Category: St. Clair Tourism

Bella Vista Winery

An event venue for every occasion

Story by Paul South
Photos by Mackenzie Free
Submitted Photos

At James and Margie Sanford’s winery, nature’s bounty is on full display. While seven varieties of native bronze and black Alabama muscadines ripen on the vine as they ready in the rich soil for future harvests, eagles soar overhead.

Red foxes prowl the 21-acre property, where the breathtaking scenery, like a perpetual postcard, changes daily.

So, the name of their vineyard fits – Bella Vista Winery – Italian for “beautiful view.”

During the holiday season, indeed all year long, Bella Vista is open to serve an array of wines and to host celebrations of every kind, from small weddings and events to everyday visitors who want to raise a glass at one of St. Clair County’s most breathtaking spots.

As a way to realize return on investment until they were ready and approved by the state for the winery, the idea for an event space took root. A pavilion was built in early 2024.

“We knew (the winery) was a little bit down the road (timewise), so we invested our time and money into building this nice, covered pavilion,” she said.

So far, Bella Vista has hosted several weddings, with more on the calendar in the future. To be clear, the business markets itself as a winery that can also host small events – micro-weddings, baby showers, birthdays and the like.

“If it can be done with 50 people max, (the winery) is a good fit for that,” Margie said. “In the pavilion, we can handle 80 people or more. But if it’s rainy on the day of your event, we have to have a backup space to bring it inside and be comfortable.”

She added, “We’re not going to advertise ourselves as a venue going forward. We’re going to advertise as a winery with space for small events.”

For Margie, who spent more than 20 years as an event planner in the Birmingham area, and James, who worked in sales, the winery is a dream come true.

“Margie and I enjoy traveling, and we enjoy going to wineries,” James said. “(Opening a winery) is something we’ve talked about for a long time. It’s something we decided to dive into with both feet.”

In their winery wanderings, they learned lessons they now apply at Bella Vista. The laid-back vineyard vibe is different from the volume-driven restaurant business.

“One of the things that we found when we were going to all these wineries was a synergy in the kind of people that come to these places,” Margie said. “And it’s people who are looking for a place to meet their friends and get away and enjoy an afternoon and not feel like they are having a meal and being rushed away so the table can be flipped for somebody else.”

Here, “we want people to come hang out with their friends,” she added. “We encourage people to bring a board game or something that they enjoy doing.”

The Sanfords are candid: This is not a kid-friendly place. “It’s a place for adults to come chill out, have a glass of wine and get things off their minds for a little while,” James said.

The Sanfords have obtained a license to sell wines obtained through distributors. Bella Vista sells wine from Georgia’s Chateau Elan Winery & Resort and from Childress Vineyards, a Lexington, N.C., winery owned by famed NASCAR team owner Richard Childress. But Bella Vista’s inventory also has a global perspective, carrying wines from all over the world.

Bella Vista Winery has an eye on the future. “We named it a winery for marketing purposes, with the hopes to have a local producer/distributor that could sell us wine made with our own fruit under a private Bella Vista Winery label.”

Along with the Muscadines, the winery property is home to peach, pear and apple trees that are still maturing, awaiting harvest time a year or two down the road.

The Sanfords are also considering planting other varieties of grapes.

While wine, fruit and fauna are the stars of the picturesque property, vineyards are a human endeavor. What have the Sanfords learned about themselves? It seems they are perfectly paired, like a nice cabernet with gruyere cheese. Thirty-three years of marriage and 40 years together can build that kind of pairing. You could call it a classic vintage. They met in high school.

“I’ve learned that my wife is the backbone of this whole thing. As far as dealing with the bureaucracy and the paperwork and that kind of thing, she is the backbone,” James said. “She studies and makes sure all the I’s are dotted and T’s are crossed.”

Margie agrees. But also trumpets her husband’s building skills. The pavilion is his handiwork.

“I’m the business end. But James has been in construction. He has the ability to take something that’s not working and figure out a workaround,” Margie said. “We’re very much doers ourselves, and I’ve always thought he can do anything. If I can dream it, he can do it.”

She added, “We’ve learned that where one doesn’t necessarily have a strength, the other can kind of lift up. We balance each other.”

The vineyard regularly hosts “Sip, Paint, & Repeat” nights that have been a big hit. The nights can involve painting on wine glasses or other media with the help of local artists.

The vineyard, in cooperation with the St. Clair County Health Department, serves flatbread pizzas and charcuterie. The winery is also open for small groups and businesses to host holiday celebrations. A photographer was onsite in late November for Santa pictures or Christmas family portraits.

As winter closes in, the low-maintenance native Muscadines bide their time. They seem to pair perfectly with Bella Vista’s chilled out atmosphere that Margie and James Sanford have created, perfect for small events and gatherings, all enjoying great wine.

