Friday, January 11, 2013

Just how many historical markers are there in Monroe, Conecuh counties?

A new historical marker was erected earlier this week on County Road 5, between the Burnt Corn and Bermuda communities. The Alabama Historical Association marker was erected on Mon., Jan. 7, and highlights the area's history, especially in regard to the Creek Indian War of 1813-1814.
The entire text of the new sign reads as follows:

“BURNT CORN SPRING: The historical Burnt Corn Spring is located near this point on the Old Federal Road – the spring poured into the west branch of the creek that took its name. James Cornells had a residence at the spring before 1813. In the summer of 1813, a war party of 280 Creek Indians burned Cornells’ residence and corncribs while in route to obtain guns and ammunition from the Spanish governor in Pensacola. Some 20 miles from here, a part of one-third of the warriors returning from Pensacola encountered Col. James Caller and 180 Mississippi militiamen who were intent on intercepting them. Caller and his men camped at this site on July 26th, before turning south on the Wolf Trail to engage the Indians in a skirmish at a ford on Burnt Corn Creek. What had begun as a Creek civil war spilled over into this Battle of Burnt Corn Creek, the opening of hostilities between the warring Creeks and white settlers in the area. With the massacre at Mims’ stockade the next month – August 30, 1813 – the Creek Indian War of 1813-1814 was underway. A U.S. post office was established at this spring in October 1817, about the time Mississippi became a State and Alabama a Territory.”

If you’d like to see the new marker for yourself, it’s located about 2-1/2 miles north of Bermuda on County Road 5, which is the border between Monroe and Conecuh counties. As you travel north out of Bermuda, the marker is on the left (west) side of the road, which is the Monroe County side of the highway.

This new marker is just one of many in Monroe and Conecuh counties, and I’ve often wondered just how many historic markers are in both counties. Does anyone know if a complete list has ever been put together? Do you have a copy of it you could share with us here, in the comments section below?

I'm sure there are others, but here’s a short list of the few that I know of, just off the top of my head:

Monroe County:
1. Burnt Corn Spring
2. Claiborne
3. Fort Claiborne
4. Lucas Raiders (in front of Monroe County Library)
5. Monroe County, Alabama (on the courthouse square)
6. Masonic Lodge No. 3 (at Perdue Hill)
7. Old Federal Road maker (Burnt Corn)
8. Old Federal Road – Coley Chapel
9. Old Federal Road – Duncan MacMillan Stage Stop (north of Repton)
10. Old Monroe County Courthouse
11. Perdue Hill Industrial School
12. Truman Capote (Monroeville)

Conecuh County:
1. Alabama Baptist Children’s Home Site (Evergreen)
2. Ernest Stanley Crawford, M.D. (Downtown Evergreen)
3. Evergreen, Alabama (at Old Depot)
4. Evergreen Baptist Church
5. James Salter Monument (Pine Orchard)
6. Old Federal Road – Fort Warren Site (Pine Orchard)
7. Old Federal Road – Jeremiah Austill (Bermuda)
8. Old Federal Road – John Peobles Toll Bridge
9. Rev. Hillary James Hawkins, D.D. (Lime Hill)

I’m sure there are others out there, but where are they located? What are they called and what's the best way to get there? Can you think of any places in either county where there should be a marker, but isn’t? Let us know in the comments section below.

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