Site of Alabama's first permanent capital 1820-26. County seat Dallas County, 1820-66. Prison for Union soldiers during the War Between the States 1863-65. Indians were the first inhabitants over 4000 years ago. Their large fortified village could . . . — — Map (db m75779) HM
Marker Front: The Beloit Industrial Institute was founded in 1888 by Industrial Missionary Association, an area subdivision of the American Missionary Associations. The President of the Association, Dr. Charles B. Curtis, was a Presbyterian . . . — — Map (db m83504) HM
Prior to 1905, workmen in search of
salvageable bricks dismantled the old
Dallas County Courthouse (pictured
here). The grassy mound before you
contains the damaged bricks the
workmen left behind.
Cahawba was the county seat from . . . — — Map (db m112559) HM
This engraving of the Union Prison at Cahaba was published in 1877 by Benson J. Lossing. The stockade had already been removed, so the details of the brick structure are visible.
The artist apparently was in a boat in the Alabama River, . . . — — Map (db m83506) HM
Alabama's first statehouse stood on this lot, but no drawing by a person who actually saw it has been found. It was built in 1819 and destroyed in 1833, before the invention of photography. There are many drawings of the statehouse, but all are pure . . . — — Map (db m75908) HM
Waist-high grasses billowing in the
wind. Rolling prairie expanses. Most
people connect these images with the Midwest's Great Plains. But for
thousands of years, tallgrass
soils of Alabama's Black Belt. Along
prairie—25 miles across . . . — — Map (db m112692) HM
Home site of the author of "Memories of Old Cahaba," whose family lived here from the Capital's earliest days as landowners and lawyers, giving her a rich legacy of town history. Married to a doctor, she moved to Galveston, Texas, and returned here . . . — — Map (db m112360) HM
Two story brick slave quarters like the
one before you were not typical, but they
could be found in wealthy towns like
Cahawba.
Stephen Barker built these quarters in
1860 on the northern edge of town.
As you can see in the . . . — — Map (db m112472) HM
Two-story brick slave quarters like the
one before you were not typical, but they
could be found in wealthy towns like
Cahaba.
Stephen Barker built these brick quarters
and a fine brick home for himself in
1861 on the northern edge of . . . — — Map (db m150865) HM
Alabama's Black Belt region derives
its name from a narrow sash of
dark, fertile soil across the state's
midsection. Covering 1000 square
miles, the Black Belt occupies just 2%
of the state's landmass, but its history
and transformations . . . — — Map (db m112800) HM
The Cahaba Drug Store once covered this cellar hole. It was operated by Herbert Hudson and J. D. Craig.
On the same lot were T. L. Craig's large family grocery, Coleman's dry goods store, and Fellows' Jewelry.
All these men were related . . . — — Map (db m23008) HM
This stone marks the site of Cahaba, selected November 21, 1818 as the first permanent capital of Alabama. The seat of goverment remaining here until removed to Tuscaloosa by the Legislature, January 1825.
On December 13, 1819, it was fixed as . . . — — Map (db m22609) HM
Created by the Legislature
This cemetery was created by an act of
Alabama's Legislature on January 31,
1852. Cahaba's town council selected
this spot, but the Legislature had to
confirm their choice because all public
land within . . . — — Map (db m150864) HM
In 1818, Alabama's first governor
carved the capital city of Cahawba
out of the wilderness. In less than 50
years, Cahawba grew from a frontier
capital full of log cabins to one of
America's wealthiest communities,
with some of the . . . — — Map (db m112690) HM
Two Ghost Towns?
Long before Cahawba was built as
Alabama's first state capital, there was
another village at this location. Just like
Cahawba, it thrived for about 50 years,
then disappeared.