“We’re not a party place,” Margie said. “It’s just more laid back.”d someone would come in and not love it the way we do and tear it down,” Tami said. “It doesn’t need to be torn down; it needs to be loved.”

Features

New life for historic home

Home of Broadway actress, Springville teacher being restored with ‘love’

Story by Scottie Vickery
Photos by Mackenzie Free

After leaving a career on Broadway during the Great Depression, Margaret Byers took center stage in the hearts of Springville residents. She was a little person – not much bigger than the first-graders she taught for decades – but she made a tremendous impact on everyone she met.

That’s a big part of the reason why Nancy Tucker and her daughter, Tami Spires, have taken such care while renovating the home where “Miss Margaret,” as she was affectionately known, lived most of her life. “We just felt like we needed to honor her,” Tami said.

Tami and Nancy take a break on Miss Margaret’s porch swing

The home, which Miss Margaret’s parents built in 1891, has some unique features, including doorknobs that are much lower than typical to accommodate their daughter’s small stature. “She just quit growing as a child,” Tami said. “No one really knows why.”

One of Nancy’s favorite features of the home, which boasts 14-foot ceilings, is an old phone nook that’s built into a wall and is only about 2 feet off the ground. “She had a little chair that sat next to it,” Nancy said. “It’s such a unique house, and we’re so happy to have it.”

Neither of the women was in the market for a new home when Nancy first saw the “For Sale” sign while walking with a friend one morning last summer. In fact, they both live right down the street from the Byers home, with Nancy’s house directly behind Tami’s.

Still, Nancy had a feeling she just couldn’t shake. “When I saw it that morning, I thought, ‘That’s going to be ours,’” she said. “I wanted it the minute I found out it was for sale, before I even went in it.”

Nancy immediately called Tami, who contacted the real estate agent and scheduled a tour. A few hours after the walk-through, Nancy had a contract on the yellow house that stands directly across the street from Springville Middle School.

“We walked across the threshold, and she said, ‘I’m buying it,’” Tami said. Nancy wanted it so badly, in fact, that she didn’t even get an inspection on the house before signing the papers.

“I bought it like it was a loaf of bread,” Nancy said with a laugh. “I didn’t even think about the structure of the house or anything like that. I just loved it.”

Fortunately, they’ve since learned that, despite being more than 130 years old, the house is in pretty good condition. “There was no mold, no leaks, nothing wrong with the foundation,” Tami said. “We got lucky.”

They replaced the knob and tube wiring that is common in historic homes and can pose safety concerns, as well as some rotten porch boards. They covered up the fireplace in the dining room, one of four that were in the original house, and had the chimney removed because it was in bad shape. They also had new kitchen cabinets, which were not original to the home, and new countertops installed.

Everything else has been done by the mother/daughter duo. “Mom and I have singlehandedly done 95 percent of everything inside the house that’s been done,” Tami said. “Every weekend, we’re either here working on the house or shopping for things to furnish it. The shopping is more fun.”

While they love the history of old houses – Tami’s home was built in 1885, and Nancy’s was built in 1926 – they are especially intrigued with this one just because it belonged to Miss Margaret.

She was a beloved first-grade teacher for decades, and Nancy, Tami and Tami’s daughter, Rebekah Wester, are all teachers, as well.

Nancy taught Business at Springville High School for 26 years before retiring in 2000. A former English teacher at Moody Middle School, Tami is currently the counselor at Springville Elementary School. And Rebekah, who will live in the home once renovations are complete, teaches English at Ragland High School.

“We kind of feel a kinship with Miss Margaret because she was a teacher, and we are three generations of teachers,” Tami said. A member of the Springville Preservation Society, she leads walking tours of Springville for the fourth-grade students each year and for the public each spring. “This has always been my favorite house to talk about,” she said. “I love telling everyone about Miss Margaret.”

Small stature, tremendous impact

As a young woman, Miss Margaret dreamed of a career on the stage. Born into one of Springville’s pioneer families, she went to Huntingdon College in Montgomery after graduating from high school. A singer and dancer, she also attended an arts school in Chicago, according to an article on the “Tiny Teacher” that appeared in The Birmingham News in 1953.

She moved to New York as a young woman and appeared in several Broadway productions in the late 1920s and early 1930s. “We’ve always been told she was a munchkin in the Broadway production of The Wizard of Oz, but we have not confirmed that to be true,” Tami said.

She did, however, play children’s roles in several productions. According to Broadway databases and other sources, she was cast in Merry-Go-Round, which played in 1927 at the Klaw Theatre, and in Her Unborn Child, which played in 1928 at the 48^th Street Theatre. In 1929, 1930 and 1931, she played Bo-Peep in Babes in Toyland at the Imperial Theatre. She also was in a traveling theater troupe at some point, according to The Birmingham News article.

