Bessemer is situated
in the foothills of
the Appalachian
Mountain Range, less
than 15 miles from
downtown Birmingham.
The city, which
covers over 45
square miles, is
bordered by two
interstate
thoroughfares --
I-459 to the South
and I-20/59 to the
Northwest. The
climate is mild,
with an average
annual temperature
of 62.4 degrees
Fahrenheit and
average annual
rainfall of 57.12
inches. Over half of
the continental
United States'
markets are within
600 miles of
Bessemer, including
Chicago in the
Midwest, Dallas and
Houston in the West,
and Pittsburgh in
the East. Major
regional enterprises
include a wide range
of high-tech
manufacturing
concerns, and
increasing number of
service industries,
higher education in
the form of state
universities and
private colleges,
and a growing
convention industry.
Topography.
Most of the
city lies in Jones
Valley, a gently
sloping dale 578
feet above mean sea
level. The
topography features
of the surrounding
area include a
series of parallel
ridges and valleys
ranging in elevation
from 300 to 1200
feet above sea
level. These ridges
traverse the city in
a
northeasterly-southwesterly
direction.
Demographics.
In the 2001 Equifax
report, it was
reported that there
were 71,788 people
living within a
five-mile radius of
Bessemer. According
to the 2000 U.S.
Census, the city
itself had a
population of
29,672. Bessemer and
Birmingham both form
a countywide
metropolitan area of
approximately
662,047 people.
HealthCare.
Located on U.S.
Highway 11 South,
UAB Medical
West , a
300-bed healthcare
facility, has for
more than 34 years
provided primary and
secondary care. It
has become the
healthcare facility
of choice for most
western Jefferson,
northern Bibb and
east Tuscaloosa
County residents.
Medical services
range from a
24-hour-a-day
emergency department
to a diagnostic,
cardiac
catheterization
laboratory to a same
day surgery program
to a mobile magnetic
resonance imaging
unit to an all
private-room women’s
center. UAB Medical
Westhas more than 90
active staff
physicians and 800
full time employees
that served more
than 67,000 patients
last year. The
hospital has many
primary care
clinics, including
one in Vance,
Alabama, home to
Mercedes Benz U.S.
International. To
complement the
services of these
specialists, Lloyd
Noland Hospital and
Medical Center of
Birmingham recently
opened an outpatient
care facility in
Bessemer to serve
West Jefferson
County area
residents.
Located at 701
Richard M. Scrushy
Parkway,
HealthSouth Metro
West (formerly Lloyd
Noland), is
now a part of the
HealthSouth network.
Founded 78 years
ago, it serves as
the cornerstone of
healthcare in
western Birmingham
and surrounding
communities.
Anchored by a
319-bed acute care
hospital,
HealthSouth Metro
West offers a broad
range of healthcare
services designed to
address community
needs including a
primary care
network, a large
multi-specialty
group practice,
special services for
seniors, mental
health services and
occupational health.
HealthSouth Metro
West has a medical
staff of more than
60 physicians,
including a large
multi- specialty
group practice.
Within Jefferson
County, there are
4,975 hospital beds
in over 17 medical
facilities. The area
has a approximately
1,900 registered
doctors, 727
licensed
pharmacists, and
3,019 registered
nurses on which to
rely for
professional and
medical care.
Service and medical
care for elderly
patients and
invalids is
available at nine
private nursing
homes in the
Bessemer area.
Bessemer is
fortunate to have
the
University of
Alabama, Birmingham,
Medical Center
complex in close
proximity. This
network of hospitals
and research centers
is one of the
South's largest and
most respected
health care
facilities. Its
skill in
cardiovascular care,
including open-heart
surgery and heart
transplants, has
earned it
international fame.
UAB Hospital is a
908 licensed-bed
facility providing
health care services
from general/acute
to tertiary care for
some 43,000 patients
annually. The
Kirklin Clinic at
UAB is an innovative
outpatient facility
housing 35 adult
medical specialty
and primary care
clinics with 450,000
patient visits
annually. In the
1998 rankings by
U.S. News & World
Report, five
specialties at the
UAB Hospital were
ranked among the
best in the nation.
These specialty
areas are cardiology
and cardiac surgery
(21st), geriatrics
(39th), gynecology
(40th), pulmonary
disease (37th) and
rheumatology
(fifth). In October
1997, the National
Research Corporation
named UAB Hospital
one of America’s
most preferred
hospitals. The award
recognizes the 120
most-preferred
hospitals in the
nation according to
a national survey of
patients about their
overall health care
needs.
Government.
In 1986, Bessemer
changed its system
of government from a
Commission
structure to a
Mayor-Council form.
The Council consists
of seven members who
represent districts
within the city. The
Mayor and members of
the Council serve a
four-year term of
office. Services
such as fire and
police protection,
electricity (through
the Tennessee Valley
Authority),
recreational
programs in city and
neighborhood parks,
and education come
under city
governmental
auspices. The city's
general obligation
bond rating,
according to Moody's
is "AAA" -- the
firm's highest
rating.
Jefferson County 's
system of government
consists of five
commissioners who
represent districts
drawn within the
county. Bessemer is
unique in that,
although not the
county seat, it has
its own county
courthouse, offering
all the services
that the main
courthouse building
in Birmingham
provides. This
courthouse was
established in
Bessemer during the
early 1900s as a
means of placating
Bessemer and West
Jefferson County
residents who had
considered forming
their own county
because of rapid
population growth in
the area.
Fire Protection and
Law Enforcement. The
Bessemer Fire
Department, which
also provides
emergency medical
services to the
city, employs 93
firefighters and 9
full-time staff
persons. The city
has a Fire Insurance
Rating of "4"; it is
expected to drop to
“3” by the end of
2002.