About the year 1500 a group of . . . — — Map (db m112450) HM
In 1818, Alabama's first governor carved the capital city of Cahawba out of the wilderness. In less than 50 years, Cahawba grew from a frontier capital full of log cabins to one of America's wealthiest communities, with some of the finest mansions . . . — — Map (db m217236) HM
In 1862 the Confederacy used one of
Cahawba's brick cotton warehouses to
temporarily house men captured at the
Battle of Shiloh. In 1863, they officially
converted the warehouse into a military
prison. The inmates called it "Castle . . . — — Map (db m112528) HM
The Union soldiers held captive in Cahaba's Civil War Prison, called the place Castle Morgan in honor of a daring Confederate raider. In 1888 Jesse Hawes published a book about his imprisonment in Castle Morgan. He drew this diagram from memory. . . . — — Map (db m22668) HM
In 1858, the railroad company graded away an Indian mound that stood here. A brick warehouse was built in its place. From 1863 - 1865 the Confederate government used this warehouse to hold captured Federal Soldiers. You are standing on a pile of . . . — — Map (db m22666) HM
This cellar was under Joseph Babcock's brick store. During the Civil War the building was used as a commissary.
Babcock's warehouse and cotton shed were located to your right on the bluff overlooking the river. The family home, kitchen, and . . . — — Map (db m23287) HM
A "row" was a 19th century shopping mall. The word was used when a building or block had several similar storefronts arranged in a straight line or row.
This cellar marks the spot where David and Nicholas Crocheron built a large 2 story brick . . . — — Map (db m83509) HM
The grassed over mound of brick before you was once Dallas County's courthouse. This courthouse was built in 1834. It was dismantled prior to 1905 by brick salvagers.
Cahawba was the county seat from 1818 to 1866. This brought a lot of people, . . . — — Map (db m23010) HM
On a May afternoon in 1856, an angry
John A. Bell rounded this corner
carrying a large hickory stick. He passed
by Edward Perine's fine brick store, and
continued south down the sidewalk.
Under his coat, he carried two pistols
and a . . . — — Map (db m112527) HM
The Drug Store
This hole was once the cellar beneath a
drug store operated by Herbert Hudson
& James D. Craig. They sold medicines,
chemicals, paints, perfumes, and cigars.
On the same lot was Thomas L. Craig's
large family grocery, . . . — — Map (db m150849) HM
The Drug Store
This hole was once the cellar beneath a drug store operated by Herbert Hudson & James D. Craig. They sold medicines, chemicals, paints, perfumes, and cigars.
On the same lot was Thomas L. Craig's large family grocery, . . . — — Map (db m217243) HM
St. Luke's Episcopal Church was built at Cahawba in 1854 but was dismantled and moved sometime after 1884 but before 1888. It was reassembled fifteen miles away in a rural community called Martin's Station. The raised outline before you indicates . . . — — Map (db m83510) HM
[Newspaper notice]
Masonic,
The Regularly Constituted Lodges of Ancient York Masons, Chartered, Dispenced, or associated within the State of Alabama, are respectfully requested to meet, by their representatives, at the Town of Cahawba, . . . — — Map (db m217238) HM
In 1866, shortly after the Civil War and a severe flood, the county seat was moved from Cahaba to Selma. Residents rapidly abandoned the town. Many homes were dismantled and reassembled elsewhere.
Despite this trend, returning Confederate . . . — — Map (db m83516) HM
On January 20th, 1865, Major Hanchett lead a daring, but unsuccessful escape from the military prison that was located on this spot.
He was then moved to the dungeon of the county jail, located on First North Street. In March the other Union . . . — — Map (db m22669) HM
These are not graves.
These are markers to memoralize
the Federal soldiers who died in the
Cahawba Military Prison during the
Civil War. The men within the prison
called it "Castle Morgan."
