G.W. Carver Museum and Monument
The museum and monument are tributes to Carver as a catalyst for Southern agronomic prosperity and symbols of the creative link between science and art. The monument is located on the National Peanut Festival fairgrounds. Carver devised more than 300 uses for the peanut.
Highland Oaks Golf Course
Part of Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, it is proclaimed by Golf Digest as the seventh best public course in the U.S. The world-class 36-hole facility offers three championship courses, clubhouse, pro shop, dining room, lounge and meeting room.
Landmark Park & Alabama Agricultural Museum
Visit an early 1900s farmstead complete with farmhouse, outbuildings and farm animals, stroll the boardwalk and nature trail, see a planetarium show and more.
Murals of the Wiregrass
This is an ongoing project of murals depicting the area’s history, painted by nationally and internationally acclaimed muralists on the walls of buildings in the downtown historic district in Dothan.
National Peanut Festival
About half of the peanuts grown in the U.S. are grown within a 100-mile radius of Dothan, and this festival – the nation’s largest peanut festival – is held each November to honor peanut growers and celebrate the harvest. It’s a fun-filled family event.
Water World
Enjoy the triple-flumed and Great White Water slides, giant wave pool, video arcade, concessions and picnic/kiddie play areas.
|
Wiregrass Museum of Art
Six galleries feature changing exhibitions of visual and decorative arts in a historic building. A Youth Art Gallery has a hands-on exhibit for children and a gift gallery.
Peanut Monument/Visitor Information Center
Giant gold peanut sculpture at the Visitors Information Center helps to proclaim Dothan as the “Peanut Capital of the World.”
Fun Zone
Family entertainment center housing an indoor skating rink, laser tag arena, soft play gym with tunnels and slides, SpongeBob ball war, rock wall, “The Chair, ” arcade and pizzeria.
Adventureland Theme Park
Family oriented mini-theme park with two 18-hole miniature golf courses, figure-8 go-cart track featuring adult, rookie and double go-carts, water-gun/bumper boats, arcade, batting cages and the Mad Max virtual roller coaster.
Roundabout Plantation Golf
Kilgore’s Roundabout Plantation has a professional
and friendly staff that is able to help improve anyone’s golf game. Novices will have the help of experienced teachers; seasoned golfers can practice on the convenient driving range. The entire family is welcome to come practice for a better game.
Dothan National Hotel and Golf Club
The 18-hole golf course was built in 1968 to complement the Hot Mineral Pool. The course is a championship caliber layout of over 7, 500 yards. It has hosted the SEC Championship numerous times. It has a course rating of 75.8 and a slope of 129. The architect, Robert Simmons, is known for allowing the golf course to take the shape of the land. Each hole at Dothan National is elegantly placed into the flowing hills of lower Alabama. Majestic pine trees line the holes.
Porter Hardware
The oldest operating hardware store in Alabama, Porter Hardware opened in 1889. The interior and exterior remain virtually unaltered, and the store maintains a large inventory of hardware and hard-to-find items. Open Monday-Friday 7:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
Shute Pecan Co.
Come by for a complete selection of fresh quality nuts, local honey and pralines. Shop the display of Old South gifts, souvenirs, Indian artifacts, woodcrafts, collectibles, antiques, dolls and much more.
World’s Smallest City Block
Recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records, this land triangle features a stop sign, yield sign and street signs. Drive by.
Cherry Street AME Church
Declared the “Mother Church” of the A.M.E. denomination in Alabama, organized in 1877.
|
Flagship Theatre
The Flagship Theatre is a new children’s theatre located in the Wiregrass area. Children ages 2-18 can register for theatre classes leading up to a play.
Must-have food
Three restaurants in the area are listed on the Alabama Tourism Department’s “100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama before You Die, ” including grouper at the Old Mill Restaurant, homemade soups at the Basketcase Café and pulled pork at the BBQ Shack.
Huggin’ Molly’s
This old-time soda fountain and restaurant in the heart of downtown Abbeville is a must-visit. The restaurant features an authentic 1950s soda fountain. It’s named for a town legend, a ghost named Molly, who gives huge hugs to unsuspecting people.
Downtown Abbeville
Abbeville’s picturesque downtown is populated by a growing number of shops and restaurants, and for those storefronts without tenants, antiques and other period items adorn the windows. Local citizen and CEO of Great Southern Wood Jimmy Rane has invested a great deal in the downtown area, including renovating the Archie Theater.
Festivals on the Square
The city of Headland has merged its love of daylilies and blueberries into “Festivals on the Square, ” celebrated in June. It also celebrates harvest time and has a Christmas parade.
Alabama Midland Railroad Depot and Museum
This depot in Ashford is a fully restored Victorian-era structure that has a museum, exhibits and a conference center, as well as a restored caboose and cargo railcar. The Ashford Area Heritage Foundation operates it.
Text by Lori Chandler Pruitt
