Smithsonian highlights 7 Alabama landmarks to visit to celebrate America 250

Smithsonian has released its list of 250 places across the country to help celebrate the history of the United States of America. Seven of their landmarks are right here in Alabama.

Here’s what made the list:

• Civil Rights Trail
• Hellen Keller Birthplace
• Muscle Shoals
• Rickwood Field
• Tuskegee Airmen
• Unclaimed Baggage Center
• USS Alabama

Keep reading to learn more about why each location made the list + how you can plan your next visit.

Smithsonian’s 250 Places to Visit to Celebrate America

Smithsonian wanted to identify a variety of locations across the country that hold historical + cultural significance. They broke it down into 10 different categories including:

• Witness to History
• Culture + Community
• Museums + Historic Homes
• Food
• Science + Ingenuity
• Sounds of America
• Oddball America
• Natural World
• Architecture + Arts
• On the Screen

“We had the idea to identify 250 sites across the country, each a wonder in its own way, and nearly two years ago, we began brainstorming. Our criteria were straightforward: Does this site capture something about the United States or its people worth celebrating?”

Smithsonian Magazine

Here are the 7 Alabama spots that met that criteria.

Civil Rights Trail

• Where: Various locations across central Alabama
• What Smithsonian said: “From Birmingham to Selma to Montgomery, eight historic landmarks trace the courage, sacrifice, and strategy that drove one of the most consequential movements in American history.”
• More info

Ivy Green in Tuscumbia

• Where: 300 N Commons St W, Tuscumbia, AL 35674
• What Smithsonian said: “After losing her sight and hearing as a toddler, Helen Keller grew up to become a celebrated author and disability rights activist. Learn more about her early years at Ivy Green, where you can see the water pump where Keller’s teacher, Anne Sullivan, first spelled ‘water’ into her hand.”
• More info

Muscle Shoals

• Where: Muscle Shoals, AL
• What Smithsonian said: “Since the 1960s, two studios in this Alabama town—FAME Studios and Muscle Shoals Sound Studio—have produced countless hits, from Wilson Pickett’s “Mustang Sally” to The Staple Singers’ “I’ll Take You There.” The iconic “Muscle Shoals sound” is a combination of rhythm and blues, country and gospel.”
• More info

Rickwood Field in Birmingham

• Where: 1137 2nd Ave W, Birmingham, AL 35204
• What Smithsonian said: “The oldest American professional ballpark still in use, Rickwood Field hosted the city’s Black Barons of the Negro Leagues, which counted baseball legend Willie Mays among its ranks. Its history is intertwined not only with the iron city’s rise but also its complicated role in the civil rights movement.”
• More info

Tuskegee Airmen

• Where: 1616 Chappie James Ave, Tuskegee, AL 36083
• What Smithsonian said: “When the U.S. Army Air Corps needed more pilots at the dawn of World War II, roughly 1,000 Black men trained at a segregated air base in Alabama. Visit the site where these brave airmen learned to fly before engaging in combat missions across Europe and North Africa.”
• More info

Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro

• Where: 509 W Willow St, Scottsboro, AL 35768
• What Smithsonian said: “You can tell a lot about a person, or a nation, by what they pack with them on a trip. Browse the contents of the 0.03 percent of suitcases that go unclaimed by their owners at this 50,000-square-foot retail store, which has been in operation since 1970.”
• More info

USS Alabama in Mobile