| Red Mountain Expressway Cut | |
|---|---|
 Looking east across the Red Mountain Expressway Cut. | |
  Map of Alabama | |
| Location | Birmingham, Alabama |
| Coordinates | 33°29′46″N 86°47′17″W / 33.496°N 86.788°W |
| Area | 8 acres (3.2 ha) |
| Designated | 1987 |
The Red Mountain Expressway Cut, also known as the Red Mountain Geological Cut, is a section of Red Mountain that was blasted and removed in the 1960s to allow the Red Mountain Expressway to enter downtown Birmingham, Alabama. This highway links Birmingham with its southern suburbs of Homewood, Mountain Brook, and Vestavia Hills. It has spurred suburban growth towards the south of Birmingham. This section also provides the route for U.S. Route 31 (US 31) to the south (the Montgomery Highway) and US 280 to the southeast.
The resultant cut exposes geological strata spanning millions of years (150 million years of geological time within 650 feet or 200 metres of exposure),[1] including the red ore seam that spurred Birmingham's development. A new species of Lower Silurian (middle Llandovery epoch) phacopsid trilobite, Acaste birminghamensis, was first collected from exposures on Red Mountain. Named for the city, the new species was published in May 1972.[2]
The cut was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1987.[1]
- ^ a b National Natural Landmarks Program. "National Registry of Natural Landmarks" (PDF). National Park Service. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 May 2011. Retrieved 7 August 2011.
- ^ Norford, B. S. (May 1972). "Acaste birminghamensis, a new lower Silurian trilobite from Alabama". Journal of Paleontology. 46 (3): 348–352.