What US state is Birmingham in?
Alabama
Are there any other places by that name?
yes
Where?
Birmingham, England,
What was important about that one?
UK's second largest city and then major industrial city. T
How did the US city form?
it annexed smaller neighbors
When?
1871
What was the basis of its economy then?
mining, the new iron and steel industry, and railroading.
Why did businesses like it there?
it had cheap, non-unionized, and African-American labor
What type of factories did they work in?
steel mills and blast furnaces
What nicknames did the city have during its heyday?
it had 2, 1 was The Magic City
And the other?
"The Pittsburgh of the South"
Why did it get these names?
it's growth as an industrial city
What did they manufacture there?
Its major industries were iron and steel production, plus a major component of the railroading industry.
Why else was it important to railroad companies?
2 major railway hubs in the south are near
Are these still the basis of the city's economy?
no
WHy is the city important today?
It's a major banking center in the US
WHat other business activities take place there?
Telecommunications, transportation, electrical power transmission, medical care, college education, and insurance
What is the population according to a recent census?
1,128,047
Is that large for an Alabama town?
yes
How does it rank among cities there?
most populous