Sand Mountain Tidbits
By Neal Wooten
As I’ve met people in my travels and told them I was from Sand Mountain, I could see the confusion in their eyes. Not only have most folks never heard of it, but it gives them an image of an entire mountain made of a pile of sand. As a kid, I also wondered why it was called that when the ground seemed like plain old dirt to me.
Of course, now I know the name was derived from all the sandstone on the mountain. Anyone who has tried to dig some holes with a shovel or posthole diggers knows what I’m talking about. According to the National Geological Survey, the ground is two to four feet of “well-drained” soil over solid sandstone bedrock.
And as for the dirt, Sand Mountain has some of the richest soil in the country. Once in Montgomery, I stopped where a fellow was selling produce by the side of the road. It was clear he had brought it up from Plant City, Florida, but he tried to convince me the tomatoes had come from Sand Mountain. I said, “No, I come from Sand Mountain and the tomatoes won’t be ready there for at least a month.” But he knew it was a selling point.
Let’s talk about climate. I know, everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it. According to the Heat Zone Map published by the American Horticultural Society, Sand Mountain, thanks to the humidity, has some of the hottest days in the country. The word they used was “sweltering.”
And thanks to having the highest elevation in the state, around 1500 feet above sea level, combined with that high humidity, it makes Sand Mountain the coldest place in Alabama. That’s probably why we have so many expressions that begin with: “Cold as a (fill in the blank).” And besides the Gulf Coast, guess which part of Alabama gets the most rainfall. Yep – Sand Mountain.
It’s where you’ll fiddle for worms, go to Decoration, and listen to sacred harp singing. And, according to Salvation on Sand Mountain, a finalist for the non-fiction National Book Award, it has the most snake-handling churches. I don’t know about that. I think snakes should stay where they belong. As a kid, that would mean in my pockets or sharing them with my first-grade teacher.
Of course, all I know for sure is, it’s a great place to grow up. You know, if you take away the frigid winters, the sweltering summers, the torrential downpours, the tornadoes, and having to pick tomatoes and okra all day long until you couldn’t stand up straight, it was the most wonderful childhood of all.
Sand Mountain Tidbits