[2] Commissioned by the Commercial Club of Birmingham, Italian-born sculptor Giuseppe Moretti began designing the monumental figure in 1903, using a 6-foot (183 cm) tall model to study the form.

The Commercial Club of Birmingham held art shows, concerts, baseball games, and many more activities to raise the estimated $15,000 ($510,000 in 2023 dollars) it would cost to build and transport the statue.

It is also noted that pot metal statuettes of Vulcan were sold at both the St. Louis World's Fair and in Birmingham, Alabama for two dollars apiece to help in the accumulated costs it took to create the statue.

Iron forgemen designed and executed the connection details for the statue, which originally had no internal framework and was self-supporting.

When Vulcan's anvil, block, hammer, and spearpoint are added, the statue weighs a total of 120,000 pounds (54,431 kg) and it stands on a 123-foot tall (37 m) pedestal.

Vulcan dramatically demonstrated the mineral riches and manufacturing capabilities of the Birmingham area while on display in the Louisiana Purchase Exposition's "Palace of Mines and Metallurgy".

When the 1904 World's Fair ended, the Vulcan statue was dismantled and returned to its home city of Birmingham, only to be left in pieces alongside the railroad tracks due to unpaid freight bills.

It was not until 1936 that the statue found a suitable home, thanks to the Works Progress Administration, which partially funded a new park in the city at the top of Red Mountain.

To take full advantage of Vulcan's position overlooking Birmingham, the city's Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1946 made the statue into a symbol for road safety.

In 1949, Vulcan got new neighbors, when two television stations, WAFM-TV (now WVTM) and WBRC located their studios and towers on Red Mountain.

Vulcan was removed during October and November 1999 in preparations for a $14 million renovation process that saw the park and pedestal restored to its original 1938 appearance.

Vulcan was re-erected on a steel armature atop his tower during June 2003, restored to its original appearance as intended by Moretti, reoriented to the east.

The original waterfalls were not rebuilt, though the stone walkways leading from the parking lot directly to Vulcan's tower were restored.