Alabama Constitution Village
256-535-6565, 1-800-678-1819
109 Gates Avenue, Hsv 35801, Fax 533-1247
Alabama Constitution Village is a living history museum commemorating the 1819 Alabama Constitutional Convention. On this site in 1819, 44 men gathered to draft a document of statehood that paved the way for Alabama's admission to the union as the 22nd state.
Today, interpreters in period clothing demonstrate the social, labor, and political history of early Alabama. Visitors tour four major buildings and numerous outbuildings where they learn about printing on a hand press, woodworking, cooking over an open fire, dipping candles and fiber arts.
Visit the web site for hours and admission charges.
Blue Water Spring Park
256-828-4454
1060 Opp Reynolds Road, PO Box 238, Toney, Alabama 35773
Blue Water Springs Park is a 40-acre wooded area with dense undergrowth that was developed into one of Alabama’s most popular recreation parks. Located twelve miles northwest of Huntsville, the park was originally owned and operated by Grady Whitt and Toney Hughey with a swimming pool and a quarter mile long fishing lake stocked with bream and bass. The water supply for the lake and pool was supplied by the natural Blue Water Springs. In 1962, the park was transferred/sold to the Central YMCA under the leadership of Earnest C. (Buttermilk) Johnson. In 1996, it was bought by the Madison County Commission and leased to the Board of Blue Water Springs Park and Recreation which was led by David McNeill. For over forty six years now, the auspices of Blue Water Springs Park and Recreation Board have served the youth of the Madison Cross Roads, Toney, Harvest, and Hazel Green communities.
The park offers the youth participants baseball, softball, basketball and soccer programs annually.
Botanical Garden,
Huntsville/Madison County 256-830-4447
4747 Bob Wallace Avenue, Hsv 35805, Fax 256-830-5314
One of the Tennessee Valley's premier attractions, the Huntsville Botanical Garden is open year-round and features a magnificent 110 year-old dogwood, and picture perfect aquatic garden. Specialty gardens include a nature trail, daylily, herb, fern and demonstration vegetable gardens. From May through September, the seasonal butterfly house and nature center is the largest in the U.S. and is filled with over 30 varieties of N. American Butterflies. Annual family festivals include the Spring Festival of Flowers, Scarecrow Trail and the nationally recognized Galaxy of Lights. Special summer exhibits are designed to appeal to children. The Garden has indoor and outdoor facility rental options and year-round elementary education programs as well as summer camps. The Garden welcomes over 300,000 visitors annually, has over 1400 active volunteers and 7,000 family memberships.
Burritt Museum and Park
256-536-2882
3101 Burritt Drive, SE, Hsv 35801, Fax 256-532-1784
Ditto Landing Park
883-9420,
882-1057
293 Ditto Landing Road, Hsv 35803, Fax 256-880-7620
http://www.dittolanding.com/
"Where the best of Alabama Outdoors joins the excitement of the Tennessee River." A public facility operated by the Huntsville-Madison County Marina and Port Authority. Dry storage for boats up to 23’, wet slips, overnight docking, picnic pavilions that accommodate 50-300 people, shaded campsites, fishing, boat ramps, fuel dock and more.
EarlyWorks
256-535-6565, 1-800-678-1819
404 Madison Street, Hsv 35801, Fax 256-533-1247
The two-story, 49,000 sq. ft. structure is in the heart of downtown Huntsville. It's the most unique hands-on learning center in the Southeast.
It will feature the Earlyworks Galleries - an interactive, hands-on, historic experience. It's the first of its kind in the southeast. Visitors will interact with Alabama's past rather than merely looking at artifacts. It's the brainchild of Alabama teachers who led the development of its content and design.
The modern facility helps children and adults see the future, through Alabama's past. Earlyworks showcases natural resources, Alabama people, their heritage, their life-style and their work.
Visit the web site for hours and admission charges.
Huntsville Depot, The Historic
256-564-8100
320 Church Street, N.W., Hsv 35801, Fax 256-533-1247
The Historic Huntsville Depot is the only surviving ante-bellum passenger depot in Alabama and one of the few in the United States. It features guided tours of the three story structure that includes a history of the structure, its role in the Civil War and how the railroad brought prosperity to Huntsville.
Completed in 1860, the Depot is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Steam engines, rail cars and other land transportation equipment are available for inspection on the Depot grounds.
Specialized educational tours and outreach programs are available to the public.
Visit the web site for hours and admission charges.
Madison County Lake
256-776-4905
County Lake Road, Gurley 35748
Madison County Nature Trail
256-883-9501
5000 Nature Trail Road, Hsv 35803
Madison County Par Course
256-532-3492
Johnson Road, Hsv 35803
The Madison County Par Course, located Johnson Road in Southeast Huntsville, is a two-mile jogging trail with 20 exercise stations and is comparable to a one-hour gymnastics class.
Monte Sano State Park
256-534-3757
1505 Nolen Avenue, Hsv 35801
Sharon Johnston Park
256-379-2868
Coleman Road, New Market 35761, Fax 256-379-2151
Camping Reservations 256-379-2868
Skeet and Pistol Center (Weekends Only) 256-379-2716
Sharon Johnston Park is a 250-acre recreational area in the county's northeastern portion. Donated to Madison County in memory of Sharon Johnston, it includes a 12-acre fishing lake, an L-shaped Olympic-size pool with handicapped facilities, a horse show and rodeo area, an open-air chapel, waterfront stage, open-air barbecue grills, small picnic shelters, and large shelters with rest rooms and concession facilities. There is a camping area with 33 camp sites and a dump station and bathhouses. Each of the sites has a picnic table, fire ring, and electrical and water hookups. Camping is by reservation only. A skeet and pistol range is open to the public weekends only. Fall hay rides are available for groups with reservations at a fee.
U.S. Space and Rocket Center,
SPACE CAMP 256-837-3400 or 1-800-63-SPACE
1 Tranquility Base, Hsv 35805. West of Downtown Huntsville off I-565
info@spacecamp.com
The nation's only full-size Space Shuttle exhibit dominates the skyline of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center. Built by NASA for clearance testing, The Pathfinder rises eight stories in the air atop an orange external tank, which is flanked by solid rocket boosters. The exhibit symbolizes Huntsville's significant role in the space shuttle program. Nearby is the Space Habitat, a space station-influenced dormitory for trainees participating in the center's popular U.S. SPACE CAMP programs. Space Camp training activities can be watched inside the new Space Camp
Training Center. Inside The U.S. Space & Rocket Center, an Olympus Mons Mars climbing wall is available for testing your endurance, alongside scores of space artifacts and hands-on activities. The museum complex includes the world's most comprehensive collection of rockets and missiles. The Space-Dome Theater's 67 foot domed IMAX¨ screen gives a larger-than-life sense of traveling into space. Open every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Day, New Year's Eve and Day.
