During my New Orleans trip, I took a day trip to Alabama and Mississippi on my quest to visit all 50 states before I turn 30! The day started in Alabama at Bellingrath Gardens, one of the most beautiful gardens I’ve ever visited 🙂 If you’re visiting Alabama, you definitely need to visit the gardens. After getting my fill of taking photos of all the beautiful flowers, we went to take a tour of historic Mobile, Alabama.
I knew next to nothing about the history of Mobile, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that there were a lot of beautiful historic houses and buildings and we even saw a fort used during the Revolutionary War! For a little background on Mobile, it was actually the capital of French Louisiana until France was at war with Spain in 1720, and since Mobile was on the battlefront, the capital got moved to Biloxi (which is actually what my next post will be on!). Mobile was moved between French and British rule until the Revolutionary War when it became part of the United States, and Alabama became a state in 1819.
I did some research on historical buildings and areas to sightsee, so my mom and I mostly just wandered around and took photos. The downtown area was really nice and surprisingly pretty empty! We were able to park on the street every time we stopped. The first place we went to was the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. It was established in 1703 and the current building dates back to the 1830s. The sanctuary was beautiful, and I loved the ornate ceiling and stained glass windows!
Next, we stopped for lunch at Panini Pete’s before exploring more, and they had delicious sandwiches!
The Richards DAR House Museum was built in the Italianate style in 1860
Fort Charlotte (originally Fort Conde) is the site of the fort used throughout the 1700s
I was surprised how quiet the downtown area was, so taking a tour of historic Mobile, Alabama is great if you want to take a relaxing walk and see some beautiful architecture! 🙂
What a name?? But the place looks so beautiful. Loved the basilica pics, great architecture. The walking down the streets and the houses reminded me of walking down in New Orleans.
Thanks! Yeah it was pretty similar to the architecture in New Orleans!
Wow the detailing on the ceiling of the cathedral is so beautiful! Also, I had no idea there was a ‘Welcome to Sweet Home Alabama’ sign, this is so cool!
Yeah I loved that sign, too!
Very nice, the architecture is impressive. That church looks like one I would expect to see in Europe not Alabama. I also heard there are some nice beaches in that area?
I loved the architecture, too! Yeah there are some nice beaches nearby!
I loooove the style of those old brick houses. They look so inviting! I’ve been to Alabama many times growing up on the Gulf Coasts, but now I want to go again.
Aren’t the houses pretty? It looks like such a nice area to grow up!
Love this! I used to work in Mobile and this really took me back. I was so surprised when I first arrived, it had so much more to offer than I would’ve thought! And I used to eat at Panini Pete’s every week!!!
That’s awesome! I love Panini Pete’s!
Beautiful photos – This makes me want to visit Alabama even more. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you! 🙂
I had never heard of Mobile – what a fun name for a town, I wonder where they got that from! It does look very quiet from your photos, which is always great when you visit a place. The Basilica looks beautiful, very European. The houses are also gorgeous, I think I would photograph every single one of those if I were there!
Julia x
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Great post! I lived in Mobile for 5 years and loved it. It is not the end of the earth but you can see it from there…lol. The people are fantastic!!! Pronounced: Mo-BEE-Ul
It did seem like a very friendly place from what I saw! It looks like a great place to live!
I’m not sure where the name came from, but now you have me wondering about it! I thought the basilica looked European, too! It was very beautiful in person.