The
History of Lauderdale County (continued)
by Oscar Lewis; Associate
Editor of The Florence Herald
The first store in Florence was
probably that of James Sample built in 1818. His home,
erected in 1828, still stands on North Court Street. The
first house built in Florence, was said to have been erected by
Thomas Cheatham on the corner of Military Road and Seminary Street
in about 1811. It was built for a stage stop by Cheatham for
Leroy Pope and Thomas Bibb, and was known for many years as Pope's
Tavern. During the Civil War the house served as a
Confederate hospital.
Among the early settlers of
Lauderdale County was Joseph Hough, who had been awarded 3,000
acres of land for his services in the War of 1812. Hough
came to Alabama from South Carolina prior to 1818, and sold a
tract of his acreage to another settler, Jonathan Bailey, who had
established a small settlement on Sycamore River, known today as
Shoals Creek.
Among the older settlements in the
county is Center Star, located between Killen and
Rogersville. This area was once claimed by both the
Chickasaw's and Cherokees, necessitating a cession of territory
from each tribe before the settlement could be established.
The remains of an old Indian village could be seen at one time
southwest of Center Star. Other old settlements included
Middleton and Elgin, the latter known first as Ingram's Elgin
Cross Roads.
Rogersville, lying some 23 miles to
the east of Florence, was named for John Rogers, an Indian
Trader, whose sons were fast friends of the great Sam
Houston. The late Will Rogers is said to have been a
descendant of this same family. An early ferry that operated
for many years was Lamb's Ferry near Rogersville.
Lexington, Springfield, and
Anderson lie to the north of the Lee Highway, the town of
Lexington being a part of the territory once claimed by the
Cherokees. Many of the settlers of that area came from
Tennessee and the Carolinas. The first post office of record
at Lexington was on the Loretto Road, north of town, in
1880. Mail at that time was brought in from Loretto,
Tennessee, by horseback and carts.
The town of St. Florian was
established in 1872 on the Jackson Highway and named by its German
Catholic founders for their patron saint. Hugh McVay, one of
four Alabama governors from Lauderdale County is buried in the
family cemetery at Mars Hill. The other three governors from
Lauderdale County were Edward A. O'Neal, Robert M. Patton, and
Emmett O'Neal.
A number of important industries
used Lauderdale County's abundant waterpower, these including
cotton and cloth mills, one of these being operated both before
and after the Civil War on Cypress Creek near Florence.
Another mill made cloth for Confederate Army uniforms and still
another guns for the Southern cause. Both were destroyed by
Union soldiers, while another large mill was wrecked by flood
waters of the creek.
Today waterpower speaks
volumes. Coursing through the great turbines of the TVA
dams, the mighty waters of the Tennessee River are producing low
cost power, lighting the homes of thousands of citizens and
turning the wheels of industry in a region second to none in
natural and human resources.
Lauderdale County, boasting a $10
million yearly income from its farms and many additional millions
from its payrolls, stands on the threshold of a great era of
progress. No area in the entire nation holds greater promise
or offers more in good living, health, and contentment.
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