“She got to play a lot of the children’s roles on Broadway,” Tami said. Child labor laws were strictly enforced at the time, and at one theater, child welfare officials came after the director because they thought she was working too late at night. “She had to show them her ID to prove she was a grown woman,” Tami said.

A few years into the Depression, Miss Margaret returned home to Springville. “She was told to find another career because people just weren’t going to the theater anymore,” Tami explained.

Miss Margaret enrolled at Jacksonville State University and earned an education degree. She started teaching first grade at the Old Rock School, now an historic landmark. “If you got Miss Margaret, you were somebody,” said Nancy, whose son, Jamey, was in her last first-grade class. “I was so excited when I heard she would be his teacher. I thought I would absolutely die if he didn’t get Miss Margaret.”

Sandra Jones, a Springville native who now lives in Pell City, was another one of the lucky students. In 1994, she wrote a column about her former teacher for the St. Clair News Aegis and included a memory of the first time she met the woman who “was practically a living legend in Springville.”

“Margaret Byers wasn’t much taller than I – even in her tiny high-heeled shoes,” she wrote. “I studied the pert, pixieish woman as she darted about, smiling and chatting. Her face reflected warmth and there was a pleasant lilt in her voice. As I watched her, my fears suddenly melted away. In an instant, I came under the spell of ‘Miss Margaret’ – a spell that still lingers even after all these years.”

Even though she left the stage, Miss Margaret still loved to perform. She had an upright piano in her classroom and would often sing songs for her students. “She knew all the latest tunes: ‘Sugartime,’ ‘Catch a Falling Star,’ and ‘Mr. Sandman’ – and we sang them all,” Sandra wrote.

One of her fondest memories is of the day Miss Margaret let Sandra wear her shoes. “I had a pair of those play high heeled shoes that I had carried to school for Show and Tell. She traded shoes with me and let me wear her tiny high heels all day,” Sandra said. “They fit perfectly.”

Although she was well-prepared for second-grade, Sandra said the life lessons she learned from Miss Margaret were as important as the curriculum.

“Though she was small in stature, she was big on life; a buoyant bundle of boundless energy,” she wrote in her column. “And though she taught me ‘reading, writing, and arithmetic,’ I think the most valuable lesson I learned from her was the importance of blending work and play. She taught me that life is held in balance with the right portion of each.”

It needs to be loved

Those are the kinds of stories Nancy and Tami love hearing now that they’ve bought the house, which has had several owners since Miss Margaret passed away in 1987. Since taking possession of the house on Aug. 1, they’ve spent all their free time renovating it together.

“We have probably spent more time together in the past few months than we have in the last year, and she lives right next door,” Tami said with a laugh. “We’re not afraid to tackle anything. We’ll try anything once, and we’ve learned a lot.”

Margaret Byers with her class in front of old rock school in Springville

They’ve painted every room in the house, which was no small feat with the tall ceilings. “I was here by myself one day on top of a ladder, and I thought, ‘That’s kind of stupid, being 88 and being up on top of a 14-foot ladder,” Nancy said. “We decided after that neither of us would get on a ladder unless someone else was here,” Tami added.

They hung new wallpaper in the bathroom, which still has the original cast iron tub. When they pulled off the previous owner’s, some of the sheetrock came with it, so they decided to paint over the wallpaper hanging in the living room. “It’s not professionally done at all, but everything we’ve done has been done with love,” Tami said.

She replaced the kitchen backsplash, and she and Nancy have spent countless days painstakingly scraping linoleum off the kitchen floor and trying to save the hardwood floors in that room. When they needed a break, Tami set up her sewing machine in the sitting room and made all the curtains, which are 108 inches in length.

Through the years, previous owners made some changes to the house. The kitchen was originally located in the back of the house, with an attached butler’s pantry. A maid’s room was just across the back porch. Now, the kitchen is in the center of the home, and the back room has been turned into a bedroom. Tami and Nancy hope to eventually turn the pantry into a second full bath.

“The layout is not ideal for modern living, but it is what it is,” Tami said. “That’s kind of the charm.”

Now that the inside is nearing completion, the focus will soon turn to the outside. They want to clear the brush off the side lot and restore the yard to its former glory. They also plan to paint the outside of the house, and Nancy has decided that’s a job for someone else.

“We talked about doing it ourselves and just taking a section at a time,” Tami said. Nancy wasn’t convinced. “She talked about it, not me,” she said with a grin. “We’ve still got a lot of work to do, and you have to wait on one thing to finish another. We don’t want to get new gutters until we paint the house, and we don’t want to paint the house until we get some of these limbs cut.”

