throughout the month of March.  Spider Martin was an Alabama photojournalist that covered many of the tragic events of the Voting Rights Movement, including "Bloody Sunday."  Be sure to visit the exhibit to walk through history through Spider's eyes. Visit www.artsrevive.com for more information.

The City of Selma held its annual Black Heritage Field Trips in which elementary school students visit some of the museums and churches with history of the Voting Rights Movement.  Some of the locations they visit are First Baptist Church, Brown Chapel AME Church, Old Depot Museum, Selma Interpretive Center, and the National Voting Rights Museum & Institute.

The April 1865 Society and Mayor George Evans unveiled the fourth in a series of historic markers on February 26. Along with being one of the most advanced historic markers complete with a map and QR code on the back, this marker is especially significant as it is located on the actual battle site. This marker is located near CVS on Summerfield Road and Highland Avenue.  A total of 10 markers are set to be unveiled before this year's Battle of Selma Re-enactment the last weekend in April.

On February 27, the City of Selma held a Youth Explosion Talent Show with over 20 acts from local students and a performance by Jamarcus Legg, a talented artist and the emcee for the show.  Trophies and gift cards were awarded to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place.  

Pictured (L-R): Sonya McCall, Performer Jamarcus Legg, Mayor George Evans, Councilwoman Angela Benjamin, Ashley Mason, and Saprina Simmons.

Selma's faith community came together as one for a unity walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on March 1. An estimated 2,000 people attended the event and prayed for our city.

The next few months will no doubt be the busiest months of the year, but great things are on the horizon for Selma!  Be sure to check www.selma50.com and www.selma50iwasthere.com for 50th anniversary commemoration events and www.SelmaAlabama.com for other upcoming events.

Ashley S. Mason
Tourism Director

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.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

As you can imagine, the past few months have been incredibly busy!  October - December is always a busy tourism season.  Some of the events we had include: Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival, Integrity Worldwide 5K, Haunted History Tours, Kenan's Mill Festival, West Dallas Antique Tractor Show, Selma's Annual Christmas Parade, Art Jam at the Walton Theatre, and countless others that attract visitors from outside Dallas County.

Tourism has also been working on several projects such as the Audio Tours and the Tourism Awards.  The Audio Tour project is close to completion.  Signs for all 75 sites (yes, 75!) have been ordered and should arrive within the next few weeks.  After they arrive, I will be working with the City of Selma to install signs in front of each site. We will also schedule an unveiling date soon, so be on the lookout for that information!

We decided to create the first ever Tourism Awards for the Event of the Year and Attraction of the Year in an effort to recognize the hard work of those that contribute to Selma and Dallas County's tourism industry.  The community is invited to vote on the winners by clicking here and submitting nominations. Over 25 attractions and over 40 events have already been nominated for these awards! Winners will be announced at the Centre for Commerce Annual meeting on January 22, 2015.

As one of our New Year's resolutions, we will be making every effort to regularly post on this blog (hopefully the first Monday of every month). Please subscribe and you can receive an email each time we post something new.

Thank you for reading and please feel free to contact us at 334-875-7241 or info@selmaalabama.com if you would like more information about tourism in our area.

Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival Ticket Giveaway #4

Enter for your chance to win a FREE ticket to the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival!  This is the last ticket giveaway for this year!

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Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival Ticket Giveaway #3

Enter for your chance to win a FREE ticket to the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival!

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Congratulations, Pat Spiller! You were randomly selected as the winner of the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival ticket giveaway! Please call 334-875-7241 to claim your ticket.

The giveaway question was "Which one of the storytellers tells "home-fried" tales?" Pat correctly answered Lyn Ford!

For everyone else, another giveaway will be posted momentarily so don't miss the last opportunity to win a free ticket!

Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival Ticket Giveaway #2

Enter for your chance to win a FREE ticket to the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congratulations, Kathy Tucker Harrison! You were randomly selected as the winner of the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival ticket giveaway! Please call 334-875-7241 to claim your ticket.

The giveaway question was "Who is Michael Reno Harrell's "good buddy"?" Kathy correctly answered Suzi Mama Whaples!

For everyone else, another giveaway will be posted momentarily so don't miss another opportunity to win a free ticket!

Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival Ticket Giveaway

Enter for your chance to win a FREE ticket to the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Congratulations, Jacque Johnson! You were randomly selected as the winner of the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival ticket giveaway! Please call 334-875-7241 to claim your ticket.

The giveaway question was "Including this year, how many years has the Alabama Tale Tellin' Festival been held?" Jacque correctly answered 36 years!

For everyone else, another giveaway will be posted momentarily so don't miss another opportunity to win a free ticket!