Good morning, adventurers!

Sylacauga, Alabama is a small, quiet town about 60 miles north of Montgomery. It has a few claims to fame: its fine white marble bedrock, Jim Nabors (aka Gomer Pyle) was born there, and it is the location of the HODGES METEORITE MEMORIAL- 301 N. Broadway Ave, Sylacauga, AL.

Hodges, for whom the Hodges Meteorite was named, is the first and possibly only person officially recorded to have been hit by a meteorite.

For the record: a meteorite actually hits the Earth’s surface, a meteor does not.

On November 30, 1954, Ann Hodges was napping on her couch when a rock about the size of a grapefruit smashed through her roof and hit her thigh, leaving a very large bruise. This meteorite is at the Alabama Museum of Natural History. Another part of the same meteorite found on a nearby farm is now on display at the Smithsonian Institute.

Don Lawler created this commemorative sculpture out of, as you can read in the plaque, the same white marble from Sylacauga’s bedrock.

The memorial is on the front lawn of Sylacauga’s City Hall, next to… um, this guy.

‘Tis a strange little moment in history that makes a fun side trip for those in the area.

Until next time, dahlings…