Once the renovations are finally complete, Nancy and Tami want to host an Open House for all of Miss Margaret’s former students. “Ever since we bought the house, people have been sharing so many wonderful stories about her, and we want to get everyone together and get those stories written down,” Tami said.

“Miss Margaret was loved by the whole community,” Nancy added. “She was loved by the other teachers, she was loved by the students, she was just loved by everyone.”

And that’s why they feel honored to be the next caretakers of the house that shaped the little woman with the big heart. “We were so afraid someone would come in and not love it the way we do and tear it down,” Tami said. “It doesn’t need to be torn down; it needs to be loved.”

Features

Pell City Museum salutes veterans

New exhibit, documentary, fighter jet simulator

It has become an annual tradition at Museum of Pell City each November as it seeks to honor, preserve and promote its military history in Salute to Veterans Nov. 7.

Now in its third year, the museum is redesigning and expanding its military exhibit space, increasing its focus on more modern-day wars and conflicts and adding an impressive interactive display – a fighter jet simulator. It will open Nov. 7, kicking off with a special reception at 10 a.m. in the banquet room of the Municipal Complex below the museum.

Existing military displays getting redesign

Headlining the event will be St. Clair County District Attorney Lyle Harmon, a veteran helicopter pilot in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Much of our exhibit space to this point has been on earlier wars – World War I and II, Korean and Vietnam,” said President Carol Pappas. “What we wanted to do is provide a more comprehensive picture of our military history – bringing in more photographs and artifacts from the Persian Gulf War and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. We have so many veterans from those conflicts in our community, and we wanted a way to preserve and share their stories.”

One of the centerpieces of the new exhibit will be photos and artifacts from the estate of Admiral Dennis Brooks, who served as Commander of the Joint Forces in the Persian Gulf. His long and storied career includes a visit aboard his ship from then President Ronald Reagan. His flight jacket as a fighter jet pilot in earlier days is on display among many other artifacts.

“We’ll have oral histories from his son, Mark Brooks, who also served as a fighter jet pilot and rose to the rank of …, who relates his father’s stories of achievement, sacrifice and the principles that guided him. We have other veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, who share their own story, all of which will be presented in our own documentary,” Pappas said.

Challenge coin memento given to veterans at inaugural salute

“An examination of this era must also include the painful transition of coming home, and we will feature on film the story of a mother whose son took his own life, an all too familiar account, and her fight to help other veterans.”

Excitement is building as museum designer Jeremy Gossett and pilot consultant Donnie Todd put together the fighter jet simulator exhibit. “I won’t spoil the unveiling, but I can promise that it will be an attraction for all ages,” Pappas said.

This project could not have been possible without community support. “In an effort led by our treasurer, Zachary Gentile, and Museum Coordinator Erica Grieve, we were able to raise nearly $7,000 to bring this plan to fruition. We thank donors Glenda Harris, Paula Hereford, Inpac, St. Clair County Airport Authority, Dream Home Inspections, David Smith, Alan and Sandra Furr and Donnie and Ellen Todd. They stepped forward in a big way to make this project happen.”

As is the museum’s custom, a reception honoring all veterans with a keynote talk by Harmon will be held at 11 a.m., followed by the exhibit opening, tour and film showings.

“We invite everyone to this special tribute,” Pappas said. “It is truly a community event, and we are honored to present it.”

Downtown Pell City

A slate of new businesses calling historic shopping district home

Historic Downtown Pell City’s business district is growing of late with ribbon cuttings and grand openings becoming almost commonplace. In the past few months, four new businesses have opened, a fifth is relocating and expanding and a sixth and seventh say, “Coming Soon.”

Already adding to diversity of what downtown has to offer are Lake House Antiques, Weeping Willow Books, The Grove and Studio on 1^st. Gilreath Printing, a longtime downtown resident in a log cabin building on Cogswell Avenue, is moving to 1^st Avenue behind Venue on 20^th into a much larger facility they are renovating. Gilreath plans to rent its existing building, paving the way for yet another business.

Studio on 1^st is a cutting-edge hair salon located on First Avenue South between 16^th and 17^th streets. Just across the way in the next block facing the railroad tracks is a children’s embroidery shop called Little Stitches & Co. Abbye Grimes is the owner, and she is working toward an October opening.

Inside, beyond the French doors, will be a completely separate business operated by Grimes’ sister-in-law, Tina Dailey, who is planning to run her hair salon and real estate ventures.

Meanwhile, The Grove opened a café featuring acai bowls, smoothies and salads in September and is already garnering rave reviews. It is located on Cogswell Avenue in the former Dot Wood Appraisal building between 16^th and 17^th streets.

Just a couple of doors down is the new Lake House Antiques, an eclectic blend of antiques, vintage and home accessories.

And just beyond Lake House is Weeping Willow Books, the senior citizen on the block at nearly 120 days.

