Decatur, Athens, Moulton providing free historic walking tours in April

Apr. 12—Decatur, Athens and Moulton will hold historic walking tours this month, and event officials said the tours are meant to educate citizens who may not know about their own city.

"I think these tours are super important for Decatur and Morgan County because they offer a free chance to learn about our history," said Decatur Morgan County Tourism Director of Communications Lillie Beth Warner. "The ones here are really special to us because we get to highlight the different communities that you might not know that much about."

The free walking tours are a part of a statewide event put on by the Alabama Tourism Department every April in which each county is given the option to participate and host tours of their historic districts. Decatur's next tour will be Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Historic Decatur Union Depot located at 701 Railroad St. N.W.

"This one's going to be more about the history of the Depot and the railroad area and how that is so important to Decatur," Warner said.

The April 20 tour in Decatur is titled R.G. Ross, the Builder: Unraveling Decatur's Architectural Legacy. The tour will be confined to the Albany District and discuss Ross' buildings. It will start at 10 a.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church located at 801 Jackson St. S.E.

The April 27 tour will involve the architecture of Old Decatur. It will start at 10 a.m. at Frazier Park located at 309 Cherry St. N.E.

"This one's really interesting if you're into architecture," Warner said. "They'll go through the different houses; she'll break down the different styles and when they were made and what was important about them. She'll even go through about the families who built the house and who lived there."

For the first tour on April 6 in Old Town, about 35 people attended, Warner said. She said each tour last year had about 50 people, but April 6 fell on a cold day this year.

"We would love to see 50 people, as many as we can get," Warner said. "Our tour guides do have microphones, so it's easy for everyone to be able to hear." — Athens

The Athens-Limestone County Tourism Association is also having walking tours every Saturday in April. Their first tour on April 6 was of the homes in the historic Houston District. All tours start at 10 a.m. at the tourism office which is located at 100 N. Beaty St.

"We have people who have lived here all their lives and not until they come to these tours do they go, 'Oh, my gosh, I didn't know that,'" said Athens-Limestone County Tourism Association President Teresa Todd. "It's information that they haven't taken time in the past to know all these things that are just right at their door. ... People love history, and they just don't seem to take the time to read something or just to listen."

Stephanie Reynolds, assistant to the president, said the tours are good for a couple of reasons. She said it's the beginning of spring and it gets people outside again.

"I think it affords local citizens the opportunity to have a free, easy stroll through their own community," Reynolds said. "A lot of us live in places and don't know very much about it."

Todd said nine people attended the first tour, which is lower than normal, but there was an issue with publicizing the correct day. She said her goal is 30 people at each remaining tour.

On Saturday there will be a tour of Athens State University, which was built in 1822. April 20 will be a tour of downtown Athens. April 27 will be a tour of the homes in the historic Beaty District. Reynolds said some of the tour guides dress in antebellum garb to match the era of the buildings. — Moulton

Ann Britnell, Lawrence County History and Preservation Society treasurer, said they will be doing one tour of Moulton on April 27. It will start at 10 a.m. at Sweet Leona's Ice Cream Shoppe located at 13540 Court St.

"This year our emphasis is on the downtown and the new businesses that have come in and the renovation of the courthouse," Britnell said. "Let people know that Moulton has a wonderful history, but it also has an optimistic future, as well."

Most of the tour will be centered around Courthouse Square, Britnell said. She said most of the buildings were built between the 1930s and 1950s.

We are going to "stop at some different businesses along the Square who have agreed to stop and talk to us, they'll tell about their building," Britnell said. "The whole Square is on the National Register (of Historic Places) because of the era; it was (built during) the FDR (Franklin Delano Roosevelt) era."

Britnell said over 40 people attended last year's tour.

"We've had a lot of great response to this one this year, and we hope we have a big crowd," she said.

They are offering public transportation this year, Britnell said, for anyone who has difficulty walking long distances.

—erica.smith@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2460.