Alabama

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Mobile Bay Alabama reaches down to the Gulf of Mexico. The climate is warm and humid, with high summer temperatures and mild winters. The coast is exposed to the danger of hurricanes. Much of the state is covered by forest (particularly oak, hickory and pine).

History The area was explored by the Spanish at the beginning of the 16th C. In 1702 French immigrants, disregarding British claims, settled the area round the Mobile River, but in 1763 France was compelled to cede the territory to Britain. Twenty years later the southern part of the area fell to Spain. In 1817 Alabama was incorporated as a United States territory and only two years later, in 1819, became the 22nd state of the Union. For many years cotton growing was a major element in the economy, supported by slavery. Alabama was one of the focal points of the civil rights movement.

Economy Alabama lies in the Cotton Belt, but in recent decades cotton growing has considerably declined, and maize, soya beans and peanuts are now important crops. Most of the abandoned cotton fields have now been given over to extensive cattle rearing. The forested southern part of the state supplies firewood and woodpulp for papermaking. The iron and coal mined in the southern Appalachians led to the development of Birmingham's iron and steel industry. Other important contributions to the state's economy are made by the chemical, textile and food industries. Hydro-electric power stations have been established on the Tennessee and Alabama Rivers and some of their tributaries. There is lively inland shipping traffic on the dense network of rivers and waterways. Mobile has one of the largest and most important ports on the Gulf Coast. The beautiful bathing beaches on the Gulf of Mexico are attracting increasing numbers of tourists.