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Category Archives: Red Mountain
Historic Hiking Trails in Birmingham
Are you a hiker? Do you enjoy nature trails? Are you interested in history? If so, there is lots to explore on Birmingham’s historic hiking trails as posted by AllTrails and available right on your smartphone.
The app provides driving directions, maps, points of interest, photos, and even plant identification with estimated times, length of trails, elevation changes, and difficulty. Abandoned mines and railroad tracks, along with associated structures, tell the story of Birmingham’s early industrial heritage. The topography and natural environment offer clues into why the area developed as it has.
Want more? Check out the numerous Birmingham Historical Society publications that go into depth about Birmingham’s industrial history including:
- 1981. The Birmingham District: An Industrial History and Guide
- 1994. The Birmingham Industrial Heritage District Map.
- 2020. Altamont: A Portion of Red Mountain and Its Park.
- 2019. Shades Creek: Flowing Through Time
- 2026. Birmingham by the Book: A Guide to the Magic City by Marjorie L. White with Katherine M. Tipton and Julius E. Linn, Jr., Editors
And follow the posts on the preservation of Ross Bridge
The weather is beautiful! It’s time to get outside and HIKE
Beautiful new website of Altamont Park Conservancy
This beautiful but heavily forested and neglected overlook at the crest of the mountain in Redmont Park needed attention to preserve its beauty and longevity. So neighbors and parkgoers alike called upon landscape architect and long-time Birmingham Historical Society Trustee, Birgit Kibelka, to develop a Master Plan. Watercolors by local artist Adrienne Retief illustrate the goals they commissioned. Read about its history and follow along on their website as they execute their plan!
Sunset on Red Mountain
The highly anticipated annual event for the 2025 Heritage Society Gathering was at the residence built for Herbert Clark and Virginia Stockham in 1924 by Miller & Martin Architects. Atop Red Mountain on Argyle Road, the Tudor-styled home was called ‘Cragmoor’ in reference to the stone cottages and mists of the English Lake Country.
Herbert’s father, William Stockham, purchased the ‘Cragmoor’-lot 24 of Milner Heights-in 1919 and gave it to his oldest son Herbert Clark several years later. Herbert then immediately married Virginia Cannon, and began construction on the home (2930 Argyle Road) where he raised his children, Virginia Lee and Herbert Cannon, for the next 30 years.
A greatly-respected business industrialist, Herbert Clark Stockham proceeded to lead Stockham Pipe founded by his father in 1903 to national and international success. Herbert Clark Stockham died in 1958, and his wife Virginia in 1964, and the home was purchased by Martha & Marion Brodnax.
Improvements to the front entrance, kitchen, porch area, and garage were added in 1984 by new homeowners Virginia & Richard Scruggs, who sold it to Doug Click and Gregg MCormick in 2023, our generous hosts for this event. They recently added a pool/activity area and are landscaping the forested ridge.
In the meantime, Herbert Clark’s father, William, had purchased another 200 acres on Red Mountain’s crest and southern slope in 1922 for $250,000, the city’s largest real estate transaction at the time. William Stockham subdivided 50 acres at the crest for his 10-acre personal residence at 2950 Argyle Road, and set aside lots for his two younger sons, Douglass and Richard. His two younger sons never built on their property and sold it in the mid-1950’s.
Herbert Clark’s son, Herbert Cannon Stockham, married Peggy Roundtree in 1954 and built a home on portions of Lot 24 adjacent to his parent’s home at 2940 Argyle Road This home remained in the Stockham family until 2021. Read the complete history here.
Missed this event but want to join? Thank you for your support!
Discover the History of Birmingham’s Redmont Hotel for Valentine’s
Want to celebrate Birmingham’s history for Valentine’s Day this year? Take a look at the Redmont Hotel, the oldest hotel in Birmingham still in use. Opened in 1925 on the corner of 5th Avenue North and 21st Street, it was designed by renowned architect G. Lloyd Preacher from Atlanta, Georgia, as an example of the Chicago School of Architecture which was popular at that time.
Named after Birmingham’s iconic Red Mountain, the hotel featured some remarkable amenities for its time, including private baths and ceiling fans in every room—a rarity in the 1920s. The Redmont catered to influential travelers and locals alike including a group of men who frequented the Rainbow Room Lounge and became known as the “Knothole Gang”.
Over the decades, the hotel experienced various ownership changes and periods of decline, reflecting the city’s own economic fluctuations. However, its historical significance was recognized when it received Alabama State Historic Tax Credits in October 2013, alongside $400,000 in tax incentives from the City of Birmingham aimed at revitalizing it. Local contractor Stewart Perry undertook extensive renovations, with assistance from interior designer Natalie Toy, to restore the hotel to its former glory while incorporating modern amenities for the contemporary traveler.
After significant renovations, the Redmont Hotel reopened in 2016 as part of the Hilton Curio Collection, combining its storied past with modern hospitality. Its reopening marked a new chapter for the historical landmark that once again serves both locals and visitors.
