Chapter 18: Hawaii

Gulf Shores, Alabama

Like Hawaii, the state of Alabama depends on its beaches. Alabama's coastline, home to the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico, is an important part of the quality of life for many of the state's citizens and one of the state's greatest economic and environmental assets. The white, sandy beaches of the coastal towns of Orange Beach and Gulf Shores and Dauphin Island are beloved and popular vacation destinations for Alabamians and out-of-state tourists. The fine quality of the sand and gentleness of the surf make for some of the prettiest beaches in the world and are the top tourist destination in the state. Alabama's shoreline along the Gulf of Mexico stretches for 60 miles. The tidal shoreline that borders all of the coastal bays, rivers, and bayous in Mobile and Baldwin counties extends another 600 miles, with the shoreline around Mobile Bay accounting for about 100 of those miles.

Beautiful white sand in my hand last year at Gulf Shores

Although human activity has played an important role in the history of the Alabama shoreline, it was created primarily by hundreds of thousands of years of geology. It was during the last 10,000 years, however, that sea levels rose to their present-day elevation. Sea level fluctuations, waves, erosion, and deposition are among the many geologic processes that continue to shape the modern Alabama shoreline. Alabama's Gulf beach sands, which are composed almost entirely of quartz grains, washed out of the ancient Appalachian Mountains hundreds of thousands of years ago. Subsequent sorting by waves and sea level fluctuations have resulted in practically uniform sand grains, accounting for the high quality of the sand on the beaches. Because of their constant exposure to breaking waves, wind, and storms, coastal shoreline environments, including Alabama's, are in a constant state of change and are usually being either eroded or built up. Breaking waves move tons of sand along the Alabama coast through a process known as "littoral drift." The dominant direction of this sand movement is from east to west, but sand moves west to east on occasion, as well.

Erosion is a topic of concern for Alabama’s beaches, also mentioned in this chapter about Hawaii. The location, and look, of almost all of the Alabama shoreline has been affected by human activity. These actions include infilling of wetlands, construction of bulkheads along the bay shorelines to serve as protective barriers to wave erosion, reconstruction of the Gulf beaches, and, primarily, engineering and dredging passes for ship channels. These manmade waterways are a primary cause of Alabama's beach erosion. Since 1960, more than 20 million cubic yards of sand have been removed from the beach, or littoral, system, by the dredging of Mobile Pass for the Mobile Ship Channel. Another 3 million cubic yards of sand have been dredged from the Perdido Pass Channel. The removal of these tremendous volumes of sand has resulted in severe beach erosion in the state during the past several decades because the dredging removes sand that would normally have moved down the coast and been deposited on Alabama's beaches. The solution to Alabama's Gulf beach erosion problem is two-fold. One approach is artificial sand bypassing, a process by which dredged sand is relocated to the beaches where it naturally would have been deposited. The second is a process known as beach nourishment, which involves adding large amounts of good-quality sand to beaches to widen them. This process can be used to rebuild beaches damaged in previous decades. The first major beach nourishment project in Alabama was undertaken by the city of Gulf Shores along two and a half miles of the central business district in 2001, at a cost of approximately $6 million. It was so successful that subsequent projects were implemented to enrich another 14 miles of shoreline extending through the city of Orange Beach. These engineered beaches have been successful in two ways. First, they have saved the Gulf Shores beach that was being squeezed out between the Gulf erosion and the seawalls protecting beachfront condominiums. Second, they have reduced the damage to infrastructure, including roads and condominiums, when hurricanes have hit the coast.

