Lost Attractions Of Alabama

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.

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.

Amazing Alabama: A Potpourri of Fascinating Facts, Tall Tales and Storied Stories chronicles a brief history of the state, famous personages associated with Alabama, a discussion of state firsts, unique occurrences, antiquated laws and other fascinating topics.

While Atlanta has been a major tourist destination since the Civil War, travelers rarely encountered the rest of Georgia unless they were on their way to Florida. That meant scores of attractions, motels, restaurants and gas stations sprang up along the major and minor routes, all vying for their own piece of those Yankee dollars. In Lost Attractions of Georgia, author Tim Hollis introduces us to such defunct sights as Storyland and the Georgia Game Park, as well as now-extinct elements of popular attractions, including Six Flags Over Georgia, Rock City, Stone Mountain Park and others.

For more than 50 years, there was no more iconic Florida tourist attraction than Silver Springs. Its sheer popularity meant that the surrounding area--indeed, the entirety of Marion County--serviced the entertainment, gas, food, and lodging needs of millions of tourists annually. Visitors flocked to places like Ross Allen's Reptile Institute, Tommy Bartlett's Deer Ranch, and natural attractions like Rainbow Springs and Ocala Caverns. Sadly, as Florida tourism moved into the theme park era, scores of smaller attractions and their related businesses were abandoned. Author Tim Hollis revisits these once-thriving tourist spots and what happened when those tourists stopped coming.

Beginning in the early 1950s, the 130 miles of Florida coastline stretching from Panama City to Pensacola were branded as the Miracle Strip. Between those cities, oddities sprang up: goofy miniature golf courses, neon-bedecked motels, reptile farms and attractions that sought to re-create environments ranging from the South Pacific to the ghost towns of the Old West. In total, it was a marketing effort that worked brilliantly. Tourists flocked to the Strip, and now they can return. Author Tim Hollis presents a colorful array of these now-vanished sights, from the garish Miracle Strip Amusement Park to such oddities as Castle Dracula and the Museum of the Sea and Indian.

Settlers came to Central Alabama in the early 1800s with big dreams. Miners panned the streams and combed the hillsides of the state's Gold Belt, hoping to strike it rich. Arbacooche and Goldville were forged by the rush on land and gold, along with Cahaba, the first state capital. Demand for the abundant cotton led to the establishment of factories like Pepperell Mills, Russell Manufacturing Company, Tallassee Mills, Avondale Mills and Daniel Pratt Cotton Gin. Owners built mill villages for their workers, setting the standard for other companies as well. But when booms go bust, they leave ghost towns in their wake. Author Peggy Jackson Walls walks the empty streets of these once lively towns, reviving the stories of the people who built and abandoned them.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is among the most visited national parks in the country, and countless attractions around its borders have tried for decades to siphon some of those valuable tourist dollars. From ersatz western towns and concrete dinosaurs to misplaced Florida-type attractions and celebrity theaters, you will find them all preserved in this book. Author Tim Hollis showcases those businesses that no longer exist, from Hill-Billy Village in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg's theme parks on the Tennessee side to the motels of Cherokee and Ghost Town in the Sky on the North Carolina side.