The hotel’s importance was underscored by its addition to the National Register of Historic Places on January 27, 1983. This recognition not only highlights its architectural and historical significance but also reinforces its status as a cherished landmark within the community.
Whether you’re planning a romantic getaway for Valentine’s Day or simply exploring the history of Birmingham, the Redmont Hotel stands as a perfect gateway. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Visit Red Mountain Park with Self-Guided Phone Tour
Lots of stories from those who lived or worked on Red Mountain, as well as from scholars who have studied the area’s history, will soon be available on your phone, offering both historical & personal insights. These narratives will bring to life the daily struggles and triumphs of individuals who shaped the community, providing a personal connection to the past. Four key mining sites will be discussed: each site carries its own unique story, revealing the complexities of mining operations, the lives of the miners, and the impact of this industry on the surrounding environment and local culture.
Sites on tour include: Mine No. 13, the Smythe Mining Camp excavation site, Mine No. 10, and the park’s Wenonah entrance on Venice Road.
“Red Mountain Park is hosting “Go Tell It On Red Mountain” – An Oral History Presentation on Sunday, November 17th at 2 PM. The program will feature a panel discussion with the project’s scholars and UAB collaborators facilitated by Laura Anderson from the Alabama Humanities Alliance. Together, they will share stories from Birmingham’s mining era and discuss the project’s development. Afterward, attendees will be encouraged to take a self-guided audio tour on their phones to a few key historical sites.”
Help Save Shades Mountain with the SOUND of MUSIC!
Friends of Shades Mountain
are sponsoring a Benefit Concert
at Wild Roast Cafe in Bluff Park,
featuring great live folk, mountain,
and classical guitar music,
as well as original songs
by the President of the Birmingham Music Club
Sunday, September 11th, 6:00PM
The Birmingham Historical Society continues to research the historic importance of Shades Mountain and Shades Creek to our community with recent attention focused on Brock’s Gap, and the publication of Shades Creek–Flowing Through Time. But the Friends of Shades Mountain also want to preserve it for the benefits it provides all of us NOW including:
- The forest protects homeowners below from erosion, mudslides and damaging storm water runoff.
- It helps keep the water and air in the county clean.
- By providing visual screening, the forest enhances property values in the valley below and the ridge above the mountain.
- It provides habitat for many plant and animal species, some rarely seen in other parts of the county and state.
- It is an aesthetic value in itself, providing a lush green landscape that cools the eye of everyone coming around, over and under its forest canopy.
- It helps protect Shades Creek, already imperiled by previous development.
- The forests along this mountain help to keep homes cooler by reducing the effects of hot, humid summer days. In the winter, the forest provides wind brakes that cut heating costs.
- The forest cover saves the county an estimated $1,500,000 per year by reducing air pollution and storm water runoff.
You can HELP by buying tickets or donating if you can’t attend.
Heritage Society enjoys the Bush-Hill-Cooley Home
One of the most anticipated Birmingham Historical Society events each year is the annual Heritage Society party. It often features one of Birmingham’s most magnificent historic mansions and this year was no exception, with the Bush-Hill-Cooley residence.
Local architectural firm, Warren, Knight, & Davis, was hired by Morris Bush soon after his marriage in 1920 to design a proper English manor house on top of the mountain on a large lot in a subdivision developed by Jemison & Co. The widely-respected firm designed a Tudor Revival style residence of smooth-face, random-laid Indiana limestone with steep roofs, gables, large chimneys, and surrounded by substantial gardens in keeping with the examples established by King Henry VIII (Henry Tudor) after the reformation.
Morris Bush (age 48) moved his bride Margaret Gage Bush (age 33) to the magnificent residence in 1928. Following subsequent funerals for both of her parents, his mother, and their next door neighbor, finally good news! Their beloved daughter, Gage, was born in 1931, but sadly, the following year, Morris Bush died of a massive heart attack. Margaret couldn’t bear to stay in the house after all that unhappiness and moved in 1934.
James Hill, president of the local Hill Grocery Co., his wife Rena McMurray Hill, with their son Delmar, purchased the estate in 1934 from Margaret Bush and they would live there for the next 30 years, followed by Rena and her sister, for the next decade. The Hill family thrived despite the Depression due to their ’shop local’ philosophy, positioning a neighborhood grocery store within walking distance of many households as well as their support of ‘cash and carry’ (including script issued by local industrial firms).
After Ed Craig, and then Lanny & Brenda Vines lived there, Tammie & Jim Dandy Cooley purchased the estate in 2015. They’ve enjoyed working with architect Hank Long of Henry Sprott Long & Associates to renovate the home and restore the features and plantings of the surrounding gardens.
”Three years on the inside and then three years on the outside” as Tammie Cooley describes the couple’s ongoing love affair with the residence and its gardens. As Jim Dandy adds, ”we see ourselves as the current stewards of this timeless place.”
Much appreciation to the Cooley family for sharing the rich history and their labor of love with the Heritage Society this year!
