Baldwin County, Alabama
This historical marker in Tensaw, Alabama tells the story of one of the oldest settled regions in Baldwin County. Located along the corridor associated with the Old Federal Road, the marker traces the history of Native American settlement, early European-American migration into the Mississippi Territory, Fort Mims, Fort Montgomery, and the growth of early churches and communities in the area.
Today the area is quiet and heavily wooded, but during the late 1700s and early 1800s this region played an important role in the early history of South Alabama.
Front Side Marker Text
Early History of Tensaw
1540 — Spanish explorer DeSoto travelled through
1720s — Taensa tribe settled nearby
1790 — European-Americans settled among the Creeks; Samuel Mims operated Mims Ferry; David Mims home was built, among oldest frame buildings in Baldwin County
1800 — Opening of first public school in Mississippi Territory
1803 — Circuit Rider Lorenzo Dow visited; Cotton gin built at Peirce’s Mill
1811 — Post Office established, first in Baldwin County
1813 — Fort Mims was attacked, nearly 400 killed
Fort Montgomery, complete with cannons, housed the first hospital in the area
1820s — Plantations were built around Montgomery Hill as soldiers received land after War of 1812
1830 — Methodist and Baptists established the Union Church on Holley Creek
1840 — Montgomery Hill Baptist Church was organized, the first in Baldwin County
1854 — Montgomery Hill Baptist Church was built
1850s — Montgomery Hill Masonic Lodge was among the first in Baldwin County
1865 — Union Troops heading north after the War burned the Booth plantation
Reverse Side Marker Text
Tensaw
The native Mississippians, Tohomes, Mobilians, and Creeks inhabited this area for centuries. Tensaw was named for the Taensa people who lived nearby during the 1720s. They farmed the bottomlands and hunted the dense forests.
European-Americans began to move into the Mississippi Territory in the late 1700s. In 1813, during the Creek uprising, Ft. Mims (near Boatyard Lake) was attacked and burned prompting the arrival of Federal troops. In 1814, Ft. Montgomery was built on the southern edge of the settlement as a base for the US Army. The surrounding community was referred to as Montgomery Hill. From the mid-1800s to the turn of the 20th century, the name “Tensaw” was used on area maps, but birth and death certificates documented by local physicians referred to the region as Montgomery Hill.
During the early 1900s, when roads were being paved and signs were posted, the community was officially designated as Tensaw.
Old Federal Road Project
This marker was photographed and documented as part of the Old Federal Road Project, an ongoing effort to visit and document historic sites, communities, and markers connected to the route of the Old Federal Road across South Alabama.
Watch the video from this location below.
Location
Tensaw
Baldwin County, Alabama 31.16673, -87.78886