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Join author Wil Elrick as he explores the history behind some of the Cotton State's weird and legendary tales.

Mysterious 1989 UFO sightings brought more than 4,000 visitors to the tiny town of Fyffe, population 1,300. Legends of the Alabama White Thang - an elusive, hairy creature with a shrill shriek - persisted in the state for a century. Just outside Huntsville's historic Maple Hill Cemetery lies an eerie playground where the ghosts of departed children are rumored to play in the dead of night. After hundreds of unexplained sightings, the town of Evergreen declared itself the Bigfoot Capital of Alabama. Alabama is a weird and wonderful place with a colorful history steeped in folk tales passed from generation to generation.

While legislators were writing the first laws in Alabama, some miscreant citizens were already breaking them, causing disorder and fleeing the hands of justice.

Among these were cult-leader-turned-murderer "Bloody" Bob Sims, social-activist-turned-anarchist Albert Parsons, the mysterious hobo bandit Railroad Bill and the nefarious outlaw sheriff Steve Renfroe, who was credited with countless prison escapes, thefts and arson. Legendary Wild West figures Frank and Jesse James also appeared in Alabama, along with numerous other well-known gunslingers, pirates, crooks and desperados. Bushwhackers caused widespread chaos during the Civil War and were considered outlaws depending on which side you supported. Join real-life partners in crime Kelly Kazek and Wil Elrick as they recount the atrocities of some of Alabama's most infamous lawbreakers.

With fewer than a thousand remaining in the United States, the covered bridges of Alabama are an important relic of the paths our ancestors took.

Alabama's covered bridges are reminiscent of a more romantic time, when people rode in horse-drawn buggies and couples stole kisses beneath their roofs. But they are also keepers of history - structures built by former slaves and Civil War soldiers. Such places are steeped in legend, including tales of ghostly children and the hanging of a sheriff turned outlaw. Just eleven historic covered bridges survive in Alabama - the oldest dating to the 1850s - but dozens of more recently constructed spans dot the landscape. Wil Elrick and Kelly Kazek provide photos and detailed information on more than fifty Alabama bridges, reveal the fate of the state's lost bridges and delve into the haunting legends surrounding these nostalgic structures.

Alabama tales that have existed only in rumor, legend and lore are uncovered in this volume of strange, funny, far-fetched, unique and gripping stories from Muscle Shoals to Mobile.

From Muscle Shoals to Montgomery to Mobile, there's just no place quite like Alabama. Take a journey off the beaten path through the Cotton State with author Kelly Kazek as she uncovers the stories that make Alabama one of a kind. Kazek, a longtime Alabama resident, unearths tales that have existed only in rumor, anecdote, legend and lore. This collection is packed with little-known stories of strange sites, like the world's largest Nehi bottle; curious critters, like the first monkey in space; and colorful characters, such as the outlaw Tom Clark. Whether funny, far-fetched, gripping or grisly, Forgotten Tales of Alabama is filled with stories you won't soon forget.

An Auburn University alumna explores the long-buried, mysterious and fascinating stories, lore and traditions behind the history of the treasured Alabama town and university.

Auburn is not just the home to a world-class university; it is also the home of a storied community with deep roots in Alabama history. Join author and Auburn University alumna Kelly Kazek as she tracks the lesser-known history of both the city and the school. In this diverse collection of lost, forgotten or just plain strange history, Kazek uses her decades of experience as a journalist to dig deep and cast a wide net, revealing stories sure to surprise even the most seasoned Auburn experts. From the mysterious origins of some of AU's most hallowed traditions to tales that stretch back to the very founding of the city, Hidden History of Auburn is an unprecedented collection that unearths the long-buried stories of this Alabama treasure.

The History of Weiss Lake was filled with debate. Read how the past of this area was reshaped and the area matured.

Until the late 1950s, the major body of water for residents of northeast Alabama was the Coosa River, which wove prominently through the rural landscape of the region. When Alabama Power Company decided to dam the river in order to build a thirty-thousand-acre reservoir, locals were divided about whether to welcome the hydroelectricity and potential prosperity or resist losing their land and proud agrarian heritage. Three years and millions of cubic yards of earth later, Weiss Lake emerged to alter Cherokee County history permanently. Post editor and county native Scott Wright presents a captivating collection of personal recollections and historical vignettes to illustrate the magnitude of the lake's influence in shaping the future of the area--and damming its past.

