Ramble #5 Sylacauga Part 2

Photos by Wesley Miller, Harrison Neville and Ashley Goode

I was about to turn 40, and I was restless.

As I juggled the old existential “…is this it?”, I somehow also found myself contemplating the wonders of the great state of Alabama. While it is largely maligned by the rest of the country, since returning here three years prior, I had found Alabama to be a state of tremendous beauty, deep history, delicious food, and resilient and creative people.

Armed with a minivan, questionable photography skills, a patient wife and the green light from a news startup, I began traveling the state in hopes of doing it justice and perhaps even helping to reclaim its narrative.

To my amazement, strangers far and wide welcomed me and trusted me to tell their stories. And these stories have exceeded anything that I could have expected.

One year later now, this will be my final column. Simply put, there are far too many stories and places to fit into this format.

This spring, The Alabama Ramble will move to its own website. If you’d like to stay in the loop, then you can follow along on Facebook or Instagram.

All of that is to say: thank you to The Sunrise News, thank you to everyone who has read a column, and thank you to the people across Alabama who have helped me share its stories.

And thank you to the city of Sylacauga. I am grateful to have spent the final two Rambles — find part one here — among its friendly people. In many ways, it is what I find so wondrous about Alabama — small, sometimes overlooked and yet explosive with manmade and natural beauty.

The Museum: It Came from Outer Space!

Readers may recall that we concluded our previous time in Sylacauga at the ice cream factory near downtown, which was every bit as glorious as it sounds.

When finished there, I recommend venturing two blocks north for a stop at the city’s museum. It’s named for its founder, Isabel Anderson Comer, a 20th century Alabama woman of influence — for reference, she counted among her family not one, not two, but three state governors. And one of these governors, her husband, also happened to be the president of Avondale Mills, Sylacauga’s former industrial textile heavyweight.

In short, it is a living reminder of the economic and political heft once housed in Sylacauga.

And since it’s Sylacauga, you know we can’t go long without talking about that marble — highest quality in the world, as explored in part one — seen here in both the building’s facade and the sculpture out front.

But enough talk from me. I’ll leave it to the museum’s director to welcome you and introduce the evening curator who is…unique.

Wait. Was Judy serious? No way…right?

Listen, don’t ask me. I’m just a visitor like you.

But I can comfortably report that Harriet is not the only oddity housed here, and she is certainly not the most famous.

See that meteorite replica above? That’s a recreation of the Hodges meteorite, the only meteor ever recorded to have hit a person. That person being Ann Hodges, who was asleep on her sofa in late 1954 when an 8 ½ pound space rock blasted through her roof, bounced off her radio and decided to throw hands.

And to make things no less bizarre, Ann lived across the street from a drive-in theater named — how am I not making this up? — “The Comet.”

By that evening, 200 reporters had descended on her place and Ann went mid-20th century viral: an appearance in Life Magazine, a spot on a game show, a sensational lawsuit, you name it.

Check out that hip bruise.

Imagine getting hit by a bowling ball traveling at 125 miles per hour.

Even with the roof, the radio and a few blankets to slow the impact, I suspect that this could have gone much worse for Ann.

But despite the national spotlight, Ann is nowhere near the foremost Sylacauga celebrity. That honor is undoubtedly reserved for…

Surprise, surprise, surprise…

Jim Nabors.

As a millennial, I admit to being only loosely familiar with The Andy Griffith show. 

Still, I know that Gomer Pyle, played by Sylacauga’s native son Jim Nabors, was one of the show’s most enduring characters.

Even after making it big in show biz, Jim Nabors clearly still loved his hometown and made sure to stop by his favorite local restaurant every time he visited.

If you are an Andy Griffith fan, then the Anderson Museum’s collection has more memorabilia than you could possibly ask for, of which this photo shows only a small portion. And if you’re really looking to indulge your inner Mayberry, then the museum throws an annual Jim Nabors celebration.

A Little Bit of Everything

So, let’s see. What have we uncovered so far in this hidden, yet pedigreed museum in small-town Alabama?

Celebrities? Yep.

A haunting? Possibly.

Meteor? Emphatically.

Before we head out, let’s take a quick jaunt through the rest of the place to see what else we come across.

For starters? How about this replica pioneer cabin contained entirely within the basement?

Or, how about all the vintage stock from the local industrial juggernaut of yore, Avondale Mills?

Wait…is that…Andie MacDowell?! While I have not been able to confirm it, various evidence suggests that before hitting the big time and begrudgingly dating Bill Murray, Andie did modeling work for Avondale.

Anyone know for sure? Hit me up.

If you were with me in part one, then you will be little surprised to read that Sylacauga low-key houses an eyebrow-raising amount of sculptures from world-famous artists.

Case in point: this Art Nouveau piece by Giuseppe Moretti, more familiar to us as the celebrity sculptor who designed Vulcan.

The museum houses more art, including a piece by legendary Alabama sculptor Geneva Mercer and local master Craigger Browne, but we have much yet to see in Sylacauga today.

On your way back to your car, you may also notice this old building, curiously resting on the street corner.

Remember Gantts Quarry, that massive open-pit mine from part one? The area used to house a company town.

Everyone moved away by the turn of the 21st century, and the old post office was saved and relocated behind the Comer Museum.

The ghost town is still there, as I understand it. But unless you’re willing to go poking around on private property, which I admit is not the type of Alabama danger I like to flirt with, then this building is all that is left of the place.

“A Well-Kept Secret Known to Few”

Seat belts, everyone. We’re headed out of town to the southernmost peak of the Appalachians, Flagg Mountain.

If you squint, then you will notice the gap in the trees on the mountain in the distance.