They all represent a shot of vitality for downtown, and residents and visitors alike are already showing their appreciation, following through on the demand for new and diverse shopping, dining and services options in a pedestrian friendly, downtown setting.

Weeping Willow Books

For Samantha Herrington, her Cogswell Avenue bookstore is a dream come true.

She loves to read, and combining her passion with business seemed a perfect fit. She renovated the space with a willow tree theme (hence the name). “I always loved weeping willow trees,” she said, so she gave it an enchanted forest look, and “the name kind of went with it.”

She has created an inviting space. “I really wanted a bookstore downtown that was nice, cozy and welcoming, a place where people could come and get away from everything else.” She achieved those goals basically from the start, opening in June with 21 different genres of books – “a little something for everybody.”

She has books for all ages, “zero to as old as you can get,” she said. She even has a novel approach to novels called “Blind Date With a Book,” which is a book in wrapping so you cannot see the title. On the wrapping are hints so that you can get to know the book without seeing it first. Surprises await inside along with the book – a bookmark, notepad and pen. And just like a blind date, she said, you can’t judge a book by its cover.

The reception has been phenomenal. “Everybody who comes in here is super excited we’re here.” Her biggest surprise? “More customers than I expected.”

She’s enjoyed meeting everyone. “They have been nice and friendly. There is a big book community here,” she said, noting that she discovered a growing local authors community and is featuring some of their work. Authors like Shawn Bailey, Cherith Fluker and Kyle Hannah’s book company clients are among the books she features.

Herrington is already eyeing the future with plans to offer book clubs for different genres, story time for the children, author signings and a café with coffee and pastries.

“I want to grow a place when the outside is too much, they can come in here, get away and read a book.”

Lake House Antiques

Jacob and Adam Castleberry moved their year-old business from U.S. 231 South to downtown in August. Actually, it’s their second business. They own a thriving property management company that operates in Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas and Florida.

Antiques are a pastime-turned-business. “We’ve been curating and collecting for 10 years,” said Jacob. “Our goal was to open a shop.”

While the property management company was based in Trussville, they never found a spot that “caught our eye,” he said.

When they moved to Cropwell, they found space in Lake Plaza. But when space became available downtown, they knew that’s really where they wanted to be. And customers are showing they’re glad they came.

“It’s been overwhelming,” Adam said. “It’s been great,” echoed Jacob.

The business started from their own experience and abilities. Their former home in Trussville was an eclectic blend, and friends and family encouraged them over the years to design spaces for others or open a shop.

They describe their place as “Grandma’s house,” Adam said, noting that the paintings, quilts and other items blended with vintage and new make it look like Grandma’s. “It’s lived in comfortable.”

He’s right. Alongside an oil painting or a pair of newly upholstered French wing-backed chairs with brass nailheads, you might find a tiffany lamp, a mosaic-top table, a regal dining room suite, an urn, photo frames, china or a Victrola turned cocktail bar.

On Sundays and Mondays, Jacob and Adam are traveling to source new items to feature Tuesday through Saturday, their days of operation.

“We want something new every day or every week at least,” keeping the shop vibrant and fresh, Adam said. And customers are responding with a steady flow of traffic heading their way since opening.

With a nod to the recent growth of that part of the downtown area and the camaraderie that has followed, Jacob said, “We’re excited to be a part of the new business downtown. We hope more is coming. We’re excited to see the growth of downtown Pell City and be a part of it.”

Customers say the shop has an appealing vibe that brings them back. “Hopefully, we’re going to be successful,” Jacob added. “It gives them another spot to browse around on a Saturday afternoon.”

Studio on 1^st

Studio on 1^st is the city’s newest destination point for professional hair care and skin care. The salon offers services for men and women tailored to them.

Owned by Briana Allen, Studio on 1st could be seen as continuing a family tradition of locally owned business. Next door is her father and grandfather’s longtime business, Allen Service Co. “They played a big role in why I opened my own place,” she said.

She opened July 15, but celebrated a grand opening in late September. She had worked in Birmingham but wanted to return to her hometown so that she could become more involved in the community personally and through her business.

“I’m loving it so far. It’s more than I imagined it would be. I really do love it,” she said. Besides being able to locate next to her family’s business, she chose downtown because of its small town charm. “You can walk to all the places. They know me, and I know them.”

Business owners refer business to each other, she said. “We’re all like close together, helping each other. It’s the perfect spot to start this.”

Joining her is stylist Shelby Dunaway, whom she says shares the same goals for the business – offering quality services and being involved in the community.

Coming on board in October is esthetician Morgan Russell, who will be handling the skin care part of the salon with facials and waxes.

Plans call for one more stylist, “then we’ll have a full house,” Allen said. But the planning hasn’t stopped there. She hopes to extend the back of the building to include a nail technician and perhaps a massage therapist.

