On this day in Alabama history: State capital relocated to Tuscaloosa

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Alabama state capitol, Tuscaloosa, c. 1880. [Photo Credit: HABS, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division]

The state capital was relocated from Cahaba to Tuscaloosa. Located in Dallas County, Cahaba – originally known as Cahawba – was designated the future state’s permanent capital in 1818 when Gov. William Wyatt Bibb used his connections to arrange for a free land grant at the site from the federal government. At the Constitutional Convention in 1819, however, Cahaba’s detractors successfully passed a constitutional provision designating it as the capital only until 1825. That year, Tuscaloosa’s advocates narrowly succeeded in relocating the capital, citing frequent floods and health concerns in Cahaba. Tuscaloosa served as the capital until 1846, when the Legislature moved the capital to Montgomery to accommodate a population shift to the east.

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Capitol Park, Tuscaloosa [Photo Credit: Visit Tuscaloosa, Flickr]

Republished with permission from the Alabama NewsCenter.

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