Granted special permission to investigate the Civil War Cemetery after twilight/dark and it was a profound experience that left me and my team sobbing from overwhelming feelings, sounds, and voices from the graves. A must-experience for clairvoyants who are truly respect, value, and exhibit humility in the presence of such an amazing historical site It's not necessarily 'what' you see with your eyes that's incredible--there is a tremendous amount of residual energy and paranormal activity that can best be experienced with eyes closed. Take a good camera and plenty of tissues. If you’re simply grave-kickers looking for excitement, do the dead a favor and do not go.
This was the capital of Alabama from 1819 to 1826 and is located 15 miles from Selma, AL. At one time 3000+ people lived in Cahawaba and house a confederate prison during the war. Today it is nothing but a ghost town with a few buildings, a cemetery and historical signage. Most of the buildings burnt to the ground in 1900. It is a part of Alabama history and on the national register. They are in the process of building a welcome center and there is a nice handout and map. It is had to visualize that this was once the second state capitol in Alabama. If you want to stretch our legs and have an hour or two to kill I would recommend taking the time to visit this site.
I visited Jan. 11th. The park seemed to be abandoned, although I was greeted by a big buck deer. I assume that the nice building at the entry will be the new Visitor Center. That will help a lot! The sites are well marked and maintained and very interesting. I wish that there had been someone there to give me more info about the park. There is a nice driving tour brochure in the kiosk at the temporary visitor center. All in all, it was enjoyable to spend the afternoon wandering around Old Cahawba.
Had a wonderful time last night.It was very interesting. The guides and volunteers were very knowledgable and entertaining.
This is one of the first capitals of Alabama that is now abandoned and left in ruins. You need some mode of transportation to see the whole site car or bike. It was a town at one time. Get a map from the visitor center on your way in and some good tips from the care taker stationed there. Some of the sites require a little walk from the road to visit them. There have been ghost sightings here so be on the lookout especially near the face well.
TIP: Be sure you go and speak to one of the guides or gentleman in the very small and affordable gift shop. They are very knowledgeable and can answer many questions. Of course, a group tour would be even better I would imagine. Now, we stopped on our way through to check out some unknown Alabama history (unknown to us). It is and interesting place, but as previous posters mentioned you will see many places of this ghost town which do not exist other than to tell you what they were. However, my daughters enjoyed the simple pleasure of walking the trails and touring the "Upjohn" church. There is a beautiful old home which hopefully in time and funding will be refurbished. There is an interesting story behind a well in the town and you have al this in a map that you receive in the gift shop. I love old cemeteries and this one does not disappoint except that it is falling apart. I believe in time, this old capitol city can be awesome...it is just going to take funding. Consider dropping by if you are in the area; it is interesting and free. I gave a donation and I hope you will too. Oh, they have many picnic tables and a clean bathroom for anyone wanting to picnic and explore.
Wonderful park but was wet and rainy day . There was people that new just what to do for that day we must go back.
So interesting, I enjoyed walking the location and picturing in my mind what it was like when it was a bustling town. I'm going to try and get together a guided tour next time!
Any Alabamian and even anyone that just loves history should visit Cahawba at least once. The staff at the welcome center is beyond helpful and was happy to tell us stories as well as well as provide us with any info we needed. The picnic area is right at the fork in the two rivers and is awesome for a lunch. The old town still has a few buildings from the old days still standing including the slave quarters from a massive plantation (with the hanging tree that was used to hang slaves also still standing) as well as an old slave cemetery nearby. It's an amazing, if even sad at times, experience. I will definitely be coming back soon.
I had never heard of this place and we went based on Tripadvisor reviews. It was the highlight of our trip to Selma, Alabama. We felt like we had stepped back in time. You must use your imagination to "see" the town where ruins dot the landscape of a once thriving town - once the capitol of Alabama! Very small admission charge. Highly recommend.