Mt. Vernon in Mobile County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)

Mt. Vernon Federal Highway

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 4, 2013

1. Mt. Vernon Federal Highway Marker

Inscription. In 1811, the Mount Vernon Cantonment, located on a hill about three miles west of the Mobile River, was laid out by Col. Thomas H. Cushing. The cantonment was on the site of a spring called Mount Vernon Springs. In 1814, the garrison at Mt. Vernon was visited by Andrew Jackson. Construction of the Old Federal Road from Milledgeville, Georgia to Fort Stoddert, Alabama began in 1818. 1828, President Andrew Jackson authorized for Mt. Vernon to become a military arsenal. By 1830 the construction of a wall ten feet high and two feet thick began to encompass the arsenal. In 1861 Captain Jesse Reno surrendered Mt. Vernon arsenal to four Confederate companies from Mobile. In 1866, the arsenal was returned to the Federal Government. In 1870, Mt. Vernon post ceased to be an arsenal. In 1873, Secretary of War William Belknap recommended the arsenal property become Mt. Vernon Barracks. In 1887, 450 Apaches came to Mt. Vernon from Fort Pickens, Florida. Among them were Indian Chiefs Geronimo, Chihuahua, and Natchez (Son of Cochise). In 1895, Mt. Vernon barracks was given to the State of Alabama.

Erected 2010 by Alabama Tourism

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Department and the Town of Mt. Vernon.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and Castles • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Roads & Vehicles • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Alabama Tourism Department, and the Former U.S. Presidents: #07 Andrew Jackson series lists. A significant historical year for this entry is 1811.

Location. 31° 5.132′ N, 88° 0.995′ W. Marker is in Mt. Vernon, Alabama, in Mobile County. It is at the intersection of Old Highway 43 and Military Road (County Road 96), on the left when traveling south on Old Highway 43. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1020 Old Military Road, Mount Vernon AL 36560, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Alabama’s Gulf Coast,

in Mobile Bay,

and in the Mobile Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

and on the Gulf Coast.

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

Current Highway Sign image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 4, 2013

2. Current Highway Sign

once New Spain,

the Viceroyalty of New France,

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 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: In Memory of Col. Ephraim Kirby (a few steps from this marker); Fort Stoddert (within shouting distance of this marker); Mount Vernon Historical Museum and Train Depot (about 800 feet away, measured in a direct line); Mt. Vernon Arsenal and Barracks / Searcy Hospital (approx. half a mile away); Mount Vernon Arsenal (approx. half a mile away); Old Military Road and Old Federal Road (approx. 1.4 miles away); Ephraim Kirby's Grave (approx. 2.1 miles away); a different marker also named Fort Stoddert (approx. 2.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mt. Vernon.

Mt. Vernon Federal Highway in Distance image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Hilton, December 4, 2013

3. Mt. Vernon Federal Highway in Distance

Mt. Vernon Federal Highway Marker park 2025 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Jim Ellis, February 5, 2025

4. Mt. Vernon Federal Highway Marker park 2025

View north/east towards Old Military Road, with view in background of obelisk memorial to Ephraim Kirby.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 24, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 5, 2013, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. This page has been viewed 1,648 times since then and 37 times this year. Last updated on July 21, 2015, by J. Makali Bruton of Washington, District of Columbia. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 5, 2013, by Mark Hilton of Montgomery, Alabama. 4. submitted on February 22, 2025, by Jim Ellis of Theodore, Alabama. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.