Noccalula Falls — Local services in Gadsden

The story of this place is heart breaking

The legend of Cherokee Indian Princess

Noccalula dates from antiquity in the regions of northeast Alabama, U.S., where the Cherokee nation once thrived. According to legend, Princess Noccalula was the beautiful daughter of a powerful Cherokee chief and was deeply in love with a brave from her own tribe. Despite her wishes to marry this young warrior, she was promised by her father to a Creek Indian chief who had more bounty to offer for her hand. Her lover was banished from the tribe, and Noccalula was forced to ready herself for the arranged marriage. On the day of the wedding she allowed herself to be arrayed in ceremonial attire and obediently but reluctantly attended the marriage feast. In the midst of the merrymaking, Noccalula quietly slipped away and wandered through the forests of her childhood, coming eventually to the beautiful waterfall near her tribal home. Rather than subject herself to a loveless marriage, she jumped from the precipice near the falls and ended her life on the rocks below. The present composition, commissioned by Het CONSORT of The Netherlands in 2005, endeavors to detail Noccalula’s final day in the structure of a tone poem that is highly programmatic. The work begins with the dawning of the sun over the primeval northeast Alabama wilderness. Noccalula awakens to the familiar sound of birdsong, and she sings a melancholy love song to her banished lover. Soon the wedding festivities commence, but from these Noccalula wanders away unobtrusively to say farewell to the birds, trees, and streams she has always cherished. Ending her life at the base of the waterfall, her love song emanates ethereally from the great beyond, and the work concludes with her spirit embracing the land she had loved, becoming one with nature. Three versions of the work have been prepared, one for solo mandolin and mandolin orchestra, which was premiered in Scherpenzeel, Netherlands, by Sebastiaan de Grebber, mandolin, and Het CONSORT conducted by Alex Timmerman (to whom the work is dedicated) on 1 April 2006. (A 60-second excerpt of the recording on the album Music for Mandolin Orchestra, Stemra ATSDG03-08, may be heard here). Another version is for solo mandolin, strings, and guitar. Both versions also require a Cherokee gourd rattle. A third version, for solo mandolin and piano (sans rattle) also is available and was premiered by Sebastiaan de Grebber and Eva van den Dool in Serravalle, Italy, on 26 June 2011. The difficulty level is moderately advanced, and performance time is approximately 10 minutes. Please write regarding score...

Very disappointed with how downhill the park has gone. As soon as we were in, they shut down the train and locked up the gift shop and kept announcing they were closing in 30 minutes. I would have rather been turned away than paid for tickets and only gotten 20 minutes of walking through. I assumed we would have at least an hour after being admitted in, especially considering we wouldn't have the train to take us sightseeing.

We managed to make it to the zoo in time before they locked up but it was awful. Half the enclosures are empty, and the animals they did have looked miserable. Huge Bermese python in a tiny cramped enclosure. Some of the birds missing feathers, dirty and empty food and water bowls. Yellowjackets infest the outside animal enclosures. It's absolutely shameful. It was very upsetting. The city of Gadsden needs to re-evaluate the conditions the animals are kept in and if the funding or payroll for the proper personnel to care for the animals isn't there, then they need to surrender them to sanctuaries where they can have the better quality of life they deserve in captivity. Don't take on the responsibility of animals if you can't or won't take proper...

Nature, Nostalgia, and a "Dash" of Drama

If your idea of a perfect family road trip includes picturesque views with a side of historical melodrama, then buckle up and detour to Noccalula Falls Park.

This isn’t just any old scenic spot; it’s a place where beauty meets tragedy in a splash of waterfall majesty.

Legend has it that Noccalula, a young Native American princess, was so distraught over being forced into a marriage that she chose to leap from the 90-foot falls, turning the site into an oddly romantic historical marker.

The park itself is a family-friendly, complete with petting zoos, mini-golf, and enough picnic spots to host a royal feast (we didn't partake given the onset of a storm). Whether you're here to soak in the misty views from the gorge trail or to regale your children with the tale of Princess Noccalula as a cautionary tale against arranged marriages, there’s a little something for everyone.

Next time you’re plotting a road trip route, remember: nothing spices up a family outing like a waterfall with a backstory that leaps...