Editing Anniston, Alabama (section)

==History==

===Civil War===
Though the surrounding area was settled much earlier, the mineral resources in the area of Anniston were not exploited until the [[American Civil War|Civil War]]. The [[Confederate States of America]] operated an iron furnace near present-day downtown Anniston,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.spiritofanniston.org/historic_photos.html|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100510192716/http://www.spiritofanniston.org/historic_photos.html|archive-date = May 10, 2010|title = The Spirit of Anniston - Historic Photos}}</ref> until it was destroyed by raiding [[Union Army|Union]] [[cavalry]] in early 1865. Later, [[cast iron]] for sewer systems became the focus of Anniston's industrial output. Cast iron pipe, also called soil pipe, was popular until the advent of plastic pipe in the 1960s.<ref>{{cite web|last=Levlin|first=Erik|date=December 15, 2004|title=Water and Waste Pipes|url=http://levlin.se/kth/pipmat.pdf|pages=2}}</ref>

===Woodstock Iron Company===
[[File:1887 Perspective Map of Anniston Alabama.jpg|thumb|left|1887 map]]
[[File:Young sweeper working in Anniston Yarn Mills. Anniston, Ala. - NARA - 523357.jpg|thumb|left|Child laborers at Anniston Yarn Mills, 1910.  Photo by [[Lewis Hine]].]]

In 1872, the Woodstock Iron Company, organized by [[Samuel Noble (businessman)|Samuel Noble]] and Union Gen. [[Daniel Tyler]], rebuilt the furnace on a much larger scale,<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Anniston|volume=2|page=74}}</ref> and started a planned community named Woodstock, soon renamed "Annie's Town" for Annie Scott Tyler, Daniel's daughter-in-law and wife of railroad president [[Alfred L. Tyler]].  Anniston was chartered as a town in 1873.<ref name=alabama>{{cite encyclopedia  | last =  Sprayberry  | first = Gary  | title = Anniston  | encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Alabama | url = http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1464 | access-date =January 8, 2010}}</ref>

Though the roots of the town's economy were in iron, steel, and [[Vitrified clay pipe|clay pipe]], planners touted it as a health resort, and several hotels began operating.  Schools also appeared, including the Noble Institute, a school for girls established in 1886,<ref>located [https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=18321017201244668582,33.657879,-85.824970&q=33.657835,+-85.825807&ie=UTF8&ll=33.657884,-85.825807&spn=0.002192,0.003433&t=h&z=18 along Leighton Ave], on the corner of Leighton Ave and E 11th St., facing Christine Ave.</ref> and the Alabama Presbyterian College for Men, founded in 1905.<ref name="EB1911"/>  Careful planning and easy access to rail transportation helped grow Anniston. In 1882, Anniston was the first city in Alabama to be lit by electricity.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.annistonal.gov/about-anniston/|title=About Anniston|website=Annistonal.gov|access-date=April 17, 2021}}</ref> By 1941, Anniston was Alabama's fifth largest city.<ref>Writer's Program. ''The WPA Guide to Alabama''. New York: Hastings House, 1941. p. 159. Republished in 2013 by Trinity University Press, San Antonio, TX.</ref>

===World War I and II===
In 1917, at the start of [[World War I]], the United States Army established a training camp at [[Fort McClellan]]. On the other side of town, the [[Anniston Army Depot]] opened during [[World War II]] as a major weapons storage and maintenance site, a role it continues to serve as munitions-incineration progresses. Most of the site of Fort McClellan was incorporated into Anniston in the late 1990s, and the Army closed the fort in 1999 following the [[Base Realignment and Closure]] round of 1995.

