A ladder leads to a Prohibition-era tunnel in Decatur, Ala.
Photo: Decatur (ALA.) Daily NewsDECATUR, Ala. — David Armistead is accustomed to visitors coming into Tennessee Valley Pecan Co. to sample his pecans.
They still come for that, but now they also are coming to see a piece of Decatur’s history linked to the Prohibition era.
After moving his business from one location to another on Bank Street, Armistead learned from his landlord that the building has one of the city’s remaining tunnels used to keep booze out of sight.
These secret rooms and passageways — constructed primarily after the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution banned the sale of alcohol — were used to hide liquor from federal enforcement agents, and in some cases, as an escape route for patrons.
This tunnel goes toward Bank Street, but there is no evidence that it ever went beyond the brick wall near the front part of the building.