No one knows where in Cahawba these . . . — — Map (db m112409) HM
These ruins were once a place of worship for members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Built in 1849, it was the first single denomination church in Cahawba. An earlier church for the common use of all denominations was erected about 1840. . . . — — Map (db m112410) HM
"We by-and-by discovered...a pair of those
splendid birds, the Ivory-billed Woodpeckers
(Picus principalis). They were engaged in
rapping some tall dead pines, in a dense part of
the forest, which rang with their loud notes." . . . — — Map (db m112801) HM
Burials in this cemetery, which served Cahaba from 1848 to 1900, tell a story of the town in which many deaths resulted from diseases of infancy, childhood and early adult life, Yellow Fever being a large factor because of proximity to Gulf of . . . — — Map (db m23322) HM
This site was set aside by the 1820 General Assembly, burials here date from 1818 to 1847. Interred are some of the state's earliest figures. There is no record of names, many handsome tombs have been destroyed, seven marked ones remaining, six are . . . — — Map (db m23355) HM
This artesian well was drilled to serve a factory which did not materialize. It was then used to water the grounds, a garden and pastures. In addition, by forcing water through pipes into his $50,000 home, E. M. Perine, a merchant prince, had the . . . — — Map (db m83518) HM
Brick Store to Depot
In 1858, the Cahaba, Marion and Greensboro Railroad company laid train tracks down Capitol Street so bales of cotton could be transported from distant plantations to warehouses in Cahaba. From the warehouses, the cotton . . . — — Map (db m150848) HM
In the late 1850s, Cahaba experienced a building boom. Everyone expected the town to prosper because of the new railroad. One of the first large brick structures built in this prosperous period was completed in 1856 by Dr. Saltmarsh.
He . . . — — Map (db m23009) HM
In the late 1850s, Cahawba experienced
a building boom. Everyone expected
the town to prosper because of the new
railroad.
One of the first structures built during
this prosperous period was completed on
this corner in 1856 by Dr. . . . — — Map (db m150847) HM
This structure collapsed in 1833 and its fallen remains were reportedly heaped into a railroad embankment. Consequently, we have no picture of the Statehouse that was drawn by someone who actually saw the building. Any modern picture you see of this . . . — — Map (db m75909) HM
St. Luke's was consecrated in 1854. It was an outstanding example of the Gothic Revival style, popular at the time. The contractor closely followed designs in a widely circulated book, Rural Architecture, published in 1852 by the celebrated . . . — — Map (db m75922) HM
The Crocherons were from Staten Island, New York. Richard Conner Crocheron arrived in town about 1837 to help run the family store. He traveled north for his bride in 1843 after building her this brick home. The back wall adjoined the brick store . . . — — Map (db m22870) HM
In 1889, Samuel and Sarah Kirkpatrick moved to Selma, leaving their farm and house in the capable hands of their son Clifton (1863-1930). He turned the abandoned remains of Alabama's first capital into a showcase farm of diversified, scientific . . . — — Map (db m23005) HM
Look around you. There are hundreds
of pecan trees growing nearby. All were
planted by Clifton Kirkpatrick, a.k.a.
The Duke of Cahaba." (Note: Cahawba
lost its "w" by the late 19th century.)
In 1889 Samuel and Sarah Kirkpatrick . . . — — Map (db m112473) HM
1822 - Crocheron's Row
Cahawba's First Shopping Center
This large hole was dug in 1822 to be the
basement beneath Cahawba's first brick
store.
In the 19th century the word "row"
described a building that consisted of . . . — — Map (db m112577) HM
Between AD 1500 and 1600, the
indigenous inhabitants of the area around
the confluence of the Cahaba and
Alabama Rivers built a flat-topped mound
measuring about ½ acre in size. The
mound was the central feature of a
semicircular village . . . — — Map (db m150834) HM
By 1858 many brick stores had been built in Cahaba, so everyone called this the "old brick store." Merchant Sam M. Hill turned the building into one huge dry goods store where shoppers could buy just about anything!
Col. Hill, like most of the . . . — — Map (db m23242) HM
Vine Street was Cahawba's business district. Stores, offices and hotels were tightly packed together along these three blocks. Homes were scattered over an entire square mile. Nearly every house had a yard of one or two acres. — — Map (db m83520) HM
Cahawba's homes were spread over an
entire square mile, many with yards of
one or two acres. That was not the case
here on Vine Street. Offices, stores and
hotels were tightly packed along this
main street. The steamboat landings on
the . . . — — Map (db m112560) HM
This house, the Fambro / Arthur home,
takes its name from two of its owners.
One was a judge, the other was a former
slave.
