Precious Metal: Goldie 1971 – The Fallen Robot, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
When Birmingham, Alabama‘s Sloss blast furnaces closed for good in 1971, it brought to an end the area’s nine decades, as one of the South’s largest pig iron manufacturers.
In 2009, University of Alabama alumnus Joe McCreary, secured scrap iron from long abandoned furnaces. He used it to build Goldie 1971; a striking rust colored robot sculpture. This way, he payed tribute to the area’s iron industry.
Goldie 1971 was named after a signature that was welded into Sloss’ No.1 furnace, during a repair. Its face is resembling Frankenstein’s monster and weights three tons. The 23 foot long sculpture lies on its side, as though the having fallen, at the university’s Woods Quad sculpture garden.
Woods Quad is open year-round and visitors wishing to see the sculpture can expect to pay $5 for campus parking. It offers an irresistible photo opportunity for delighted passers-by.
However, it’s what this fallen giant represents that makes it so arresting: the decline of the American iron industry and an era gone by.
Address:
301 7th Ave
7th Ave & Capstone Drive
Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 35401
United States
Coordinates: 33.2130, -87.5456
UnusualPlaces Field Notes
- Location
- Goldie 1971 sculpture, northeast corner of Woods Quad Sculpture Garden, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA
- Coordinates
- 33.213042, -87.545585
- Access
- Goldie is an outdoor sculpture in the University of Alabama’s Woods Quad Sculpture Garden. The University describes the quad as continual outdoor access; campus events or posted restrictions may affect entry. Visitor parking is separate and must use legal visitor spaces or decks.
- Admission
- Woods Quad is listed as free in the University’s 2025–2026 visitor guide. Visitor parking is separate: the University’s current visitor-deck rates are $1.50 for the first hour and $2.50 each subsequent hour, capped at $15 per entry, Monday–Friday 7 a.m.–6 p.m.; reduced rates apply evenings and weekends. Check posted rates and campus-event restrictions.
- Opening hours
- The University lists the Woods Quad Sculpture Garden as having continual outdoor access; temporary campus restrictions may apply.
- Location checked
- 2026-09-27
- Facts checked
- 2026-09-27
Location
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