Erosion in Gulf Shores



　Sources:

http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-2049
　
　

Chapter 16: The North Pacific Coast

Like the Pacific Northwest region, Mobile is wet with a high moisture content in the air. While I have discussed this in previous posts, I have found more scientific information as to why exactly it is so wet in Mobile. The influence of the Gulf of Mexico is possibly the second-most important factor in determining Alabama's climate patterns. In addition to serving as a source of moisture, this large body of warm water stores energy absorbed from the Sun throughout the year, which helps moderate temperature patterns along the coast. This influence on local temperature patterns is commonly known as the Maritime Effect. In summer, a large mass of warm, moist air, known as a maritime tropical air mass, moves northward from the Gulf of Mexico and dominates daily weather patterns in Alabama. In autumn, the polar jet stream begins to migrate southward and directs cool, dry air masses, known as Continental Polar air masses, into the state. The leading edge of the continental polar air mass is referred to as a cold front, and these fronts move across Alabama at a rate of about one per week until spring, when the polar jet stream begins to migrate northward. When a cold front moves across Alabama, the cold, dry air forces the warm, moist air of the Maritime Tropical air mass upward into the atmosphere. The moisture in the warm air soon condenses and returns to the surface as precipitation. As the cold front passes overhead, the cold, dry air mass moves into the region and dominates daily weather patterns for several days. Cold, sunny weather usually prevails until the next cold front moves into the region. The precipitation that normally occurs when the cold front passes is usually in the form of intense rainfall.

Mentioned in the chapter, The North Pacific Coast region produces the most pulp for paper products outside of the southeast. Mobile is no stranger to paper product production itself, containing many paper mills. The southwestern area of Alabama's Coastal Plain, encompassing Mobile, Baldwin, Escambia, and Monroe counties, is the heart of the state's timber industry. Pine plantations cover much of the rural land, producing timber for local pulp and paper mills and other wood-products industries. Wildlife management, hunting, and recreation associated with forests have become an important source of revenue for some land owners. International Paper and Kimberly-Clark both have paper mills in Mobile.

Sources: 　


　
　http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1396http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1283

Chapter 15: California

Having grown up in Mobile, and spending the last 7 years here in Cali, I can most assuredly tell you that the similarities between these two worlds are few and far between!  There aren’t really any earthquakes – although there was a 3.5 magnitude that hit along the Alabama gulf coast February 5 of this year – and there has been no rush to pan for gold in my hometown.  Like LA however, Mobile is the county seat and there are many outlying “cities” and towns that are included in the Mobile area.  Bayou La Batre, Chickasaw (where my mother was born), Citronelle, Creola, Prichard (one of the top 25 most dangerous cities in the country), Saraland, Satsuma and Semmes are some of the incorporated cities of Mobile.  Dauphin Island and Mount Vernon are towns, while Grand Bay, Theodore and Tillman’s Corner are all census-designated places – and also where my home is closest to.  Other unincorporated communities include Chunchula, Coden, Eight Mile, Irvington and St. Elmo.  Until this posting, I suppose I had never realized how many Native American names we have for these cities!

Although Mobile is spread out, it does have a center. Downtown Mobile is the economic and cultural hub of the central Gulf Coast, a city with a future as exciting as her past. Ships from around the world sail into her port carrying goods and visitors, world class entertainers grace her stages and emerging artists exhibit works in galleries both expansive and intimate. This creative and economic energy is contributing to the revitalization of this 300 year old city; a city of great charm, rich diversity and dynamic ideas. The escalating pace of the redevelopment of Downtown Mobile is unmistakable, as skyscrapers take shape next to historic renovation and young people flock back to this urban area, looking to live in the historic houses of midtown and downtown Mobile.

