The growth of Alabamas iron and steel industry was significantly influenced by Tannehill iron-making practices, such as using distilled coal residues as a furnace fuel, making early experimentation with coke, and reducing red iron ore from Red Mountain in a blast furnace. Due to the significant role that Tannehill pays in Alabamas iron and steel industry, the Alabama Central District of Civitan International and the representatives of the University of Alabama first proposed in the late 1960s that a state park should be built to preserve the site of Tannehill Ironworks, the birthplace of the Birmingham Iron industry. The proposal was approved by the state in 1969, and in the following year 1970, the Tannehill Historical State Parkopened to the public. There are more than 45 historical buildings in this state park, including the May Plantation Cotton Gin House, the John Wesley Hall Gristmill, as well as a collection of log cabins that trace back to the nineteenth century. Among the efforts to preserve the historical buildings and Tannehill artifacts, the Iron and Steel Museum of Alabama was built, and it opened in 1981. At present, the Tannehill Ironworks state park has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Civil War Discovery Trail. In particular, the museum demonstrates how 13 iron manufacturers and 6 rolling mills worked to produce iron during the Civil war, making the Tannehill Ironworks among the best-preserved and oldest historical sites in the Southeastern part of this country. From 2004 to 2005, the museum had a significant make-over to introduce more new exhibits to the site, including an old rice-plantation-owned power source, and one of the oldest steam engines in this country. In 2017, Tannehill Ironworks, containing the Iron and Steel Museum of Alabama, became one of the six Birmingham historical sites which contributed to the creation of the Birmingham Industrial Heritage Trail. More recently, the Tannehill Furnace memorial park has become one of the most visited sites in Alabama, and the number of visitors each year exceeds 425,000. This is mainly due to the park's organisation of a variety of outdoor events and activities; for example, the Trade Days event is organised monthly from March to November each year, and visitors also have an opportunity to participant in a Civil War battle re-enactment.