Here’s The Most Important Historical Event In Alabama: Report

America is relatively young compared to other nations at 242 years, but that doesn’t mean it’s short on historical contributions. And just as the U.S. has played a key role in shaping the world, Alabama has helped shape America into what it is today.

While Massachusetts and Pennsylvania receive much — or most — of the recognition for their contributions to America’s founding, that doesn’t mean Alabama has been sitting idle. Yes, Nat King Cole and author Harper Lee were born in Alabama, and Regions Bank was founded here. But according to a new report, none were the most significant events in Alabama.

The website 24/7 Wall St., a Delaware-based company that covers financial news and offers opinions, looked over state historical information, research sources and media reports of major events throughout U.S. history to come up with what it calls the “most important” event for each state, including disasters — due to Mother Nature or people —important legislation and scientific breakthroughs. See if you agree.

In Alabama, the site says the Selma-to-Montgomery march in 1965 was the the single most significant event in the history of the state.

Per 24/7 Wall St.: “The march from Selma to Montgomery was an effort to register African American voters in Alabama. Early during the 54-mile trek, marchers were attacked by local police and hostile whites. The incident was broadcast on television and it horrified the nation. Eventually, the marchers received protection from the National Guard, and after three days they reached Montgomery. That August, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act that guaranteed the vote for African Americans.”

Tell Us: What local and state events were significant in the history of Alabama. Tell us what you think in the comments.

Other major events you may recognize from around the country include the opening of Grand Canyon National Park in 1919 in Arizona, the desegregation of schools in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957 and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City.

“Many of the events on our list are tragic, including the forced removal of Native Americans from their lands — the Trail of Tears in the South — as well as attacks from domestic and foreign terrorists,” the site says.

“In the case of several states, fighting between white settlers and Native Americans ranked as the most important historical event. The treatment of indigenous people shaped America in many ways, and often occurred in frontier states.”

Some events technically happened before the area was formally established as a state, but those events were still considered due to the prominence of that event, such as the founding of the Jamestown settlement in present-day Virginia. Also of note, the site ignored events that simply happened in a state that could’ve happened anywhere else and had the same impact, such as an international treaty signing.

To see the full list of events that shaped the nation, with pictures, to boot, click here.

Patch reporter Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Image via Shutterstock