The end of the school year and the growing heat of the upcoming summer — it's time for a family vacation.

For residents of Baldwin County that can mean many things. Families can retreat to the river delta to cruise the miles of waterways and can camp and fish in relative solitude. Many families take the opportunity to spend time with out-of-town relatives at the beach lounging in the sun and enjoying the hospitality of the Gulf. Still others take this opportunity to visit other parts of this country and absorb the culture of other peoples and other histories.

For those people that trek outside Baldwin County, they do not have to travel far to find some of the most interesting historic sites and some of the most fascinating people in the United States. A summer adventurerer does not even have to leave the state to find points of interest that will make any trip worthwhile.

One Alabama location worth visiting this summer is historic Mooresvile, located just outside Decatur in north Alabama. The entire town is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, which is the U.S. federal government's official list of districts, local sites and structures that are felt worthy of preservation for future generations.

The program is administered by the National Park Service. Modern-day Mooresville features two churches, including an old clapboard Church of Christ once attended by President James A. Garfield. Also maintained are the post office and the Stagecoach Inn and Tavern.

Settlement in the area began around 1805, when the first immigrants set up homesteads on land occupied by the Chickasaw Indian Nation. After the Chickasaw ceded land to the United States, official land sales began in 1816, three years before Alabama became a state.

In October 1818, local residents officially petitioned the Alabama Territorial Legislature for an Act of Incorporation, which was approved one month later. While the town expanded rapidly in the early 19^th century, it maintains the characteristics of a frontier settlement amidst the modern expansion of the Decatur/Huntsville region.

A little closer to home, Baldwin County residents will find historic St. Stephens, located in northern Washington County. Among the myriad of attractions at old St. Stephens is the museum created from the 19^th century St. Stephens courthouse.

The site also offers opportunities to explore the natural beauty of the area through fishing, camping (both RV and primitive), biking, horseback riding and picnicking. All of this can be enjoyed year round.

The history of the site is rich in its cultural representation of the area. During its existence it was the home of a Spanish fort, American fort and the Territorial capital of Alabama.

As early as 1789, the Spanish under the leadership of the Governor of Mobile, Juan Vincente Folch, had established a fort at the site. Over the next seven years, Americans settled in the area, raising the number of inhabitants along this southern frontier to around 300, including around 100 slaves.

Three years later in 1799, by statute established in the Treaty of San Lorenzo, Spain turned the region over to the United States. For the next 20 years, settlement increased as St. Stephens served as the Alabama Territorial capital from 1817 to 1819.

From then until the middle of the 19^th century, old St. Stephens faded from existence as people moved — some just a couple miles away to new St. Stephens, which was located along the all important railroad route.