Dauphin Street in downtown Mobile, the place to go for great food and good nightlife

 

Sources:

http://blog.al.com/live/2011/02/35_magnitude_earthquake_rattle.html

http://www.downtownmobile.org/

Chapter 14: The Southwest Border Area: Tricultural Development

There are not very many comparisons when relating Mobile with this region, however there has been a spike in immigration to this area recently.  Historically, Alabama has had very low levels of immigration.  Only 15,000 immigrants lived in state at the turn of the 20^th century, making up less than one percent of the total state population.  In 1990, the number of immigrants nearly doubled.  By 2000, approximately 90,000 immigrants were living in the state, increasing again to 137,000 by 2007, a 56% growth rate.  Alabama ranks fifth in the rate of immigrant growth among all states this decade.  These immigrants largely filled low-wage, non-union jobs. For Alabama, the 25-year period between 1980 and 2005 brought a wave of new immigrants who were part of a much larger surge of immigration that has now surpassed in numbers even the huge European migrations of the industrial era. A new wave of Hispanic immigration to the southern United States developed during the 1980s and after, primarily in response to new federal immigration legislation passed in 1986. This migration has resulted in the creation of substantial communities of Spanish-speaking people in Alabama. Most of these immigrants have met labor demands in farming, industry, construction, landscaping, and the service industry. Although fewer in number, Hispanic physicians, nurses, engineers, social workers, teachers, business people, and university professors are also among the recent migrants to Alabama. There is no indication that the new immigration pattern is slowing, and Hispanics are bringing economic and social changes to the South, as well as new forms of cultural expression. Immigrants have come primarily from Mexico, with others arriving from Guatemala, Honduras, and other Central and South American nations. Non-Hispanic Alabamians have reacted in varying ways to the new Hispanic migration and its concentration in small towns and urban neighborhoods. This Hispanic influx has complicated Alabama's historic racial divide between black and white. In the late 1990s, anti-immigration sentiment surfaced in a few north Alabama towns with rising Hispanic populations, and African American spokespersons in some areas have complained about job competition from Hispanic workers. Spanish language use has become controversial. Additionally, an unknown number of Hispanics are in the state illegally, perhaps as many as 40 to 50 percent of the total number, and this is a matter of concern to many Alabamians. These problems intensified between 2005 and 2007, as the U.S. Congress debated new immigration legislation, tougher border controls, and guest-worker programs for undocumented immigrants. Alabama politicians have pushed stronger immigration controls as well, helping to politicize the immigration issue. Meanwhile, big employers in poultry, construction, and agriculture have asserted their dependence on Hispanic workers. Rallies for and against immigration occurred throughout the state in 2006. Alabama has fewer than a dozen immigration or U.S. Border Patrol agents, and they concentrate their efforts on undocumented residents who are arrested by local law-enforcement agencies and charged with felonies.

Mobile is also like the Southwest Border area in that it also has a higher poverty rate.  The poverty rate in Mobile County, Alabama has increased by 1.3 percent from the rates reported in the Decennial Census, moving from 18.5 percent to 19.8 percent.

Three Eagle Scouts, the first produced by the Greater Alabama Council's Hispanic Outreach program

When compared to other counties (and parishes) throughout the United States, Mobile County reported a medium-low median household income of $39,441 (Adjusted to 2005 Dollars). This figure is 1.3 percent lower than the median income in State of Alabama of $39,938 and the median is 24.6 percent lower than the median in the US, which is $49,133. Contrasted against to other counties (or parishes) throughout the US, Mobile County, Alabama can be considered to have a relatively high rate of poverty among the people, accounting a rate of 18.5 percent of the population with family incomes below the 1999 poverty level.

Sources:

