Tuscaloosa Things to Do

the tuscaloosa visitor center is located in the historic 1862 jemison mansion on greensboro ave. the visitor center is a great place to get information and learn about the historic attractions of tuscaloosa. most visitors to tuscaloosa come for the university of alabama athletic events however the town has scores of historic sites and buildings which would be of interest to the student of history and southern culture.

bryant-denny stadium was originally built in 1929 and is home to the university of alabama football team. the stadium is named for university of alabama president george denny and the famous alabama football coach paul "bear" bryant. bryant-denny stadium seats 92,138 fans and every alabama home football game has been sold out since 1988. the university of alabama football team has won 12 NCAA college football championships. tickets for home games are difficult to buy but during the week you can arrange a tour of the stadium. see the attached web site for information.

the sara moody gallery of art is located in garland hall on the university of alabama campus. the sarah moody gallery has collections of contemporary paintings, prints, photographs, and small sculpture. the gallery also hosts traveling exhibitions from around the country. for those interested in contemporary art the sara moody gallery is worth a visit when in tuscaloosa. admission is free.

this beautiful greek revival home was built in 1841 and was designed by architect michael barry. in 1862 when the troops of union general john croxton were burning the university of alabama campus the wife of the university of alabama president landon garland convinced croxton not to destroy the home. today we can be grateful to mrs. garland for her efforts in saving this beautiful building.

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pictured is a statue of paul "bear" bryant. paul bryant (1913-1983) was the university of alabama football coach for 25 years and was the winning most coach in university of alabama football history. during his career bryant won 6 national and 13 SEC championships. prior to his tenure at alabama bryant coached at the university of maryland, kentucky, and texas A&M university.

the alabama natural history museum began with the paleontology collection of michael j. tuomey. sadly most of tuomey's collection was destroyed by union troops during the civil war. in the 1870's eugene smith began to collect fossils in the alabama area and donated them to the collection. in 1909 the alabama natural history museum was founded. today the museum has a large collection of vertebrate and invertebrate fossils and bones. the museum has a collection of mosasaur fossils and pre columbian human bones. the museum is home to the hodges meteorite. in november 1954 a meterorite struck ann hodges while sleeping in her home in sylacauga alabama. hodges is the only known human to have been struck by a meteorite. the alabama natural history museum is a very interesting place to visit when in tuscaloosa.

the gorgas house is located on the campus of the university of alabama. this low country style house was built in 1829. it was originally built as a hotel and later served as student dining hall and a faculty residence. the gorgas house is one of four structures on the campus of the university to survive the civil war. general josiah gorgas CSA moved into the house in 1879. gorgas was the 7 th president of the university of alabama. the gorgas family lived in the house from 1879 to 1953. today the gorgas house is a museum and is open to the public.

the little round house also known as jason's shrine is a pre-civil war guard house located on the campus of the university of alabama. the little round house is one of four buildings to survive the civil war on campus. it is believed that a union soldier named jason was beaten and killed by confederate cadets in the little round house.

the remains of franklin hall more commonly known as "the mound" is located on the university of alabama's quad. franklin hall was built in 1835 and was one of the university of alabama's dorms. on april 4 th 1862 union general john croxton ordered his troops to destroy all of the university of alabama buildings. only four structures on campus survived that attack.

the denny chime tower is located on the quad just across the street from the president's mansion. the tower was built in 1929 to honor university of alabama students who died in WWI. the tower is named after george denny the president of the university of alabama from 1912 to 1936.