Studio on 1^st, she said, is “committed to delivering exceptional service and an experience you’ll love coming back to.”

The Grove

It only took four months for an idea to spring into a full-fledged business. For Whitney Gunnison, the genesis of The Grove evolved from a need. She suffers from celiac disease, an immune reaction to gluten that prevents nutrients from being absorbed and requires a gluten-free diet.

There weren’t any good options locally, so she decided to create a restaurant that filled that need. She renovated the building on Cogswell Avenue and set out to create healthier options with fresh, whole ingredients.

Her story blends her food creations with nourishment for the soul, she said. “I am strong in my faith. I wanted to share the love of Jesus in this building so people could feel the joy, hope and love the Lord has given to us.”

While a traditional downtown may spark memories of yesteryear, there’s a new feeling up and down Cogswell and First Avenues these days.

With Acai, smoothies and fresh salads heading the menu at this café, it’s evident that it is more than just a place to grab a healthy bowl or a smoothie — it’s a place to be “rooted, refreshed and renewed,” she said.

It actually got its name from those ideals – and a sign. She and her husband had considered a few different names but couldn’t decide. The Grove was one of their choices, but they prayed for a sign. He was on a job site in Cullman when he spotted a huge white sign up ahead, proclaiming, “The Grove.” It was their sign – literally and spiritually.

They set out to create a menu by gathering her team together, and they would try different ingredients and “figured out what was great and not so great” through many evenings of taste tests.

Team members who helped with the renovation were paid in bowls and smoothies, she said.

The end result was a comprehensive menu of açaí bowls, smoothies and fresh salads. And it appears she landed on a winning recipe. Judging by the response in the opening days, it’s a hit.

“The grand opening was super chaotic, but in the best way, she said. “We ran out of acai. We tripped a breaker. We had to close early because Pell City sold us out. After Friday (opening day), I hired four more people.”

But, she added, “everybody was rooting for me. Everybody has been so supportive. They’re excited to have a healthy spot.”

Big things for Big Canoe Creek

Changes, innovation, expanded education on the horizon for nature preserve

Story by Paul South
Photos by Graham Hadley
Submitted photos

“Come to the woods, for here is rest.”
— John Muir, American naturalist

Even in late August on the banks of Big Canoe Creek, change was in the air. Doug Morrison can see it from his side porch as he sips his morning coffee.

Leaves turned red, yellow and gold. Some even surrendered without a fight to the coming autumn. Soon, a crisp chill will be at home in the air, exciting stuff after months of heat and humidity.

But for Morrison, manager of Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve, nature isn’t the only architect of transformation. There are exciting human changes coming this fall to the 422-acre preserve in Springville, part of Alabama’s Forever Wild lands.

The preserve, one of the most biodiverse parcels of land in the nation’s fourth-most biodiverse state, has a new education coordinator, Auburn University graduate Lucy Cleaver.

“We’ve got endangered species and threatened species in the Big Canoe Creek watershed,” Morrison said. “She will be working with different educational programs. We’re about to light it up and make it happen.”

Local students learning about the animals found in the Preserve

Cleaver, a native of Salem, Ala., holds a master’s degree in natural resource management from Auburn. She assumed her current role in August but has worked for the City of Springville for about three years.

Her work extends beyond the preserve and area schoolchildren, she said, even though she’s already conducted field trips for classes.

“When people think about outdoor education, they think it’s mostly about K-12 groups,” she said.

“But it’s also my goal to reach out to our landowners in St. Clair County. It’s equally important to me to educate them as to what they can do on their own property to help our entire watershed. It’s not just about what’s going on at the preserve. I want to make sure everybody has access to the knowledge that we have.”

Cleaver also plans to partner with entities like The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Geological Survey of Alabama, St. Clair County Soil Conservation District and the Alabama Cooperative Extension Service.

The preserve, which opened in 2024, boasts some eight miles of trails, including one hiking only trail (Creek Loop), two combination hiking and biking trails (the Fallen Oak and Slab Creek trails) and one combination hiking and horseback riding trail, called the Easy Rider trail.

Biodiversity on display

The magic of the preserve’s flora and fauna – even Creation’s s smallest treasures – captures the imagination of visitors.

Some examples? Consider the Canoe Creek Clubshell, a freshwater mussel found only in the Big Canoe Creek Watershed and listed as endangered on the Endangered Species List. It’s an important barometer of the health of the creek, Morrison said.

“Mussels are important to the water system because they’re livers for the river because they filter the water,” Morrison said. “They are also good bio-indicators. If they are there, it means the water hasn’t been polluted enough to kill them. Their food source comes from the water and as they ingest the water, they filter the water, thereby cleaning turbid water of sediment.”