From Muscle Shoals to Mobile, Alabamians enjoy fabulous barbecue at home, at club meetings and at countless eateries.

In the 1820s, however, a group of reformers wanted to eliminate the southern staple because politicians used it to entice voters. As the state and nation changed through wars and the civil rights movement, so did Alabama barbecue. Alabama restaurants like Big Bob Gibson's, Dreamland and Jim 'n Nick's have earned fans across the country. Mark A. Johnson traces the development of the state's famous food from the earliest settlement of the state to the rise of barbecue restaurants.

Journey along with the king of nostalgia, Tim Hollis, for a tour of lost attractions of northern, central and southern Alabama.

Alabama has had an enviable success rate when it comes to tourist attractions, with some that date back to the 1930s still drawing crowds today. But many others have come and gone, sometimes leaving little evidence of their existence. Join Alabama native Tim Hollis as he revisits iconic attractions such as Canyon Land Park and Sequoyah Caverns, the floral clock at Birmingham's Botanical Gardens and the traffic safety torch held aloft by Vulcan, the iron man. Many Gulf Coast attractions are gone, including Styx River Water World and Spooky Golf, but the memories remain.

Some of Birmingham Alabama's history has been lost. This book takes a look at this lost history and brings it back to life.

Birmingham has many notable historic landmarks today, but so many more are all but forgotten. The Bangor Cave Casino was once a world-renowned speakeasy. The Thomas Jefferson Hotel featured a zeppelin mooring station, drawing lots of attention from tourists. Other significant sites from the past, such as Hillman Hospital and the buildings on the ""Heaviest Corner on Earth,"" are unknown even to natives now. Local author Beverly Crider presents an intriguing and educational tour through these and more hidden treasures.

An estimated four hundred gold records have been recorded in the Muscle Shoals area. Many of those are thanks to Muscle Shoals Sound Studio and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, dubbed "the Swampers."

Some of the greatest names in rock, R&B and blues laid tracks in the original, iconic concrete-block building--the likes of Cher, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Rolling Stones and the Black Keys. The National Register of Historic Places now recognizes that building, where Lynyrd Skynyrd recorded the original version of "Free Bird" and the Rolling Stones wrote "Brown Sugar" and "Wild Horses." By combing through decades of articles and music reviews related to Muscle Shoals Sound, music writer Carla Jean Whitley reconstructs the fascinating history of how the Alabama studio created a sound that reverberates across generations.

FAME Publishing first opened in 1959 and produced hits for great musicians like Etta James, Clarence Carter and Aretha Franklin.

ot long after, the city of Muscle Shoals became known as the "Hit Recording Capital of the World." FAME was the foundation that produced Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, the Nutthouse and Sundrop Sound at Single Lock Records - studios that gave a voice to artists like Drive-By Truckers, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit and John Paul White. A new generation, including the Pollies and Doc Dailey & the Magnolia Devil, today carries the tradition of great music. Through extensive research, and enriched with interviews from those who lived it, local author Blake Ells chronicles the epic story that started with FAME.

Local author Brendan Kirby revives Mobile's history of gangsters, gambling, theft and arson.

Since its founding in 1702 as the first capital of the French colony of Louisiana, Mobile has witnessed all manner of salacious scandals. An 1847 murder resulted in the hanging of Charles Boyington, who maintained his innocence to the very end, and a great oak tree near his grave site seems to support him. Many believe the notorious Copeland gang started one of the city's worst fires as cover to escape with stolen loot. A 1932 murder case involved a slaying at the landmark Battle House Hotel and proved that Mobile juries could not always be trusted.

Relive the final days of the Civil War with this compelling account of Wilson's Raid told by memoirs of those who witnessed it.

In the closing months of the Civil War, General James Wilson led a Union cavalry raid through Alabama and parts of Georgia. Wilson, the young, brash ""boy general"" of the Union, matched wits against Nathan Bedford Forrest, the South's legendary ""wizard of the saddle."" Wilson's Raiders swept through cities like Selma, Tuscaloosa and Montgomery, destroying the last remaining industrial production centers of the Confederacy along with any hopes of its survival. Forrest and his desperately outnumbered cavalry had no option but to try to stop the Union's advance. Join Russell Blount as he examines the eyewitness accounts and diaries chronicling this defining moment in America's bloodiest war.