Browse Items (1458 total)

Samuel Gideon Flanagan opened a sawmill in the community of Pleasant Hill in 1904. The sawmill operated as S.G. Flanagan Lumber until 1940, when it became more of a retail lumberyard. In 1960, the company was eventually incorporated as Flanagan…

The Goode-Hall House is located in Town Creek Alabama. After several tours of Lawrence County, the home is constructed in 1824 by Reverend Turner Saunders. Saunders had been a Methodist minister and planter from Brunswick County, Virginia. Saunders…

Courtland Historic District is located in the center of Courtland, Alabama, in Lawrence County. The town was founded in 1818 and was established the following year. The citizens chose the site due to the close proximity to the Tennessee River to…

Union Grove Cemetery is located in Opelika south of Creekstone Drive and west of South Uniroyal Road.

Coordinates: 32.6287456, -85.3374448

The Blackburn House is a perfect example of a story-and-a-half "Saltbox" style home with a proportioned Italianate portico. The home was constructed around 1873 by Edward Alexander Blackburn (1840-1899). The house served as the center for the…

Old Town Cemetery is the earliest know cemetery in Athens. Records indicate that the first burials date from the 1820s and continue through the mid-1800s, with some burials past 1900. Many markers in the cemetery are sunken below ground, while others…

Belle Mina Plantation is a Late Georgian-style home located in the community of Belle Mina, Alabama. The home was constructed in 1826 by Alabama's second governor, Thomas Bibb. Thomas Bibb purchased 2,500 acres of land in Northern Alabama and decided…

The Harvey Cemetery, located in Toonersville, Alabama (which is near the Whitehead Community and the town of Rogersville) is located off of the Bettie Anne Highway (aka Highway 51). Go north on Highway 51 for approximately three miles; at the…

To reach the Piney Grove Cemetery, travel highway 17 north from Cox Creek Parkway to .3 mile north of Wilson High School. Turn right onto County Rd. 224 and go 1.12 miles. Turn right onto a dirt and gravel drive between a residence and a barn and go…

The Tri-Cities Cemetery was established in 1954. The cemetery is located off Highway 72 close to Deibert Park. The cemetery contains over 8,000 burials. It has a combination of ground burials, mausoleums, and a columbarium.

For a full description…

Established in 1818, Florence Cemetery was the first city cemetery. The marker reads, "When the city was surveyed, this land described as 'outside city limits' was designated as the burying grounds for the new town. It contains the graves of early…

The first African-Americans who lived in the Shoals were slaves of the Chickasaw tribe. When the Chickasaws from Alabama and Mississippi were removed from their homes in the 1830s, the census included 1156 slaves. Tom Melton, an Irishman who lived…

John H. Rapier was a freed African-American in Florence, Alabama. Born as a slave in 1808, Rapier was emancipated in 1829 by the last will and testament of Richard Rapier. Upon receiving his freedom, John became a barber and earned an income of…

Chief George Colbert owned a ferry across the Tennessee River, connecting Colbert and Lauderdale Counties. Colbert owned many African-American slaves. One such slave was named Lem Colbert, who operated Colbert's ferry at Waterloo, Alabama.

During the Civil War, Sherman's men raided the Sweetwater Plantation. One slave, named Edmund managed to warn the family of the raid. When the soldiers attempted to make their way upstairs to the rooms of the Patton's daughters, Edmund blocked their…

Born in 1837, Sam grew up with William "Billy" Patton, his young master. Because Sam's mother was the cook for the Patton family, he lived in the kitchen behind the big house. When Alabama seceded from the Union, Billy took Sam with him to war. In…

Richard Alphine was born a slave on the Alphine plantation in Mississippi in 1853. Richard was 12 years old at the end of the Civil War and often told stories about his memories of the war. In 1918, Richard moved to Florence for work and lived with…

The congregation of Eastside Church of Christ was formed in Florence Alabama in the 1920's and was the first African-American Church of Christ congregation in the area. The church purchased its current building in 2004.

In 1951, Florence city schools named an elementary school after its native son WC Handy. The school was considered very modern, was built during the administration of JW Powell, and had a faculty of twenty-six.

Jackson Cemetery is located about four miles northwest of Florence. The cemetery is due east of the ruins of the Forks of Cypress, located on the Old Jackson Road, which stretches from North Florence to the Savannah Highway. Separating the ruins…

The Dred Scott Historic District was proposed as a national historic district. The historic district consisted of one square block between Court St., Tennessee Street, Seminary Street, and College Street. It was nominated on the basis of historical,…

University of North Alabama was established in 1830 and for much of its history was an all-white institution. However, the University, then Florence State College, officially desegregated when Wendell Wilkie Gunn attended classes in 1963. The…

Harrison Ingram was well known in the Rogersville community. He was a stonemason and a carpenter and according to his family he was one of the first in his community to have electricity. Ingram and his father established an African American cemetery…

Locust Dell Academy was established by Nicholas Hentz and his wife Caroline in the 1840s. The school for girls was built by two slaves, Charles Gray and Washington Farris, who had been "rented out" by their masters. The school was absorbed by…

The Hopewell Church near St. Florian was the site of tragedy when, in 1865, the grandfather of WC Handy, Christopher Brewer, was shot and left for dead by Elias Thrasher, "Mountain" Tom Clark, and their gang. They also tortured and killed Brewer's…