The Fambro Family
A. Judge W. W. Fambro built this house
in the early 1840s. He may have created . . . — — Map (db m112451) HM
Walnut Street was the working
backside of the business district.
Cahaba's mechanics and enslaved
laborers knew this street well. It was a
place of livery stables, harness makers,
carriage makers, and blacksmiths. It
was a smelly, dirty street. . . . — — Map (db m150850) HM
A New York merchant, Richard Conner
Crocheron, built a magnificant mansion
on this spot. The adjacent photograph
captured the decayed splendor of this
home before it burned. Look closely
at the photograph. Try to identify the
columns . . . — — Map (db m112582) HM
Prosperity Associate Reformed Presbyterian
Church Cemetery is the resting place of many
members of the church from 1846 until 1961. The
Church was organized in 1822 by Isaac Grier. A
church building stood on this site from 1844 until
1891, . . . — — Map (db m112357) HM
Frank Orr and his brother, William, settled Orrville in the early 1800's with a very strong religious group of people. A church was soon organized and a place of worship was built on this site in 1846. The church was known as the Methodist Episcopal . . . — — Map (db m23003) HM
A Cumberland Presbyterian church named Mt. Pleasant was organized here about 1821 by Rev. William James Moor, a missionary from the Elk Presbytery of Tennessee. Renamed Mount Carmel in 1827, this church provided early leadership for the Ala. . . . — — Map (db m75777) HM
This Greek revival mansion was built c. 1853 for William B. King and named “Fairoaks” for the many trees found about the place. King was the nephew of Vice President William Rufus King. Ann B. Wilson, a half-sister of the builder, . . . — — Map (db m83521) HM
For centuries, Selma was a city where the rules of race
were enforced by humiliation and fear. But Selma gave
birth to one of the greatest grassroots campaigns in
history—the voting rights movement. The Selma to
Montgomery march was the . . . — — Map (db m112370) HM
Anvil used in Selma’s Confederate Arsenal to make armament for Southern forces.
Presented to Sturdivant Museum Association April 1, 1961 by the Southern Railway Company which as the Selma, Rome and Dalton Railroad Company purchased the anvil . . . — — Map (db m37690) HM
This memorial marks the site of the Arsenal, a unit of the Great Ordnance Works in Selma destroyed by the Union Army April 6, 1865.
These ordnance works stood second only to those of Richmond in the manufacture of war materials for the . . . — — Map (db m37661) HM
Side 1
'Bloody Sunday' Attack at Edmund Pettus Bridge
A voting registration campaign in 1965 turned tragic Feb. 17 when an Alabama state trooper fatally shot Jimmie Lee Jackson in Marion. It prompted a protest march from . . . — — Map (db m81944) HM
Colony’s north boundary
crossed present-day
Alabama - Mississippi
at this point on 32° 28’
by edict of British king.
Colony extended south to Gulf.
France had ceded area in 1763.
Spain invaded, seized area in . . . — — Map (db m37644) HM
Brown A.M.E. Chapel (in front of you) served as a safe haven for supporters during the voting rights campaign. Pastor P.H. Lewis and his congregation courageously broke the injunction prohibiting African Americans from holding mass meetings, making . . . — — Map (db m131995) HM
"Of all the nights of my experience, this is most like the horrors of war — a captured city burning at night, a victorious army advancing, and a demoralized one retreating. ...this Sunday night nearly gone, will be remembered. If there is a . . . — — Map (db m82744) HM
On May 3. 1941, the largest flying field in the United States, military or civilian, opened its gates as a new unit of the Southeast Air Corps Training Center, where flying cadets received advanced schooling in the handling of multi-mile-a-minute . . . — — Map (db m92359) HM
Front
KOREA
In Honor and Memory of
our Veterans who Served in
the Korean War
1950 — 1953
✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯
Against overwhelming odds our valiant
service men and women withstood
the . . . — — Map (db m82043) WM
Front
VIETNAM
Honor ✯ Duty ✯ Sacrifice
In Grateful Memory and Honor
of all Veterans from
Dallas County who served in
the Vietnam Conflict
1965 — 1973
✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ . . . — — Map (db m82039) WM
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay
down his life for his friends. St. John, 15-13
Erected in grateful humility to the enduring
memory of those of Dallas County whose
names appear hereon who made the supreme . . . — — Map (db m83522) WM
In Memoriam
Here fell brave men
in defense of their homes
April 2, 1865.
