The park occupies an area of 4 acres and contains 125 miniature reproductions.
Joseph Zoettel was born in Bavaria in 1878.
Brother Joseph had been in an accident that left him slightly hunched.
At first, Zoettel placed his structures in the monastery’s outdoor recreation area.
The site was officially named the Ave Maria Grotto in 1934.
He built his last model, the Basilica in Lourdes, at the age of 80, in 1958.
Brother Joseph rarely left Alabama.
This is why the scale of edifices is often wrong with towers and buttresses too large or small.
The site is now a major tourist attraction.
Sources:Wikipedia/Roadside America/Encyclopedia of Alabama