Lucy and Doug at the cabin and preserve office

The tri-spot darter, featured on the preserve’s logo, is a threatened species. It also calls the preserve home. The small fish features three dark saddle-like markings on its back. But during the mating season, males become brightly colored reddish orange and green.

Other aquatic species in the watershed found in a tributary of the Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve are the Western Blacknose Dace, a creature not documented in the area since the 1980s. A new find, the Gold Striped Darter was recently discovered, which is a rare find above the Fall Line.

For plant lovers, there are an array of blossoms – Mountain Laurel in the spring and wild azaleas are plentiful. The oak leaf hydrangea has bloomed out for the season. There are stands of Woodland Spider lilies, similar to the Cahaba Lily and a variety of irises and other wildflowers.

In the fall, Morrison said, the resplendent purple Beauty Berries are plentiful. The forest becomes more open as the leaves tumble to the ground.

“There are beautiful, big patches of old hardwoods,” Morrison said. “We have persimmons, paw paw trees, Muscadine.”

The unique finds fit the preserve’s motto, “Explore and Discover.”

An exciting journey ahead

As far as future goals for the preserve, Morrison is excited.

“We’re wide open,” he said.

An August grant of more than $335,000 from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs will help fund the construction of a new open-air educational pavilion. The project will also get a boost of nearly $84,000 in local matching funds.

The new facility will house restrooms, an area to host educational classes and general gathering space.

Initial design renderings of new pavilion

“One of our locals, Mike McCown worked diligently with me and (St. Clair Economic Development Council Grants and Leadership Director) Candice Hill on the grant application. Mike really put a lot of time and effort into this. As a matter of fact, he inserted many links to past articles in Discover (magazine)that I believe helped craft the story. Our journey speaks for itself, a journey of perseverance, faith and huge community involvement. We are beyond thrilled this will be underway soon,” Morrison said.

Also in its earliest phase, a Nature Playscape for kids crafted not from plastic, but from rock and other natural features is planned. It is hoped that the playscape will open in 18 to 24 months.

“We just got the concept plan for that created by Learning Landscapes Design,” Morrison said. “We’re waiting on the projected costs of that, and then we’ll go after grants to help build that. Hats off to donor, G.T. LaBorde, for funding the Concept Plan and coming up with the idea. This design is incredible and will be a big attraction once built. Again, more community involvement.”

Already, Cleaver has scheduled fall field trips with homeschool and other school groups from as far away as Birmingham.

When Cleaver talks about the preserve, she thinks of a spot in Slab Creek where stones like flat dominoes seem to provide a natural footbridge over the water.

“What makes (the preserve) special is there’s nothing else like it in this community,” she said. “We don’t have another nature preserve where people can go for free and go hiking or horseback riding or mountain biking. To me, it’s very special that we offer this to the community.”

With all the happenings at the preserve, Morrison and Cleaver are like kids at Christmas. Cleaver’s addition only adds to the excitement as the preserve charts a course into the future.

“It’s a great journey, and it’s a great job,” said Morrison. “We are beyond grateful for our community support.”

Features

The Rock Bridge

Key part of Chandler Mountain’s rare natural beauty

Story by Paul South
Photos by Mackenzie Free

Sometimes nature’s miracles enter our hearts, souls and minds with a bang, like the colors of the Northern Lights, or the Hale-Bopp comet piercing a blue-black sky as it did late in the last century. Both phenomena are greeted by “ooohs” and “aaahhhs,” wows or wordless, wide-eyed wonder.

But more often, time and the elements combine quietly with nature to create something magnificent and mystical.

So, it is with the Chandler Natural Bridge, a place known simply as The Rock Bridge. Located near the base of Chandler Mountain that forms part of the St. Clair-Etowah County line, the natural bridge is one of six named natural bridges and two unnamed spans in Alabama, according to the Natural Arch and Bridge Society.

The Rock Bridge spans Little Canoe Creek. It’s 48 feet long, 54 feet wide and 17 feet thick. The top part of the span is made from Gaspar Limestone. Wind and water erosion sculpted the bridge over millions of years.

Since 2003, Save Chandler Mountain, a nonprofit advocacy group for the mountain, has worked to protect the Alabama’s third-largest peak, which is known as the “Tomato Capital of the World.”

Fran Summerlin, founder and president of the advocacy group, has a special place in her heart for the mountain and for the Rock Bridge. She holds dear childhood memories of her brother taking her to see the bridge when she was only five.

“It was fascinating, I’d never seen anything like it. It was wonderful.”

What made it fascinating?

“There was a big rock that looked like a bridge,” Summerlin said.

“When you think of natural bridges all over the country, they’re always revered,” she said. “People love going and seeing them. (The Rock Bridge) was formed by water, and it’s a fascinating place.”