Col. William T. Minter
Rev. Arthur M. Small
Robert N. Philpot
and other valiant soldiers
“They fought and fell
they served us well" Lest We . . . — — Map (db m83576) HM
Edmund Pettus Bridge
has been designated a
National Historic Landmark
This site possesses national significance for its
association with "Bloody Sunday," a seminal event in the
Civil Rights Movement. Here, on March 7, 1965, . . . — — Map (db m82037) HM
Edmund Winston Pettus, lawyer, General C.S.A., U.S. Senator, was born Limestone County, Alabama, 1821.
Admitted to bar, 1842.
Moved to Cahaba, 1858.
Major, C.S.A., 1861.
Brigadier General, 1863.
U.S. Senator, 1897-1907.
Resided . . . — — Map (db m38273) HM
Once a gracious turn-of-the-century neighborhood, many of the homes here were close to condemnation when purchased by Circle “S” Industries, Inc. in 1980. In all, 12 Victorian cottages were renovated in the area.
Built between 1870 . . . — — Map (db m37651) HM
Entered on the National Register of Historic Places March 26, 1976 Federal Building U.S. Courthouse Selma, Alabama James Knox Taylor Architect 1909 This property significantly contributes to the nation’s cultural heritage . . . — — Map (db m131992) HM
First Baptist was the first church in Selma to open its doors to members of the Dallas County Voters League as well as to young activists from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. From 1963 to 1965, under the leadership of Reverend M.C. . . . — — Map (db m112366) HM
In 1952, the City of Selma accepted federal funds to build the George Washington Carver Homes Projects. The residences became “The Face of the Civil Rights Movement” to many in the 1960s because Dr. King, the Southern Christian . . . — — Map (db m112354) HM
The George Washington Carver neighborhood served as base camp for the votings rights movement during the tumultuous weeks of March 1965. These blocks of brick two-story homes—the city's first and largest federal housing project for blacks, built in . . . — — Map (db m112365) HM
Highlights of Selma History
Dallas County was created by Territorial Legislature Feb. 9, 1818. Selma Land Company formed Mar. 19, 1819 by George Phillips, William Rufus King, Jesse Beene, Gilbert Shearer and Caleb Tate. Selma incorporated . . . — — Map (db m37679) HM
The Selma-Montgomery March
"Bloody Sunday", March 7, 1965
Mothers of the Civil Rights Movement
Before and Beyond the Bridge
Didn't Let Nothing Turn Them Around!
Presented by
The Evelyn Gibson Lowery . . . — — Map (db m111691) HM
The demonstration that led to the most important advance in civil rights for millions of Black Americans began here March 21, 1965. It was the 50-mile march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, the State Capital.
Defying threats of death, Dr. . . . — — Map (db m83578) HM
Rev. James J. Reeb, an Army Veteran and Unitarian minister from Casper, Wyoming, was working in Boston when Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. appealed for clergymen of all faiths to come to Selma to protest the violence that occurred at the Edmund Pettus . . . — — Map (db m37683) HM
Leader of
The Selma-Montgomery March
"Bloody Sunday", March 7, 1965
He Fed the Hungry
"Unbossed and Unbought"
1926-2000
Presented by
SCLC/W.O.M.E.N. Inc.