===Civil Rights era===
{{main|Anniston and Birmingham bus attacks}}
[[File:249 The Other Bus.jpg|thumb|right|Historic marker commemorating the [[Freedom Riders]] in downtown Anniston]]
Anniston was the center of national controversy in 1961 when a mob bombed a bus filled with civilian [[Freedom Riders]] during the [[American Civil Rights Movement]]. As two Freedom buses were setting out to travel the south in protest of their [[civil rights]] following the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] case saying bus segregation was unconstitutional, one headed to Anniston, and one to [[Birmingham, Alabama]], before finishing in [[New Orleans]]. The [[Freedom Riders]] were riding an integrated bus to protest Alabama's [[Jim Crow]] [[Racial segregation in the United States|segregation]] laws that denied African Americans their [[civil rights]]. One of the buses was attacked and firebombed by a mob outside Anniston on [[Mother's Day (United States)|Mother's Day]], Sunday, May 14, 1961. Prior to the bus being firebombed, attackers broke windows, and slashed tires, using metal pipes, clubs, chains and crowbars, before the police came to escort the bus away.<ref name="GetontheBus">{{cite web|last1=Gross|first1=Terry|title=Get on the Bus: The Freedom Riders of 1961|url=https://www.npr.org/2006/01/12/5149667/get-on-the-bus-the-freedom-riders-of-1961|publisher=NPR|access-date=May 15, 2017}}</ref> The bus was forced to a stop just outside of Anniston, in front of Forsyth and Sons grocery, by more mob members.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Young Witness|url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/freedom-riders-young-witness/.|publisher=PBS|access-date=May 14, 2017}}</ref> As more windows were broken, rocks and eventually a firebomb were thrown into the bus. As the bus burned, the mob held the doors shut, intent on burning the riders to death. An exploding fuel tank caused the mob to retreat, allowing the riders to escape the bus. The riders were viciously beaten as they tried to flee, where warning shots fired into the air by highway patrolmen prevented the riders from being [[lynching|lynched]] on the spot.<ref name="GetontheBus" /> A 12-year-old girl, Janie Forsyth, set out against the mob with a bucket of water and cups to help the Riders, first tending to the one who had looked like her own nanny.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Lee|first1=Cynthia|title=A single act of kindness becomes part of civil rights lore|url=http://newsroom.ucla.edu/stories/civil-rights-activists-still-remember-203453|website=newsroom.ucla.edu|access-date=May 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170509143532/http://newsroom.ucla.edu/stories/civil-rights-activists-still-remember-203453|archive-date=May 9, 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> Forsyth and Son grocery is located along [[Alabama State Route 202|Alabama Highway 202]] about {{convert|5|mi|0}} west of downtown. The site today is home to a historic marker and was designated [[Freedom Riders National Monument]] by President Barack Obama in January 2017.<ref>{{cite web |last=Whisenhunt |first=Dan |title=A Single Step: Memorial to 'Freedom Riders' Just a Beginning |work=Jacksonville State University News |publisher=Jacksonville State University |date=May 13, 2007 |url=http://www.jsu.edu/news/jan_june2007/05142007c.html |access-date=January 8, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Freedom Riders National Monument|url=https://www.nps.gov/frri/index.htm |publisher=National Park Service}}</ref>

In response to the violence, the city formed a bi-racial Human Relations Council (HRC) made up of prominent white business and religious leaders, but when they attempted to integrate the "whites-only" public library on Sunday afternoon, September 15, 1963 (the same day as the [[16th Street Baptist Church bombing]] in Birmingham), further violence ensued and two black ministers, N.Q. Reynolds and Bob McClain, were severely beaten by a mob. The HRC chairman, white [[Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)|Presbyterian]] minister Rev. Phil Noble, worked with an elder of his church, Anniston City Commissioner Miller Sproull, to avoid [[KKK]] mob domination of the city. In a telephone conference with President [[John F. Kennedy]], the President informed the HRC that after the Birmingham church bombing he had stationed additional federal troops at Fort McClellan. On September 16, 1963, with city police present, Noble and Sproull escorted black ministers into the library.<ref>''Beyond the Burning Bus: The Civil Rights Revolution in a Southern Town'' by Phil Noble, p. 123</ref> In February 1964, Anniston Hardware, owned by the Sproull family, was bombed, presumably in retaliation for Commissioner Sproull's integration efforts.

On the night of July 15, 1965, a white racist rally was held in Anniston, after which [[Willie Brewster]], a black foundry worker, was shot and killed while driving home from work. A $20,000 reward was raised by Anniston civic leaders, and resulted in the apprehension, trial and conviction of the accused killer, Damon Strange, who worked for a leader of the [[Ku Klux Klan]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.annistonstar.com/view/full_story/2746199/article-The-Death-of-Willie-Brewster--Memories-of-a-dark-time?instance=special |title=The Death of Willie Brewster: Memories of a Dark Time. |access-date=September 13, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124112638/http://annistonstar.com/view/full_story/2746199/article-The-Death-of-Willie-Brewster--Memories-of-a-dark-time?instance=special#ixzz0zHd558Sj |archive-date=November 24, 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Historian [[Taylor Branch]] called the conviction of Damon Strange a "breakthrough verdict" on p.&nbsp;391 of his [[Pulitzer Prize]]-winning book, ''[[At Canaan's Edge]]''. Strange was convicted by an all-white Calhoun County jury to the surprise of many people, including civil rights leaders who had planned to protest an acquittal. This was the first conviction of a white person for killing a black person in civil rights era Alabama.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.annistonstar.com/pages/special_willie_brewster |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100715053248/http://www.annistonstar.com/pages/special_willie_brewster|url-status=dead|title="The Death of Willie Brewster: An appraisal of Anniston's moment of shame and triumph."|archivedate=July 15, 2010|access-date=April 17, 2021}}</ref>

