Town of Sipsey

Town of Sipsey. . The Town of Sipsey was founded in 1912 by Milton H. and Rose Fies and the Maryland Coal and Coke Co. (later named the DeBardeleben Coal Co). The village was built as a showplace of a mining village in the South. It consisted of a large commissary, school building, church and 200 houses built from logs sawed on the property. The first load of coal was shipped out on August 13, 1913. Labor cost when the mine opened was: outside labor $1.50 per day; track men, $2.75 per day; electrician, $3 per day; machine men, $3 per day; motormen, $2.75 per day; and trip rides, $2.50 per day. This was based on a 10-hour day. In 1915, a new two-story school was built. On the first floor were three classrooms and on the top floor was the Masonic Lodge. This was the first school in the county to implement a nine-month school term. Shortly after the new school was built, another school for African Americans was built. This was the largest school of its kind in the county. Later, it became a recreational center., The church built in Slpsey at the time was a Union Church, which meant that the Baptist and Methodist shared the church on alternate Sundays. This church still stands and is still in use. The first clinic was built in 1913. The Company Dairy was founded in 1917. The town also had a pool hall, picture show, concessions, and amusement features. Prices at the time the town was built were $6 for rent; white meat, five cents per pound; lard, five cents per pound; and flour 75 cents for 24 pounds. Sipsey is a Choctaw Indian name for the word poplar. The name was chosen because of the numerous poplar trees that were here when the town was founded.