December 19, 1871

Incorporated on Dec. 19, 1871, Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama and the seat of Jefferson County. The city was founded after the Civil War as an industrial enterprise and was named after Birmingham, England’s major industrial metropolis. Birmingham became the primary industrial center for the Southeastern United States. Because of its rapid growth around the turn of the century, the city earned the nicknames: the “Pittsburgh of the South” and the “Magic City.” Birmingham’s major industries were iron and steel production. While industry declined nationwide during the 20^th century, the city’s economy grew and diversified. Though it remained a manufacturing hub, the city has become a center for medical research, banking and publishing.

Read more at Bhamwiki.

Bird’s-eye view of Birmingham, c. 1885. (Norris, Wellge & Co., Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

This is the first known photograph of Birmingham. It was taken from the new Jefferson County Courthouse, either in 1873, during its construction, or in 1875, following its completion, (Photograph by A.C. Oxford, William H. Brantley Collection, Samford University Library, Bhamwiki)

Steel mills at Birmingham, c. 1923. (Keystone View Company, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

The skyscraper section of Birmingham, 1935. (Keystone View Company, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

Birmingham Botanical Gardens, the state’s largest living museum with more than 10,000 different plants, 2010. (The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

Statue of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., in Kelly Ingram Park, Birmingham, 2010. (The George F. Landegger Collection of Alabama Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division)

For more on Alabama’s Bicentennial, visit Alabama 200.