Great ride home today. I finished the Tour of Honor sites for Mississippi yesterday, today I finished off the last two for Alabama.
I revisited Flomaton, AL to visit Sydney Manning’s memorial which is considered a Doughboy memorial now. Next to Sydney Manning’s memorial is a 9/11 memorial. I also visited Atmore for one of the sites of the Coddiwomple and another site at the cannon in Brewton.
I started the day by visiting the Alabama State Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Spanish Fork. I pull up to the entrance, then into the cemetery to get my required pictures.
From the cemetery, I am not too far from the Tour of Honor memorial at Bay Minette. This particular memorial at fire station named Fort Beverage, in memory of the Bruce Beverage who was killed in Korea. The memorial is a statue of a small boy wearing a fireman’s coat with NYFD, while holding a fire hose. At one time, the hose shot water into a small pond where the water could be recirculated. Too often, the winds would cause the stream of water to miss the target. Now, the water doesn’t flow. When researching this site, I spoke with the fire chief, he is trying to find a way to get the water to flow again.
I was checking last night at the various challenges in the BMW Coddiwomple Challenge. One of the categories is to visit places that Johnny Cash mentioned in his song “I’ve Been Everywhere”. I noticed that Atmore is one of the places mentioned. I realized that I would be passing through Atmore, AL. To get proof of my visit, I park in front of the town hall for a picture.
My next stop, Flomaton, Alabama! I found this town for last year’s Tour of Honor. The memorial for Sydney Manning, a WWI Medal of Honor recipient, is also considered a doughboy memorial. At the base, there is also a 9-11 memorial. The visitor center has rather odd hours, I have only been able to arrive when it was open once. I parked beside the building and got my doughboy and 9-11 photos.
My next stop will complete my Tour of Honor memorials for the year, Brewton. This was a site that I added as a fill in last year and listed it as an alternate site since I have several others which met the theme of 2025, which is First Responders (policeman and fireman memorials). As I pull up to the site, I notice a cannon! So, I can get credit for visiting both a Tour of Honor site and a Coddiwomple site!
I spent the rest of the day meandering, almost aimlessly, back home. Avoiding interstate and trying to spend as much time on two-lane roads as possible.
I did travel past a site that may be an option for a future Tour of Honor site. I’ll keep the 2026 theme and the particular location quiet for now.
HERE is the spotwalla link for this day’s ride.