A Birmingham Business Mystery may be Revealed, Soon

| June 27, 2016 

 ========= Old Image Removed =========Array
(
    [_wp_attached_file] => Array
        (
            [0] => 2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2.png
        )

    [_wp_attachment_metadata] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:5:{s:5:"width";i:640;s:6:"height";i:640;s:4:"file";s:91:"2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2.png";s:5:"sizes";a:10:{s:6:"medium";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-336x336.png";s:5:"width";i:336;s:6:"height";i:336;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:9:"thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-140x140.png";s:5:"width";i:140;s:6:"height";i:140;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:9:"wbhm-icon";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:89:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-80x80.png";s:5:"width";i:80;s:6:"height";i:80;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:13:"wbhm-featured";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-600x338.png";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:338;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:20:"wbhm-featured-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-600x600.png";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:600;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:18:"wbhm-featured-home";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-311x311.png";s:5:"width";i:311;s:6:"height";i:311;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:22:"wbhm-featured-carousel";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-265x265.png";s:5:"width";i:265;s:6:"height";i:265;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:28:"ab-block-post-grid-landscape";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-600x400.png";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:400;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:25:"ab-block-post-grid-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-600x600.png";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:600;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}s:14:"post-thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:91:"eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-125x125.png";s:5:"width";i:125;s:6:"height";i:125;s:9:"mime-type";s:9:"image/png";}}s:10:"image_meta";a:12:{s:8:"aperture";s:1:"0";s:6:"credit";s:0:"";s:6:"camera";s:0:"";s:7:"caption";s:0:"";s:17:"created_timestamp";s:1:"0";s:9:"copyright";s:0:"";s:12:"focal_length";s:1:"0";s:3:"iso";s:1:"0";s:13:"shutter_speed";s:1:"0";s:5:"title";s:0:"";s:11:"orientation";s:1:"0";s:8:"keywords";a:0:{}}}
        )

    [_imagify_optimization_level] => Array
        (
            [0] => 1
        )

    [_imagify_data] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:2:{s:5:"stats";a:3:{s:13:"original_size";i:584703;s:14:"optimized_size";i:278229;s:7:"percent";d:52.420000000000002;}s:5:"sizes";a:8:{s:4:"full";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:119:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2.png";s:13:"original_size";i:153141;s:14:"optimized_size";i:88331;s:7:"percent";d:42.32;}s:9:"thumbnail";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-140x140.png";s:13:"original_size";i:16729;s:14:"optimized_size";i:8636;s:7:"percent";d:48.380000000000003;}s:6:"medium";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-336x336.png";s:13:"original_size";i:70955;s:14:"optimized_size";i:31685;s:7:"percent";d:55.340000000000003;}s:13:"wbhm-featured";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-600x338.png";s:13:"original_size";i:155105;s:14:"optimized_size";i:66704;s:7:"percent";d:56.990000000000002;}s:20:"wbhm-featured-square";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-300x300.png";s:13:"original_size";i:57634;s:14:"optimized_size";i:25145;s:7:"percent";d:56.369999999999997;}s:18:"wbhm-featured-home";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-311x311.png";s:13:"original_size";i:67235;s:14:"optimized_size";i:28953;s:7:"percent";d:56.939999999999998;}s:22:"wbhm-featured-carousel";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-265x265.png";s:13:"original_size";i:49948;s:14:"optimized_size";i:21630;s:7:"percent";d:56.689999999999998;}s:14:"post-thumbnail";a:5:{s:7:"success";b:1;s:8:"file_url";s:127:"https://news.wbhm.org/media/2016/06/eb30b00c2be91c72d252440dee4a5b97e771e5d519b016499d_640_magnifying-glass-sleuth2-125x125.png";s:13:"original_size";i:13956;s:14:"optimized_size";i:7145;s:7:"percent";d:48.799999999999997;}}}
        )

    [_imagify_status] => Array
        (
            [0] => success
        )

    [_edit_lock] => Array
        (
            [0] => 1467051440:1
        )

)
1671369660 
1467003780

A “good news” Birmingham business mystery may soon be revealed. The firearms business is booming. Changes in the industrial economy are impacting Alabama’s waterways and roadways.

WBHM’s Scott Hanley visits with Ty West, Editor of the Birmingham Business Journal, to consider some of these latest stories in the Magic City Marketplace.

 

20 years later, Waveland’s letters to Santa tell stories of recovery from Hurricane Katrina

More than a thousand letters were written and answered after the hurricane. They’re now housed in an exhibit at the Ground Zero Hurricane Katrina Museum.

These federal workers proudly served the American people. Then came Trump’s upheaval

Mass firings, buyouts and heightened uncertainty led to an exodus of federal workers in 2025. More than 300,000 employees will be out of the government by the end of December.

Where we went: NPR’s U.S. travel guide for the curious

NPR's staff traveled a lot in 2025. From a Mardi Gras workshop to a festival celebrating the mythical Mothman, here are some places and events we thought you might want to check out, too.

Mourners grieve 10-year-old slain in Bondi mass shooting as Australia’s leader pledges new hate laws

Hundreds of mourners bearing bright bouquets and clutching each other in grief gathered at a funeral in Sydney on Thursday for a 10-year-old girl who was gunned down in an antisemitic massacre during a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach.

US announces massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10 billion

The Trump administration has announced a massive package of arms sales to Taiwan valued at more than $10 billion that includes medium-range missiles, howitzers and drones, a move that is sure to infuriate China.

Pulitzer Prize-winning correspondent Peter Arnett has died

Peter Arnett, the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who spent decades dodging bullets and bombs to bring the world eyewitness accounts of war from Vietnam to Iraq, has died. He was 91.

More Economy Coverage