Sheffield in Colbert County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)

Jackson Military Road-Jackson Crossing

Photographed by Billy Clemmons, November 16, 2025

1. Jackson Military Road-Jackson Crossing Marker

Inscription. The Military Road was built from 1816 to 1820 as a pioneer settlement shortcut from Nashville to the Southwest Territories / New Orleans, proceeding through the Shoals. A ferry crossed the River here in the vicinity of York Bluff settlement, connecting to the upstream bank of Cypress Creek on the opposite shore.

This passage formed the original linkage between Coldwater town (Tuscumbia) and the new town of Florence (surveyed 1818 by Cypress Land Company). This roadway and ferry crossing became the initial hub of the Shoals area. The ferry here operated for some years and was then relocated to the vicinity of the present railroad bridge by the 1820s. Railroad service was constructed between the two river banks in the 1830s; was washed out by floods & replaced in 1840. Sheffield formed later, incorporated in 1885.

Erected 2025.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Roads & Vehicles. A significant historical year for this entry is 1816.

Location. 34° 46.391′ N, 87° 41.699′ W. Marker is in Sheffield, Alabama, in Colbert County. It is on Gordon Drive north of E 13th Street. Touch for map. Marker

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is at or near this postal address: 304 Gordon Dr, Sheffield AL 35660, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Alabama

and in the Shoals.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The Singing River Sculpture (approx. ¾ mile away); E.L. Newman Lustron House (approx. 0.8 miles away); History of Sheffield (approx. 0.9 miles away); Percy Sledge / Producer Quin Ivy (approx. 0.9 miles away); President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (approx. one mile away); 101 Memorial (approx. 1.1 miles away); In Memory of Our Comrades of Sheffield (approx. 1.2 miles away); Furnace Hill (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of

Photographed by Billy Clemmons, November 17, 2025

2. Jackson Military Road-Jackson Crossing Marker

all markers in Sheffield.

Photographed by Billy Clemmons, November 17, 2025

3. Jackson Military Road-Jackson Crossing Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on November 19, 2025. It was originally submitted on November 16, 2025, by Billy Clemmons of Florence, Alabama. This page has been viewed 74 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 16, 2025, by Billy Clemmons of Florence, Alabama. 2, 3. submitted on November 17, 2025, by Billy Clemmons of Florence, Alabama. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.