Red Mountain, Ridge and recreational area in Birmingham, United States

Red Mountain is a long ridge running southwest-northeast that divides Jones Valley from Shades Valley south of Birmingham. It is part of the Ridge-and-Valley region of the Appalachian Mountains, and its exposed Red Mountain Formation of hard Silurian rock strata is named for rust-stained rock faces and prominent seams of red hematite iron ore. Red Mountain Park, one of the largest urban parks in the United States at 1,500 acres, lies on the ridge.

The ridge was mined in the 1800s to supply iron ore for Birmingham's growing industrial base. Its connection to nearby coal and limestone deposits made the region a major manufacturing center.

Red Mountain's ore was portrayed as a character in pageants staged by steel companies in their company towns. In Redmont Park, developed in the 1920s by Robert Jemison, the Altamont School and Saint Rose Academy, run by Dominican sisters, stand among the city's multimillion-dollar estates.

The Red Mountain Expressway Cut's interpretive trail is closed because of rock-slide risk, so the exposed strata are viewed from outside the fence. Red Mountain Park covers 1,500 acres; its paths are shared by walkers and cyclists. The ridge runs 33 miles from Sparks Gap to Trussville, and the Vulcan statue stands on its slope.

The ridge displays red hematite seams within rock layers that span millions of years of geological time. These formations tell the story of how the earth shaped this place long before any human activity.