Bessemer

Bessemer is an industrial city in Metropolitan Alabama, just outside of Birmingham.

Understand
Bessemer was the site of much of Alabama's 20th-century steel industry, the decline of which, beginning in the 1960s and '70s, has left in its wake a visible degree of economic problems for the local populace. Still, the city is of interest to aficionados of industrial history - and also foodies, being home to both Alabama's oldest operating restaurant and one of its most renowned barbecue joints.