She talks of Alabama Power Company’s unsuccessful plans two years ago to build a hydroelectric dam there, a move that drew vocal opposition from residents, environmentalists and Native American groups. “If the power company project had gone on, it (the bridge) would have been covered with water,” Summerlin said. “It would have been lost.”

In August 2023, Alabama Power withdrew its application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to operate a Pumped Storage Hyrdro facility at Chandler Mountain.

Locals now have a heightened sense of the mountain’s importance. Darrell Hyatt, too, has precious memories of the bridge – picnics, swimming in the creek and exploring the area. “It should be a state park,” Hyatt said. “It’s beyond comprehension that anyone would consider destroying it.”

Summerlin said Save Chandler Mountain is continuing to research the area and work to find historical and archaeological treasures on the mountain. “We will continue to do that and continue to hope that (the utility) would come to some conclusion that the land needs to be preserved.”

Seth Penn is an environmental and political activist and enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama. While he couldn’t speak specifically about the significance of the Rock Bridge to indigenous peoples, generally speaking, natural arches and bridges often have sacred meaning for Native American tribes, who often see natural bridges as portals to the upper and lower spiritual worlds.

“I don’t know a lot of specifics about that specific natural bridge itself to really give you a lot of insight,” Penn said. “I can tell you that a lot of natural bridges … and special occurring rock features such as that which occur on the landscape are often seen as portal-type places, meaning they are significant to various indigenous tribes. And often, those are places where certain ceremonies or prayers will be conducted because they do believe sites like that have special spiritual significance.”

Rich Beckman, Knight Chair of Journalism Emeritus at the University of Miami (FL), is president of the nonprofit Natural Arch and Bridge Society. Formed in 1968, the 200-member organization works to protect natural arches and bridges and promote the study, appreciation and preservation of the natural structures.

While the NABS is small compared to other environmental groups like the Sierra Club, Beckman said the organization can “raise a ruckus” when natural treasures like the Rock Bridge are threatened.

“We don’t preserve natural arches, but we do try to help them live out their life cycle without abuse,” he wrote in an e-mail. “So, we are concerned about any planned or criminal destruction by man.”

The NABS joined locals and indigenous peoples to oppose an Alabama Power plan to build a hydroelectric power facility on Chandler Mountain, a proposal opponents of the plan argued would flood Chandler Mountain and leave the natural bridge underwater.

In the face of opposition, the utility withdrew its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission permit request and shelved the proposal, at least for now.

“We certainly let the utility know of our disapproval,” Beckman wrote. “(The Alabama Power proposal) would have been a disaster.”

The land where the bridge resides is fenced off by Alabama Power and closed to the public.

However, a portion of the utility-owned land on the mountain is open to hunters under Alabama Power’s hunting license program.

In an email, company spokesman Joey Blackwell wrote, “Through this program, parcels of land across the state are awarded through a public auction program,” Blackwell wrote. “Once a hunting license is awarded to a particular hunting club, the property can only be hunted by its members and guests.”

The utility makes some of its land holdings available for public use, including public access points across 13 reservoirs in partnership with local and state agencies, Blackwell said. The hunting license program is one of those initiatives.

Blackwell defended Alabama Power’s land use practices. “Alabama Power manages its St. Clair and Etowah County property holdings in the same way we work to be good stewards of land across out state,” Blackwell wrote. “Alabama is one of the most biodiverse states in the country, and experts in forestry, biology and wetlands management work together to protect our natural resources.”

Meanwhile, Save Chandler Mountain’s preservation work continues. How can citizens get involved?

“There’s power in numbers,” Summerlin said. “They could join Save Chandler Mountain, get on our Facebook page. We continue to strive to preserve this land. Just get involved with us.”

Hyatt said the mountain and the Chandler Natural Bridge are important, not to be taken for granted. “I was in awe of it, even as a child,” he said. “I didn’t really appreciate this place then as much as I do now. The older I get, the more it means.”

What would Summerlin want people who had never seen the Chandler Natural Bridge to know about the span?

“It Is s magical place,” she said. “It deserves to be preserved. In fact, all of this community and this area deserve to be preserved because it is a holy place for the Cherokees. It has incredible historical significance, not just for the indigenous people, but with, for example President Andrew Jackson took the land and either sold it or granted deeds to people.”

Some descendants of those original recipients still have those deeds, Summerlin said.

“This is a very historically significant, culturally significant, and I would like to say, it’s a sacred place.” l

Editor’s Note: For more information about Save Chandler Mountain, contact Fran Summerlin at fransummerlin@att.net, or visit the Save Chandler Mountain Facebook page or on the organization’s website, savechandlermountain.com. Dues are $20 annually.m to keep our programming fresh, giving people a reason to come and come back again to discover our rich history.”