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Florence-Muscle Shoals Travel Articles
- Frommer's Budget Travel Lists Tuscumbia, AL In America’s 10 Coolest Small Towns
- Southern Living Magazine - Make Time For Florence
- Snuggle Up to Fine Bedding
- Visiting The heart Of Dixie: Florence, Alabama Is Truly Ya'll Country
September 2007
“A little bit hip and a little bit homey, these up-and-coming towns guarantee a fun detour on your next road trip!” This is the lead-in given to the listing of Tuscumbia, Alabama in “America’s 10 Coolest Small Towns” as compiled by Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel for the Sept. ’07 issue.
Tuscumbia, population 7,856, (and growing!) is a town filled with history, yet bustling with activity and an on-going revitalization. Tuscumbia’s original American Indian inhabitants were replaced by early settlers in the early 1800’s. The town boomed as a rail center in the mid nineteenth century, but declined after World War II. As with many towns, sprawl diverted life away from downtown. However, a local industrialist and developer recently began buying the old buildings and refurbishing them to house specialty stores, restaurants, and artists studios and galleries.
The quaint charm of the town remains intact. A natural cool spring flows over a giant waterfall, and a spectacular musical water show lights the sky at dusk, in Spring Park, the centerpiece of the downtown. A few blocks away, Ivy Green, the birthplace of Helen Keller, welcomes thousands of visitors each year to see the famous pump where the miracle of knowledge and language was revealed to the blind and deaf child by her teacher, Annie Sullivan. This moment transfixes audiences during outdoor performances of “The Miracle Worker” at Ivy Green during June and July. During the last weekend in June, thousands celebrate the miracle during the annual Helen Keller Festival, when musical performances and a fine arts and crafts fair are some of the attractions offered.
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