Women's Organizational Movement for Equality . . . — — Map (db m111689) HM
By 6pm General James H. Wilson had moved the 4th U.S. Cavalry, down Summerfield Road through the outer works and had ordered Captain Robinson of the Chicago Board of Trade Battery to do the same. After the main assault most of the regiments of . . . — — Map (db m81930) HM
This was the residence of John Tyler Morgan (1824-1907), one of Alabama’s most honored political and military leaders. Constructed in 1859 by Thomas R. Wetmore, it was purchased by Morgan in 1865, and served for many years as his principal . . . — — Map (db m37676) HM
Central Masonic Institute of Alabama acquired property 1847 and erected building. Confederate Hospital during War Between the States. Dallas County Courthouse (1866-1901) on removal of County Seat from Cahaba. Presbyterian High School for Boys in . . . — — Map (db m37656) HM
Hardie's Reserve Cavalry Battalion, about 500 strong were ordered to Selma from Talladega. They were placed along the railroad track to the right and Left of the Depot. This makeshift defensive line was made of the railroad bed, the Depot, cotton . . . — — Map (db m82756) HM
This Greek Revival house was built circa 1850 by Thomas Helm Lee, master builder and owner of early Selma lumber yard. Born in Kentucky, he was the son of Miller Lee of Buckingham County, Virginia and married Mary Jane Blanks of Cahaba in 1839. He . . . — — Map (db m37674) HM
At the age of 20, Lewis lost his sight in 1957 from Glaucoma. He learned the
language of braille, other independent living and vocational skills during his
attendance at the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind in Talladega, Alabama. . . . — — Map (db m112363) HM
Erected by the Citizens of Selma
to Commemorate the Heroism of
Lieutenant John Tillman Melvin
United States Navy, R.F.
Born Selma, Alabama Oct. 16, 1887
Among the first to volunteer and the first American Naval officer killed in action . . . — — Map (db m37660) HM
East portion reserved for graveyard, 1829; west part purchased City of Selma, 1877.
Here are buried:
William Rufus King, 1786-1853, Vice President of U.S. 1853.
John Tyler Morgan, 1824-1907, U.S. Senator, Brig. Gen. C.S.A.
Edmund . . . — — Map (db m37653) HM
Front
Defender of Selma
Wizard of the Saddle
Untutored Genius
The First With the Most
This monument stands as testament of
our perpetual devotion and respect
for Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest
CSA, . . . — — Map (db m92363) HM WM
Lynching in America
Thousands of African Americans were victims of lynching and racial violence in the United States between the Civil War and World War II. The lynching of African Americans during this era was a form of racial terrorism used . . . — — Map (db m132071) HM
This Greek Revival dwelling was built c. 1850 by Dr. Albert Gallatin Mabry, a prominent physician and member of the Alabama Legislature. Dr. Mabry was a leader in organizing the Alabama State Medical Association and instrumental in passing . . . — — Map (db m83580) HM
Erected and dedicated to the
memory of those of Dallas
County who fought and died in
two world wars that we may
retain our great heritage of
freedom, justice and democracy
World War I
April 6, 1917–November 11, 1918 . . . — — Map (db m82029) WM
This school was the city of Selma's first public high school for African-Americans. Completed in 1949, the school was named in honor of Richard Byron Hudson, a black educator who had served for 41 years as principal of Clark Elementary School, . . . — — Map (db m82741) HM
Front
Redoubt No. 15 located just to the west of Summerfield Road was defended by Colonel Pinson's 1st Mississippi Cavalry Regiment of Anderson's Brigade. Their 400 men held positions on the west side of the road and the rest of . . . — — Map (db m81925) HM
Side 1
At prominent positions, earthen forts were built with artillery in position to cover the ground over which an assault would have to be made.
Redoubt No. 24 anchored the City's defenses at the junction of Valley Creek & the . . . — — Map (db m83581) HM
The shooting of Jimmie Lee Jackson in nearby Marion, Alabama, transformed Brown Chapel from a sanctuary into a staging area for the Selma march, In a passionate sermon SCLC worker James Bevel suggested making a pilgrimage to the State Capitol to . . . — — Map (db m112364) HM
Confederate Army Captain James White was ordered to relocate the old Federal Arsenal from Mt. Vernon, Alabama. By 1865 it consisted of 24 buildings and had over 500 workers including men, women, boys, girls, FMofC and slaves. It made or contracted . . . — — Map (db m82750) HM
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