Cullman, AL

Travel Guide

Ave Marie Grotto Cullman Alabama
Ave Marie Grotto Cullman Alabama
Welti Falls near Cullman, AL.
This was a quick after work ride n find.
Final resting place for Brother Joseph, who created the art that is known as Ave Maria Grotto.This is a cemetery of only monks in residence at St. Bernard Abbey. Ave Maria Grotto, in Cullman, Alabama, is a landscaped, 4-acre park in an old quarry on the grounds of St. Bernard Abbey, providing a garden setting for 125 miniature reproductions of some of the most famous religious structures of the world. It was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage on February 24, 1976, and to the National Register of Historic Places on January 19, 1984. The stone and concrete models are the work of Brother Joseph Zoettl, a Benedictine monk of St. Bernard's Abbey, who devoted some 50 years to the project, the last three decades (1932 to 1961) almost without interruption. They incorporate discarded building supplies, bricks, marbles, tiles, pipes, sea shells, marbles, plastic animals, costume jewellery, toilet bowl floats and cold cream jars. Born in 1878 in the Kingdom of Bavaria, Brother Joseph was maimed in an accident that left him slightly hunched due to cervical kyphosis. He immigrated to the United States as a teenager, settling in northern Alabama. Soon afterward he began studying at the newly founded Benedictine monastery of St. Bernard, where he took his vows in 1897. Br. Joseph was not allowed to be ordained as a priest, due to the rule of the period that stated any man with a distracting disability could not be ordained a priest. He ran the monastery’s power plant and was, even by a monk's standards, a withdrawn, quiet man. Brother Joseph rarely left Alabama, where he died in 1961.

Popular places to visit

Smith Lake at Unicoi State Park in Georgia

Smith Lake Park

4.5/5(21 reviews)

Explore the great outdoors at Smith Lake Park, a lovely green space in Trimble. While you're in the area, stroll along the lakeside.

Smith Lake Park
Final resting place for Brother Joseph, who created the art that is known as Ave Maria Grotto.This is a cemetery of only monks in residence at St. Bernard Abbey. Ave Maria Grotto, in Cullman, Alabama, is a landscaped, 4-acre park in an old quarry on the grounds of St. Bernard Abbey, providing a garden setting for 125 miniature reproductions of some of the most famous religious structures of the world. It was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage on February 24, 1976, and to the National Register of Historic Places on January 19, 1984. The stone and concrete models are the work of Brother Joseph Zoettl, a Benedictine monk of St. Bernard's Abbey, who devoted some 50 years to the project, the last three decades

Ave Maria Grotto

4.5/5(26 reviews)

You can spend an afternoon browsing the exhibits at Ave Maria Grotto during your travels in Cullman. While you're in the area, stroll along the lakeside.

Ave Maria Grotto
This 270 ft covered bridge was built in 1921 and the only remaining bridge of it's kind in Cullman County. It was used mainly by farmers. It spans the Crooked Creek, site of Civil War Skirmishes under Nathan Bedford Forrest. Many relics have been found around this creek and can be viewed at the museum just down the road. This bridge is open to foot traffic and also offers picnic areas and walking trails. An old water mill is located on the property too. #roadtrip

Clarkson Covered Bridge

4.5/5(4 reviews)

Learn about the local history of Cullman when you spend time at Clarkson Covered Bridge. While you're in the area, stroll along the lakeside.

Clarkson Covered Bridge

Stone Bridge Farms

After visiting Stone Bridge Farms, make a plan to see the other sights and activities in Cullman. While you're in the area, stroll along the lakeside.

Stone Bridge Farms

Larkwood Falls

Commune with nature and explore the great outdoors at Larkwood Falls during your travels in Cullman. While you're in the area, stroll along the lakeside.

Larkwood Falls

WildWater Cullman

Enjoy an outing to WildWater Cullman during your stay in Cullman. While you're in the area, stroll along the lakeside.

WildWater Cullman

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