http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1096

http://www.brookings.edu/opinions/2009/0517_alabama_singer.aspx

http://www.ecanned.com/AL/Mobile_County.shtml

Chapter 13: The Empty Interior

While the Empty Interior may be empty to us regarding population, it supports a diversified, growing, and sometimes controversial wildlife population.  This region contains species such as the bison, the North American elk, the pronghorn antelope, the white-tailed deer and wild turkeys.  While Mobile does not contain most of these species, it does support a diverse wildlife population also.  In fact, Alabama ranks fourth in the nation for its biological diversity. There are more than 800 species of vertebrate animals and 3,400 plant species in the state. Alabama's terrain makes it an ideal site for wintering fowl who seek the warmth of the southern climate. Its southern swamplands give refuge to the alligator, and its forested region and bayous are home to a varied array of wildlife.  Beaver colonies are prevalent in the swamplands and ducks, geese and other water fowl winter in the area. Alligators can be found in some southern swampland regions. Animals that can be found throughout Alabama include deer, foxes, minks, bobcats, opossums, rabbits, raccoons, squirrels, skunks and wild turkeys. Freshwater fish include bass, buffalo fish, crappie, catfish, shad and garfish. Along the coast there are crabs, shrimp, oysters, mackerel, red snapper, tarpon, drumfish, flounder and mullet.  Alabama has 93 native reptiles, which include the alligator, 12 lizards, 31 turtles and 48 snakes. The state has 73 native amphibians, which include 43 species of salamanders and 30 species of frogs. The exotic greenhouse frog can be found in Mobile and Baldwin counties within the state. There is more mussel diversity in Alabama than any other state, and there are 83 species of crayfish, also more than any other state. Alabama has aquatic snails, yet land snails are rare. Alabama has 62 native mammals and over 300 species of fish, and some 420 species of birds. 

Greenhouse Frog

USS Alabama

With a name like the Empty Interior, it is surprising to learn that it generates a lot of money each year in tourism…until you realize that Las Vegas is located in this region!  Mobile, while not quite a destination hotspot like Vegas, does have many fun and beautiful tourist attractions.  One of the most memorable sites any visitor remembers about Mobile is the USS Alabama battleship.  Alabama was commissioned in 1942 and served in World War II in the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. She was decommissioned in 1947 and assigned to the reserve duty. She was retired in 1962. In 1964, Alabama was taken to Mobile Bay and opened as a museum ship the following year. The ship was added to the National Historic Landmark registry in 1986.  Visitors are allowed to view the inside of the main gun turrets and anti-aircraft guns. The powder magazine was opened to the public through some holes that were cut, and stairs put in. The bunk of Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Feller is marked for those touring. Feller served on Alabama for several years during World War II.  In recent years, Alabama has been occasionally used as a hurricane shelter. During Hurricane Katrina, Alabama suffered damage which resulted in an eight-degree list to port, and shifting at her permanent anchorage. (The families of 18 museum employees were aboard during Katrina.) In addition, the Aircraft Pavilion was severely damaged, with three of the exhibited aircraft destroyed. At the end of 2005, damage estimates were in excess of four million dollars. The park reopened 9 January 2006, with the ship having a three-degree list (which was still being corrected). The battleship, submarine, and Aircraft Pavilion are all open.  My favorite tourist attraction, and a place my mother and I went to every Spring Break, is Bellingrath Gardens.  Bellingrath Gardens and Home was the creation of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Bellingrath.  The Gardens first opened to the public in 1932 while a national garden club meeting was taking place in Mobile.  Mr. Bellingrath placed an ad in the Mobile paper, announcing that anyone who would like to see the spring garden could do so free of charge.  After an overwhelming response, the couple decided to keep the gardens open year-round, beginning in 1934. Throughout the year, this 65 acre Garden Estate is in full bloom with camellias in the winter, azaleas in the spring, roses in the summer, chrysanthemums in autumn and Magic Christmas in Lights during the holiday season.

Azaleas in bloom at Bellingrath

Bridge in the Oriental Garden at Bellingrath

Sources:

http://www.ehow.com/about_4569640_wildlife-in-alabama.html#ixzz1LFRTtby2

http://www.flotte2.com/MobileAlabamaWildlife

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Alabama_(BB-60)