A former slave, Ruben Patterson was taken to war by Colonel Josiah Patterson as part of the fifth Alabama Calvary. After the war Ruben owned a shoe shine stand and was known to the community as "Uncle" Reuben. He and his wife are buried In the…

Dred Scott was born as a slave in Virginia. In 1820, he came to Florence with the Peter Blow family. Seven years later, the Blow's Inn was established and Scott served as a stable hand. In 1830, the Blow family relocated to St. Louis, Missouri and…

The Shoals Theatre, located in historic downtown Florence, Alabama at 123 North Seminary Street, first opened in 1948. At the time of its grand opening, the art deco style theatre was one of the finest in the Southeast. It originally sat 1,350 people…

Percy Casey was born in Florence in 1872 to Willis and Mary Casey. Percy worked two jobs--one as a boss repairman for the Florence Cycle Company and second as a pressman for the Florence Herald until his death in 1902. Percy was also a member of the…

The site of St. Mark's missionary Baptist Church has been in continuous use by the African-American community of Florence since 1859. Originally, the church body met under a brush arbor. The current church building was built in 1901.

To reach Antioch Cemetery, travel to Cloverdale on Alabama Hwy. #157 and continue 4 miles north. Turn right onto County Rd. #10 and travel 2.3 miles to the cemetery. The cemetery is located on the left behind the church.

Sweetwater plantation was built between 1828 and 1835 and it was inherited by Patton family. As working plantation, Sweetwater had many slaves; however, Sweetwater hold a place in African-American history, not just for its leave history, but also for…

John Coffee was born in 1772 and served under Andrew Jackson in the War of 1812. John Coffee was one of the founding fathers of Florence and had a plantation northeast of Florence. Two acres were deeded separately to contain the family cemetery, as…

To reach this cemetery, from Florence, Alabama, travel west on Alabama Hwy. 20 14.6 miles. Turn right onto County Road 5 and travel 1.8 miles. Turn left onto County Road 8. Go about 1/2 mile. This cemetery is on the right side of the road west of the…

Wendell Wilkie Gunn was the first African-American student to enroll at the University of North Alabama. He was also the first African-American student to earn a degree from UNA. Gunn went on to work in banking and became the vice president for Chase…

Cloverdale Cemetery is located off of Cloverdale Rd. To reach this cemetery turn north off Cox Creek Parkway onto Ala 157 (Cloverdale Road); Go 10.9 miles to the cemetery. The cemetery is on the right side of the road, in back of the Cloverdale…

When founded, Burrell Normal School was a high school for African-American students and included a year of teacher training for those who wanted to become teachers. In 1937, the school moved into the building that housed Slater Elementary School, and…

Oak Grove African Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1870 by Charles Weems, Joe Person, and Jim Simpson. At the time of its founding, the church only had 12 members. The church was originally built in Oakland, a community just west of…

WC Handy was born in Florence in 1873. Handy became internationally known as the "Father of the Blues" and his songs include "Memphis Blues", "Beale Street Blues", and "St. Louis Blues". The log cabin in which Handy was born has been moved to 620…

William Christopher Handy, born in Florence, Alabama, on November 16, 1873 and is considered to be the “Father of the Blues.” His musical legacy is a prime part of the music culture in the Shoals region, especially in his home town of Florence.…

The Rogersville Public Library is located just off Highway 72. It offers genealogy services, test proctoring, and Wi-Fi access. The library is open 9am-7pm Tuesday-Thursday, 9-5 on Fridays, and 9-3 on Saturdays.

Peerson Cemetery was restored in the summer of 1990 by Mason Ingram and more relatives of the Peersons. To reach this cemetery from Florence, turn northwest off Cox Creek Parkway onto Savannah Highway. Then go 2.9 miles and turn left on Mud Road.…

The Killen Public Library is located off Highway 72 on JC Maudlin Highway. The library has a genealogy room, DVD rentals, as well as a summer reading program. The library is open Monday-Friday.

The Tennessee Valley Historical Society (TVHS) was established in 1923. Since that time, TVHS has served to educate the public and promote the region’s local history. The Journal of Muscle Shoals History is published by TVHS, and includes…

The Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area (MSNHA) encompasses the six counties of North Alabama’s Tennessee River water basin, which includes Lauderdale County. An act of Congress established the Muscle Shoals National Heritage Area in 2009. Since…

The Florence-Lauderdale Public Library is located across from Wilson Park, one block north of its old location. The library features many educational programs and classes including genealogy classes and computer technology classes. The library has a…

The Children’s Museum of the Shoals is located on Darby Drive in Florence and is part of Deibert Park. The museum offers hands-on exhibits, which allow children of different ages to explore the arts, science, and the history and culture of the…

Originally owned by James Jackson, one of Florence’s founding fathers, the Forks of Cypress was one of the earliest Greek Revival homes built in Alabama. The home featured a temple-type veranda supported by massive columns that surrounded the…

Collier Library was built by the Works Project Administration and opened to students in 1930. It was built in the Gothic Revival architectural style, like many of the WPA buildings on the University of North Alabama campus. In 1963, an expansion…

The Florence-Lauderdale County Veterans Memorial was dedicated during a Veterans Day ceremony on May 30, 1977. The memorial serves to honor all Lauderdale County veterans of all wars. The memorial’s location was originally named Point Park, but…