Ages ago this area was under an arm of the ocean. Shells and other marine organisms were deposited to form the limestone seen here. Exposure of the limestone to all types of weathering, gradually changed it into a heavy fertile soil of various colors. The dominant black soil which before cultivation was prairie grassland has given the area the name black belt, or black prairie. The black belt extends south beyond Columbus, Mississippi then trends eastward across nearly all of Alabama. Formerly one of America's great cotton areas, it is now considered excellent pasture for livestock.