After some slow trekking over gravel roads and a bit of white-knuckling as we drive our way up the mountain without a guardrail, you will find yourself…

Here, at the peak.

Remember that gap in trees? That was the tower, hand-built in 1935 by the masters of vintage forestry design, the Civilian Conservation Corps.

But the tower, once part of “Weogufka State Park” shut down many years ago and only reopened in mid-2022, a crown atop the 240-acre Weogufka State Forest. Kay Ivey even visited for the reopening.

Note the sidewalk. The tower approach is also ADA accessible.

But they probably lock the tower itself, right?

Nope! Granted, you need to be ready to tackle some stairs, but if you’re up to it…

…then, well, the views aren’t so bad.

One of These Days…

The Pinhoti Trail.

It begins here, and if you’ve got some time to spare and a really, really supportive spouse, then this path offers the scenic route for 335 miles into north Georgia.

Feeling really spunky this February morning? After you hit the north end of the Pinhoti, hike over to the Appalachian Trail and work off all that Waffle House — I mean, it’s not like I’m speaking personally here — by making your way all the way to northern Maine.

Or, you know, just keep going all the way to Newfoundland.

But really…why?

My sense is that the answer may be tough to put into words.

And as a guy who still needs to ask his wife if his clothes match, I should probably avoid getting too philosophical myself.

So I’ll refer us all to hiking legend Nimblewill Nomad, former caretaker of Flagg Mountain, who at 83 became the oldest hiker to thru-hike the 2,200-mile Appalachian Trail.

If we leave the mountain today with only one thing, perhaps it should be his words, which he’ll share with you here.

But…how?

Whether for a day hike on a mountain in central Alabama or a pilgrimage across the country, the resolve — well, given supportive knees and a decidedly flexible work schedule — is up to you.

However, if you’re looking for a little help, then it’s ready and waiting.

First, looking for a place to stay? Like keeping things a little rustic?

Bring a tent or rent one of these cabins, also from the CCC era. They’re quite beautiful and not short on character, in this author’s humble opinion.

It’s worth noting that, if not for the efforts of locals who volunteered years of labor, then these New Deal relics would have disappeared long ago.

Or if you’d really like to get into the spirit, then head into Sylacauga in September, where the city hosts the annual Pinhoti Fest. Hikers are encouraged to bring tents and make themselves at home in the town park.

You’re also sure to run into a number of interesting people.

As I made my way from booth to booth, I came across, among others: a preacher who uses the trail as a ministry, a guy writing a book about the history of Flagg Mountain and Greybeard, the oldest person to paddle the entire Mississippi River.

And keep an eye out for Nathan and Kimm, trail names Switch Back and Crewhiker, the folks who put this party together.

They’re friendly, and if you’re looking to get on the Pinhoti, they are the folks to meet.

Just south of town, Kimm and Nathan run the Pinhoti Outdoor Center, the hub for all things related to the trail.

The Pinhoti OC also just won 2023 Alabama Small Business of the Year.

Need a bunk for the night? Or a ride to and from your day hike?

Want to buy a shirt? Or have a few questions? Or maybe you’re just hoping to soak up the trail culture?

This is the place.

You didn’t think we’d forget about food, did you?

Well, all this hiking has gotten me hungry.

“All this hiking…” you say? “You haven’t even actually hiked. All you’ve done is take photos of where other people hike.”

Shhh. Come with me; it will be delicious.

And the views won’t be so bad either.

If, like me, this is your first time at Pursell Farms, then it’s a resort where you can…well, you can do most anything. Horseback ride, hit the spa, throw some axes, do some yoga and so forth. And you can most definitely golf. I won’t claim to know much of anything about golf, but this place consistently ranks as having one of the best courses in Alabama.

But as we have established, we are here for the food.

Pursell Farms has a few dining options. We chose the Founders Pub, located in the hotel.

As for the food, we clearly opted for the pizza — the Farmer’s Market Veggie, to be specific. And I could tell you how good it was but, I mean, just look at it. What else do you need to know?

Dessert? There’s only one correct answer here.

We went with the Brookie Sundae. For the uninitiated, such as myself, the name “brookie” is a combination of “brownie” and “cookie.”

In other words, by some manner of dark and delicious sorcery, the folks at the Founders Pub have baked an entire chocolate chip cookie inside that brownie.

And did I mention that the views at the Founders Pub aren’t bad either?

If you have time after your meal, then make a stop at the Jim Nabors pool table as well.

Gravity Hill

As we leave The Marble City, we would be remiss if we didn’t make one last stop: Gravity Hill.

If you’re not familiar, gravity hills are places in which a car, set to neutral, will seem to roll uphill. Explanations vary: ghosts, a Native American burial ground, an optical illusion.

Whatever the cause, I can assure you that the gravity hill in Sylacauga works.

Want to give it a try yourself? Well, the location is a closely held secret, and by that I mean that the road is literally named “Gravity Hill.”

Simply park at the south end, face the highway, set the car to neutral and release the brakes.

For extra credit, bring someone with you at night — your kids, your husband, maybe your mother-in-law — make up a ghost story and giggle yourself silly as they scream once the car starts moving.

Parting Thoughts

And to the sounds of your loved ones screaming, we now come to the close of our time together at The Sunrise News.

At least nobody got hit by a meteorite this time.

More seriously, thank you to the wonderful city of Sylacauga — and Greensboro, Elkmont and Wetumpka — for having us.

And thank you to every one of you who rode along on any part of this journey.

Alabama has many more wonders awaiting, and The Ramble will continue in the spring.

Want to connect with Wesley about Alabama?
Email him here: [email protected]