Taking A Walk

by Dwayne Phillips

Another 18 miles walked today. The temperature was 68 degrees in the morning with a low cloud cover. We ended with 88 degrees and mostly sunny. I am glad that I was able to start at 7AM and end before 3PM. After 3PM the heat coming off the pavement is much worse than that coming down from the sun. Plus, the sun is low in this sky this time of year making it difficult to see.

I walked through the towns of Livingston and Troy, Alabama. A note on the use of the term “town.” Boligee and Epes were towns, but nothing like Livingston and Troy. Today’s “towns” are the biggest I seen since Tuscaloosa. I Iike both Livingston and Troy – especially Livingston.

All the names of the University of West Alabama

The University of West Alabama is in Livingston. It has about 5,000 students. That is double the town’s regular population. This university started in 1835 as the Livingston Female Academy and Livingston Female Seminary. I found the plaque shown to the right giving the many different names this place has had since 1835.  This is quite a heritage. Click on the photo to expand it and read the names.

Half the town is the university. The rest of the town is nice, pleasant, quite attractive to me. Route 11 is a four-lane road lined with mature trees and well-kept houses of all styles, shapes, and sizes. There is nothing like mature green trees to shade and cool you on a hot day. Ahh.

I like towns with universities. You go in a fast food place, a gas station, a grocery store, a little Chinese restaurant, and there they are – optimistic, energetic, a bit foolhardy, but with the whole world in front of them – students. It does something for me.

Livingston is the county seat of Sumter County. I put a photo of the courthouse on the Wikipedia page of Livingston.

Troy is a little smaller than Livingston. It is much smaller when you count the university in Livingston. I was surprised to find a two-block long downtown area. I was pleasantly surprised to see that about nine out of ten store fronts were occupied. I put a photo of the downtown on the Wikipedia page for Troy.

Historical Geographic Plaque North of York

A surprise was this historical marker on the side of the road just north of Troy. This marks 32 degrees 28 minutes north latitude. The plaque explains some history, but basically France “gave” all the land south of this parallel to England in 1763 – yes that is 14 years before America. You never know what you will see on the side of the road. You don’t see this on the Interstate. That is too bad.

One more photo for today. Early in the morning I was walking along Route 11 north of Livingston. I walked up a little rise, the trees lining the road thinned, and I saw this scene. I could see for miles – pastures, hills, trees, sky. The photo doesn’t do it justice. This is one of the big reasons why I am taking a walk – scenes like this. They do something for me.

Pasture, Trees, Hills, Sky North of Livingston, Alabama