Ike Comes to Rocket City
On September 8, 1960, north Alabama was treated to a presidential visit. In the final months of his tenure, Dwight D. Eisenhower arrived in Huntsville to dedicate the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center. An important part of the emerging civilian-led National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the facility also helped transform Huntsville into “Rocket City.”
Several months before his arrival, Eisenhower signed an executive order naming the new space flight center in honor of his late colleague. George Marshall served as Army Chief of Staff during World War II, followed by consequential stints as secretary of state and defense under President Harry Truman.
Katherine Marshall joined the president in unveiling a bust of her late husband at the dedication. Eisenhower called the work being done in Huntsville a “significant step in our conquest of space.” Still, Ike was quick to assert that these efforts were not “the outgrowth of a soulless…grasping state imperialism,” but rather “the product of unrestrained human talent and energy, restlessly probing for the betterment of humanity.” The president praised George Marshall’s many qualities as “a man of war, yet a builder of peace,” and expressed hopes that the Huntsville facility be ever worthy of bearing his name.
Future presidents would make their own treks to Huntsville. But Eisenhower set the tone: admiration for scientific achievement and an abiding belief in the American spirit of innovation.
Few could doubt the Marshall Center’s importance, particularly in its first decade. During the crucial early years of the space program, propulsion labs in Huntsville were at the heart of the endeavor. And when mankind first touched the surface of the moon in 1969, rockets designed at the Marshall Space Flight Center put them there.
— Scotty Kirkland
Former AREA CEO Passes Away
Dail Gibbs, who led the Alabama Rural Electric Association for more than 25 years, passed away in July at the age of 97. Gibbs served as AREA’s executive vice president from 1966 to 1991 after serving more than six years in the same role at the South Dakota statewide office.
In a 2017 article in Alabama Living, Gibbs talked about the growth of the association during his tenure, which included building its former office headquarters a block behind the State Capitol. In those early days, AREA didn’t have the political muscle that it needed to develop, Gibbs said, but as it grew, and local co-op managers were eager for change and to grow, that clout increased, even as the association itself remained politically neutral. “You’ve got to be involved, but you’ve got to be bipartisan in your approach to be effective,” he said. “We had a lot of strength if we just worked together.”
Gibbs, a native of Arkansas, was a veteran of the U.S. Navy, serving from 1946 to 1948. After graduating from Murray State University, he began his career as a successful high school basketball coach before moving into leadership roles with rural electric associations in South Dakota and Alabama.
He is survived by his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. A graveside service was held on July 1 at Woodland Heights Cemetery in Rector, Ark. Donations in his honor may be made to Dakota Milestones, Box 248, Chamberlain, SD 57325.
Graphic Designer Wins Awards
Alabama Living’s Senior Graphic Designer Sean Burnley won two awards recently in the National Rural Electric Cooperatives Statewide Editors Association Willies Awards. He took home an Award of Excellence for Best Cover, for his photo and design of our May 2026 cover featuring “The Vineman,” Andrew McCall; and an Award of Excellence for Best Wild Card for a humorous social media post on April Fool’s day.
The Statewide Editors Association is made up of editors of 39 statewide consumer publications produced by rural electric cooperatives across the United States. The Willies Awards were presented as part of the 2026 SEA Institute in Pittsburgh, Pa.