Field of Dreams
Build it and they will come! Red Mountain Park is now a 1500 acre park with 15 miles of trails. But back then it was a former mining complex, and a ‘safe place’ that was healing and close to nature for Ishkooda resident Erwin Batain.
Son of a miner, Batain cleared a path from his backyard to one of the 15 mines that originally operated on the property. Overwhelmed with the beauty of the area, he brought his sister, Evanne Gibson, president of Birmingham’s West End Community, and Jefferson County Commissioner Sheila Tyson, to see it in the 1990’s along with many friends and family members who he thought would benefit from the meditative and healing power of nature. His enthusiasm for the area earned him the title, “The Prophet of Red Mountain”.
By 2012, it was officially established as one of the largest urban parks in the United States, with access to Birmingham west end communities of not only Iskooda but also Tarpley City, West Goldwire, Garden Highlands, and Mason City.
Jefferson County Commisioner Sheila Tyson dubbed it Birmingham’s west end ‘jewel’. And another of its early advocates was Birmingham Historical Society Trustee and Lawson State Community College history instructor, Gregory Wilson. Due to its rich geological, industrial, and archeological history, Wilson immediately recognized the value of using Red Mountain Park as an immense educational tool.
“[At RMP], I saw the geology, I saw the archaeology, I saw Native American history,” added Wilson, who has used the space to teach his own students by having them tour the space and ask questions of an archaeologist.
“Educators tend not to see [the potential] because it’s … a diamond in the rough,” he added. “They say, ‘If you bring us into a nice, air-conditioned building, that’s OK.’ But there’s a wealth of knowledge, history, and information outdoors.”
The park is FREE and is open from 7AM to 7PM. Download the trail map HERE or get directions HERE
The Brock’s Gap Railroad Bed from South Shades Crest to Chestnut Ridge (1 mile) in West Hoover
Brock’s Gap site visit, March 30, 2021
by Birgit Kibelka, BHSTrustee
On our second visit to Brock’s Gap we were a group of mostly Hoover residents with different backgrounds: Jim Langley and Deborah Burtnet along with Edna McWilliams and Gene Fuller, of the Hoover Historical Society; Brian Hale, Community Relations Officer with the Hoover PD; Carolyn Buck, Trail System Director with the Freshwater Land Trust, our friendly chaperone Thomas Abbey of the Brock’s Gap Training Center and myself (BHS).
We met at the entrance gate to the Brock’s Gap Training Center at South Shades Crest Road where Jim gave an overview of the history of Brock’s Gap followed by Birgit’s introduction of the map and of the walk ahead. As we walked we took a look at the 1907 Atlanta, Birmingham and Atlantic Railroad cut before stepping into the woods for a peek at the epic original 1871 railroad cut that led to the founding of the city of Birmingham. The large heaps of rock that line the rim of the cut impressively illustrate the magnitude of the work with the limited tools available at the time.
At the point where the cut and the current driveway meet we stopped to take in the ascent of the railbed from the south into the crest of Shades Mountain. We continued on into the wide views of the woods atop the tall fill that takes the historic railbed through the valley toward the steep towering slope of Pine Mountain. The newer, taller 1907 railroad track stays within view to the right as a constant reminder of the progress that followed the initial struggle to access the mountainous mineral regions of Alabama.
The railbed then led us through the two cuts in Pine Mountain that time and again are awe inspiring. The rock layers rise at an angle and show drill marks in some spots. A drill bit that got lodged and broke off 150 years ago can be seen and invites to share Jim Hahn’s story of the wrought iron rings attached to the rock, used to tie up convict laborers during construction of the railroad. As we reached the stark slope in the driveway we talked about the 924′ long dry trestle that used to span the valley between Pine Mountain and Chestnut Ridge atop the 30′ tall embankment.
At this spot the difficulty of getting the railroad up the mountain was finally evident to everyone. We had seen and walked deep cuts, and tall fills and were now faced with a third method of building the railbed at the needed 1.25% grade. Walking down the slope to the long lower fill we took in the full extent of the former trestle. Once we reached the lower fill, the view into the valley and onto the shooting range was wide open.
Established in 1962, the Brock’s Gap training center is the reason why the historic railbed was preserved during the development of the surrounding areas into residential neighborhoods. As the training center prepares to move on, this view into the valley also represents the wide view into the future of west Hoover with its planned parkway and development corridor.
While we headed toward Chestnut Ridge the other active CSX line drew close on the left. Historic railbed and active railroad run parallel as they cut through Chestnut Ridge. We emerged from this last cut and found ourselves at the western end of Stadium Trace Parkway, high up on the southern slope of Chestnut Ridge. Toward the south the terrain drops toward the Cahaba River. To the left lies the new Black Creek Mountain Bike Park that would make a great anchor for a Brock’s Gap Greenway. A closer look from the opposite side of the street revealed that the original railbed continues south until it meets the active rail line. Could a greenway extend in this direction to reach the planned Cahaba Park?