Anniston was a 1978 winner of the [[All-America City Award]], presented by the [[National Civic League]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Past Winners |url=https://www.nationalcivicleague.org/america-city-award/past-winners/ |access-date=2025-02-16 |website=National Civic League}}</ref>

===PCB contamination===
[[Polychlorinated biphenyl|PCBs]] were produced in Anniston from 1929 to 1935 by the [[Swann Chemical Company]]. In 1935 [[Monsanto|Monsanto Industrial Chemicals Co.]] bought the plant and took over production, which continued until 1971.  In 1969, the plant was discharging about {{convert|250|lb|kg}} of the chemicals into Snow Creek per day, according to internal company documents.<ref name=CIA1>{{cite web|title=Poisoned By PCBs: "A Lack of Control" |url=http://www.chemicalindustryarchives.org/dirtysecrets/anniston/2.asp |website=Chemical Industry Archives |publisher=Environmental Working Group |access-date=October 31, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151210110457/http://www.chemicalindustryarchives.org/dirtysecrets/anniston/2.asp |archive-date=December 10, 2015 }}</ref>

In 2002, an investigation by ''[[60 Minutes]]''<ref>{{Cite episode
| title        = Toxic Secret
| url          = https://www.cbsnews.com/news/toxic-secret-07-11-2002/
| series       = 60 Minutes
| network      = CBS
| airdate      = August 31, 2003}}</ref> revealed Anniston had been among the most toxic cities in the country. The primary source of local contamination was a [[Monsanto]] chemical factory, which had already been closed. The EPA description<ref>{{cite web
  | title = U.S.EPA Fact Sheet Anniston PCB Site
  | publisher=United States Environmental ProtectionAgency
  | date = August 2002
  | url = http://www.epa.gov/region4/waste/npl/nplal/annpcbfsaug02.pdf
  | access-date =April 22, 2010}}
</ref> of the site reads in part:
<blockquote>The Anniston PCB site consists of residential, commercial, and public properties located in and around Anniston, Calhoun County, Alabama, that contain or may contain hazardous substances, including [[polychlorinated biphenyl]] (PCB) impacted media. The Site is not listed on the NPL, but is considered to be a NPL-caliber site.</blockquote>

===21st century===
In 2016, attorney Jack Draper was elected mayor of Anniston,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.annistonstar.com/news/anniston/little-regains-seat-on-anniston-council-draper-elected-mayor-houston-chosen-for-school-board/article_fef1afbe-8aa1-11e6-a690-8f2b5377f86c.html|title=Little regains seat on Anniston council; Draper elected mayor; Houston chosen for school board|last=Burkhalter|first=Eddie|work=The Anniston Star|date=October 4, 2016|access-date=May 8, 2025}}</ref> and he was reelected to a second term in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.annistonstar.com/news/election/anniston-mayor-draper-defeats-reddick-to-win-second-term-smith-ousts-little-in-ward-3/article_36923840-0847-11eb-8f72-937e8f49528a.html|title=Anniston mayor Draper defeats Reddick to win second term; Smith ousts Little in Ward 3|last1=Lockette|first1=Tim|last2=Wilson|first2=Bill|work=The Anniston Star|date=October 6, 2020|access-date=May 8, 2025}}</ref> After a law was passed in Alabama extending mayoral terms by one year, Draper resigned in 2025, citing the effects of the extended incumbency, in addition to focusing on his health and family.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wbrc.com/2025/05/03/ciara-smith-will-lead-city-anniston-after-mayor-resigns/|title=Ciara Smith will lead the city of Anniston after mayor resigns|last=Kyle|first=Reggie|work=WBRC|date=May 3, 2025|access-date=May 8, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.al.com/news/2025/05/east-alabama-mayor-resigning-after-more-than-8-years.html|title=East Alabama mayor resigning after more than 8 years|last=Thornton|first=William|work=al.com|date=May 1, 2025|access-date=May 8, 2025}}</ref> Vice mayor Ciara Smith succeeded Draper via appointment, and she became the youngest and first African-American person to hold the office of mayor.<ref name="Smith" />