The Bessemer Police
Department employs
140 officers with a
mobile force of 30+
patrol cars; it also
maintains a crime
investigation
laboratory.
Unincorporated areas
around Bessemer are
protected by the
Jefferson County
Sheriff's
Department.
Recreation.
Bessemer offers an
abundance of
activities for its
citizens -- from the
recreational
amenities of city
life to the natural
beauty of unspoiled
West Jefferson
County lakes and
forestland. Of note:
The City supports a
park system that
includes Roosevelt
Park, a facility
that has lighted
tennis courts,
baseball and
softball fields, a
jogging tract, and
an auditorium.
Oak Mountain State
Park, located 15
miles to the
southeast, is the
state's largest park
with over 9,940
acres. The park
facility includes
horse stables, a
golf course, a
lakeside-shopping
pavilion, and an
amphitheater for
concerts and
entertainment
events.
The Bessemer YMCA
organization
maintains 27 acres
of land on the
City's southwestern
side that features
two gymnasiums,
indoor and outdoor
swimming pools,
racquetball courts,
running tracks,
tennis courts and
five softball
fields.
There are seven golf
courses located
within the immediate
vicinity of Bessemer
(less than 15
minutes from
downtown): five
public courses and
one private club.
There are also
numerous public and
private golf courses
within the
Birmingham
metropolitan area.
Public
Courses
Bessemer's central
location in the
State of Alabama
makes it possible
for her residents to
drive to many of
Alabama's most
popular tourist
spots in just a few
hours. Such
attractions as the
Alabama Space and
Rocket
Center/Marshall
Space Flight Center
Museum in
Huntsville, the
Alabama
International Motor
Speedway in
Talladega (home of
NASCAR's Talladega
500 and Winston 500
races), the Great
Smoky Mountains of
Tennessee, historic
Southern homes in
Selma and
Montgomery, and
beautiful, sunny
beaches in Mobile
and Gulf Shores
(only 230 miles
away), offer fun and
enjoyment for the
entire family.
Visionland
Theme Park.
Located on the
city’s western side,
Visionland is a
60-acre theme park
that features a
water park and an
amusement park,
including one of the
nation’s fastest
wooden roller
coasters, the
Rampage. Information
on the park is
available on the
Internet at
www.visionland.com.
Tannehill
State Park.
Located just 10
miles southwest of
Bessemer, Tannehill
Historic Park is the
site of a
Confederate
armaments foundry
that was destroyed
by Federal troops
during the Civil
War. In 1976, as
part of the area's
contribution to the
U.S. Bicentennial
celebration, the
site was restored
and developed into
an industrial
history park that
today is visited by
more than 250,000
people annually. The
main attraction at
the park is a
restored,
iron-producing blast
furnace that dates
to the 1840s. The
furnace was in
operation during the
early years of the
Civil War, producing
cannon and other
armaments for the
Confederate forces.
Another attraction
at the park is the
Iron and Steel
Museum of Alabama,
which features
exhibits in early
iron making and
blacksmithing as
well as examples of
machinery used at
the start of
America's industrial
age. Complementing
this structure is a
19th century farm,
complete with a
blacksmith's shop, a
sorghum mill, and a
dairy barn; an old
red schoolhouse,
circa 1900; a
working grist mill
that produces corn
meal for visitors;
and a five-acre
"open-air museum"
containing replicas
of pioneer homes.
The
Performing Arts.
Community interest
in and dedication to
the Arts has
developed a rich
cultural life for
both the Bessemer
and Birmingham area.
The Greater Bessemer
Arts Association has
played a great role
in this development,
coordinating
activities with
dance companies such
as the State of
Alabama Ballet,
theater groups such
as the Town and Gown
Players and the
Birmingham Festival
Theater Players, and
music societies such
as the Alabama
Symphony Orchestra
and the nationally
known Birmingham
Music Club, all of
which are based in
Jefferson County and
regularly perform in
the area. The state
supported Alabama
School of Fine Arts,
the only
state-supported arts
school in the nation
for grades 7 to 12,
is located in
downtown
Birmingham.
To accommodate the
performances of
these organizations,
facilities have been
established around
the Jefferson County
area. Most notable
in the Bessemer area
is the spacious
Bessemer Civic
Center, with its
1,800-seat hall for
theater, music, and
dance events. The
Birmingham-Jefferson
County Civic Center
Complex consists of
four large
structures -- a
120,000 sq. ft.
exhibition hall, a
3,000-seat symphony
concert hall, a
19,000-seat
coliseum, and a
1,000-seat theater
-- and provides a
sophisticated,
elegant setting for
the area's cultural
events.
Area
Attractions.
Nearby Birmingham
offers much for
residents of
Bessemer to "see and
do." Attractions
such as Arlington
Antebellum Home and
Gardens, the
Botanical Gardens
and Japanese
Gardens, the
200-acre Jimmy
Morgan Zoo,
Watermark Place, the
Sloss Furnace
Museum, the Red
Mountain Geological
Museum, and the
Birmingham Museum of
Art, featuring the
works of the famed
Kress Collection of
Renaissance Art and
the Simon Collection
of Frederic
Remington Bronze
Sculptures, greatly
contribute to the
quality of life in
the Bessemer and the
West Jefferson
County area.
New attractions
include: the
Mercedes-Benz plant
facility and
visitors center,
where Mercedes
manufactures its
M-Class vehicle, the
McWane Science
Museum in downtown
Birmingham, the
Birmingham Civil
Rights Museum.