http://www.bellingrath.org/about-us.html

Chapter 12: The Great Plains and Prairies

As we learned in Chapter 12, much literature, songs and folktales have been dedicated to the grasslands of the Great Plains and Prairies.  Like this region, much has been written and sung about Mobile as well.  Perhaps the greatest known piece of our time is a novel by Mobilian Winston Groom called Forrest Gump.  Of course, everyone knows the movie, but in the novel, Forrest actually grows up in Mobile, not Greenbow.  Immortalized onscreen by Tom Hanks, Forrest Gump experiences adventures ranging from shrimp boating and ping pong championships to thinking about his childhood love. The Vietnam War and college football are all part of the story. Throughout his life, Gump views the world simply and truthfully. Throughout the course of the book, he really doesn't know what he wants to do in life. Author and narrator Groom uses intonations that capture Gump's personality. Gump is full of wisdom, but is considered an "idiot" because of his low IQ and disability. According to him, he "can think things pretty good", but when he tries "sayin or writin them, it kinda come out like Jello". He is also physically strong and falls into amazing adventures.  Many iconic scenes in the movie take place in Bayou La Batre, Alabama, a small shrimping town in Mobile County, fifteen minutes south of my home.

Many of the Great Plains Indians are actually displaced Native Americans from Mobile.  My great-grandfather in fact is a Creek Indian, also known as the Muskogee.  The Creek or Creeks, are a Native American people traditionally from the southeastern United States.  Mvskoke is their name in traditional spelling. Modern Muscogees live primarily in Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida.  They were descendants of the Mississippian culture peoples, who built earthwork mounds at their regional chiefdoms located throughout the Mississippi River valley and its tributaries. The historian Walter Williams and others believe the early Spanish explorers encountered ancestors of the Muscogee when they visited Mississippian-culture chiefdoms in the Southeast in the mid-16th century.  The Muscogee were the first Native Americans to be "civilized" under George Washington's civilization plan. In the 19th century, the Muscogee were known as one of the "Five Civilized Tribes", because they had integrated numerous cultural and technological practices of their more recent European American neighbors. In 1811, the Shawnee leader Tecumseh, with the help of a prophetic comet and earthquake, convinced the Muscogee to resist the efforts of civilization. The Red Stick War, begun as a civil war within the Muscogee Nation, enmeshed them in the War of 1812.  During the Indian Removal of 1830, most of the Muscogee Nation moved to Indian Territory. The Muscogee Creek Nation based in Oklahoma is federally recognized, as is the Poarch Band of Creek Indians of Alabama. Creek tribe communities also have formed in Louisiana and Texas.

Creek Indians

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forrest_Gump_(novel)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscogee_people

Chapter 11: The Agricultural Core

In the chapter covering the Agricultural Core, an important factor in this region’s ability to provide the country with much of its produce is its soil type, including alfisols, mollisols and alluvial soils.  In Mobile, located in the outer belt of the Coastal Plain, also called the Timber Belt, the soil is sandy and poor, but responds well to fertilization.  The majority of the soil in the coastal plains of Alabama comes from marine and fluvial sediments that eroded from the Appalachian and Piedmont plateaus. The subsoil in the coastal plains is either loam or clay and the surface soil is either sandy loam or loam. Smithdale, Luverne and Savannah soils dominate the tipper Coastal Plains, while Dothan and Orangeburg soils dominate the Lower Coastal Plains. 

The Agricultural Core’s natural network of waterways permits easy and inexpensive shipment of farm goods to markets and to the countries’ main international trade ports.  Mobile’s waterways have also been integral to its trading and key location as a port.  The Mobile Delta consists of approximately 20,323 acres of water just north of Mobile Bay. Second only to the Mississippi River Delta in size, the Mobile Delta is an environmental showplace that is 30 miles long and 12 miles wide. It covers more than 200,000 acres of swamps, river bottomlands and marshes. Congress named the Mobile Delta a National Natural Landmark in 1974; fewer than 600 sites have received that honor. The Alabama Environmental Council considers the Delta as one of "Alabama's Ten Natural Wonders." Formed by the confluence of the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers, the Mobile Delta is a complex network of tidally influenced rivers, creeks, bays, lakes, wetlands, and bayous.