Huntsville Area Guide

 

General Information

First settled in 1805, Huntsville is centrally located in Madison and Limestone county as well as being the county seat of Madison. One of the most recognized cities in the Southeast, Huntsville has been named as one of the best places to live and work by several publications including Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. Technology is at the core of Huntsville success along with the space and defense industries and has a major presence with the Army’s Redstone Arsenal.

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and Cummings Research Park are also prominent members of the community and Huntsville boasts being home to several Fortune 500 companies. As a community, Huntsville also offers a wide range of manufacturing, retail and service industries but it’s not all work! Huntsville offers a variety of recreational and cultural events from symphony orchestras to concerts in the park. With its population of over 500,000, Huntsville successfully mixes that famous reputation of Southern hospitality with the modern and the high tech, offering a wide array of work, recreation, and educational opportunities for everyone.

History

At the time John Hunt first settled Huntsville in 1805, it was named Twickenham, after Alexander Pope’s English home at the request of a relative, Leroy Pope. However, by the end of 1811, it had been renamed Huntsville in honor of its first settler, John Hunt. Since then it has grown past the small settlement it began as, covering nearby hills and along the Tennessee River, first adding textile mills, then other industries such as munitions factories, becoming a major city. Huntsville has grown to include NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and the U.S. Army’s Aviation and Missile Command. Huntsville has been named by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as one of its America’s Dozen Distinctive Destinations for 2010 and will no doubt continue to be a driving force for Alabama’s economy well into the future. For more information, visit: www.huntsvilleal.gov

Attractions & Activities

U.S. Space and Rocket Center Space Camp

Space Academy and tours of such historic moments as the Apollo flight and the space shuttle wait for you. Don’t forget to bring a camera with plenty of room to take tons of pictures!To learn more, visit: http://www.spacecamp.com/

 

Huntsville Symphony Orchestra

Enjoy everything from An Irish Christmas to their Classical Series at HSO and be a part of a wonderful cultural event. For more information, visit: http://hso.org/

 

 

 

Earlyworks Museum

Three museums in downtown Huntsville will take you back in time and let you experience history that is alive all around you in such diverse settings as a 46 foot river keelboat, and a cabinet shop where the first signers of the Alabama State Constitution met. To learn more visit: http://www.earlyworks.com/

 

 

For a complete listing of attractions and activities in Huntsville, visit: http://www.huntsvilleal.gov/other_websites.php#tourism

 

Parks & Recreation

Parks in Huntsville range from a patch of neighborhood green to large, multi-use space that offer a wide range of activities. Not just city parks, but neighborhood parks are available to the public, so any one of the 60 well equipped spaces will have an activity you’ve been dying to try or want to brush up on!

For a complete listing of the parks and their amenities, visit: http://www.hsvcity.com/Web-ASP/Parks/parks.asp

 

 

Events Calendar

Events Calendar Community events flourish in Huntsville with everything from a Fishing Rode to live music concerts in Big Spring Park, and they’re waiting for you to join in the fun!

For a complete listing of the year round activities offered in Huntsville, visit: http://www.hsvcity.com/recreation/cityevnt.php