Tag: Black Belt Churches

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Black Lutheran Schools

I am forever enthused at what lies around the next corner. Always no matter where you turn in our beloved Southern Black Belt Region there is something to find that you did not know. Another story, another interesting person, place, or thing. 

I have been tied up for the last week working on projects concerning other business and had to refrain from rambling. Here it is another week coming up and last night my wife said, “it is supposed to rain mid-week.” If we are going to ramble, we need to do it tomorrow. Ha ha, she didn’t have to twist my arm. She is normally the one that is the responsible party in this relationship and tends to what needs to be done. I am normally the one that wants to be out rambling.

Last night I started scouring the maps. I had intentions of covering the area West of AL Hwy 21 and South of AL 10 as much as possible in the time we had. If you know the area, you know it is a sparsely populated area. Many miles of dirt roads with long distances where there are no houses of any kind.

Looking at Google Maps I found several potential things that I wanted to investigate in that area. As I continued looking, I found a church that jumped out at me. It was called Rosebud Lutheran Church and Rosa Young grave on the map. I later learned the proper name was Christ Ev. Lutheran Church and School.

Of course, I had no clue who Rosa Young was, but I had a strong awareness of the Lutheran Churches and Schools that had existed many years ago. I could remember the one at Tinela in Northern Monroe County. I actually remember as a very small child that they had school and church there in what would have been the very early 1960’s.

I also remembered that there was one North of Vredenburgh in Southern Wilcox County on the dirt roads that I always thought was one. I did not remember it being open, but I do remember going up through there and a guy I knew lived there on the property. There was also one out from Buena Vista. Although, I did not know where they were I had always heard that there were others. The ones I knew of closed to the best of my understanding and remembrance when they built a new one on the South side of Vredenburgh.  That one was larger and from my guess consolidated several of them into one. This would have been in the early 1960’s. I remember they had a school bus that I think was blue that served the school. I was very young when this happened, but I definitely remember much concerning it.

Because of my curiosity over the years, when I saw that one on the map it immediately jumped out at me. I knew that if there was a way, I would find it on this trip. We wound our way up through the hills from Beatrice checking out some other places that I had found on the map that were interesting. Because I am trying to be as thorough as possible locating things in an area, I was doing my best to get to as much as possible that looked like a possibility.

We ran miles of dirt roads some of them were pretty rough. With a rain coming in some of them would be definitely four wheel drive all the way in a Jeep. This time they were just slick and boggy. Next time will be a different story if it rains. We went through from old Nadawah across the hills and came out on AL 265 and then we turned back across the hills again from Fatama towards Neenah. Then finally in towards Rosebud. Watching my map closely we were able to find it with no trouble. Rounding the curve in the road there it stood. 

There was a green building trimmed in white. A lump came into my throat. I remembered those colors or in my mind they were the same anyway. The building looked to me almost exactly like the one I remembered from my early childhood at Tinela. As with every historical thing like that I see that for whatever reason my mind went elsewhere. It went to the old building on AL 41 out from Tinela. I remembered it when it was being used. Then I remembered it going down. Decade by decade slipping into oblivion being reclaimed by nature. In my mind they were exactly the same.

Mt Olive Church School (click link to read)

Then I started to focus on the rest of the grounds. Directly in front of the church was a grave surrounded by a metal fence. I then realized that this was the grave of a woman named Rosa Young. There was a small paragraph long introduction to her on her grave. 

Now if you know me, you know I had to find out more about this woman Rosa Young. They always say that Google is your friend. So, I went home and entered her name.

The first page that came up was the Encyclopedia of Alabama with her information.

https://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/rosa-young/ From that information printed there I learned that she was known as the “Mother of Black Lutheranism in central Alabama. She was a strong advocate of education of rural children.” Rosa Young was born in 1890 and died in 1971. According to the above link, “she was instrumental in founding and promoting the development of Lutheran schools and congregations in the Alabama Black Belt.”

The story on the Encyclopedia of Alabama website is a great story and I will not try to elaborate more because the link to the information is there. One thing in the article in that publication however I strongly disagree with is that it states, “Young and a man named Nils J Baake visited these sites and founded schools that became centers of Lutheran congregations in Buena Vista, Tilden, Tinela, and Midway (all in Wilcox County) in 1916 and Ingomar (in Dallas County) in 1919.” I personally know for a fact that the one at Tinela, and Buena Vista were actually in Northern Monroe County. Tilden appears to have been in Dallas County, Midway also appears to have been in Monroe but at the writing of this post I have not located its where-a-bouts although I intend to if possible.

The Mission at Vredenburgh was a short distance North of the Monroe/Wilcox County line almost directly above the Apple Grove Church. Nothing stands visible there today however according to land ownership maps the Lutheran organization still owns the 5 acres there.

As I stop and think about this information that I have accumulated I can only imagine that it was a monumental feat for this woman raised in rural Alabama in those times to accomplish the feats that she did to bring education to this part of the Rural South. There are volumes more written about her online and in books so I won’t try to quote any more. 

Rosa Young is one more great American that should be remembered for centuries to come as a person in our great land that made a difference. In my opinion she is indeed a hero of our beloved Black Belt.

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Why The Black Belt?

Several people have asked me the question, “Why the Black Belt”?

Here is the best explanation I can give. Ever since I got back into photography a few years ago I have been sort of searching for a niche. I love drones, history, the outdoors, and writing stories. 

I have retired from both my lawn service business and as the pastor of a small church. My wife and I love to get out and ramble. Our health is good. Normally when I am out and about she is with me. 

I have been for quite a while shooting drone photos and videos of forest fire lookout towers. I bought my first digital SLR camera a couple of years ago. I had of course always since I was a kid loved photography. In the 1980’s and 90’s before digital I shot a lot of 35mm photos. I had owned numerous cheap digital cameras and taken a lot of photos with them also.

I felt the need/desire or whatever you would term it to travel and document the various things of our beloved southland. Even back with 35mm I did that often as well as some wildlife photography. First off, I started doing drone videos and putting them on YouTube. As that progressed, I started shooting photos of other things. I especially liked documenting pre-1900 churches.

I had already traveled over several counties in Alabama and some in Mississippi taking photos of the small towns. Midsummer of 2023, I started to try to visit all 67 counties in Alabama. I actually wrote a blog post on doing that in August. Rambling The Southland.

I decided to work the area East of I-65 from the bottom of the state to the top. Then, I would work the area from the bottom to the top on the West side of I-65. I went out four times. I would leave home, hit as many small map-dot towns as I could in a day. Then I would spend the night in my van and go again the next day.

I did this four different times. Three of those times I ran almost 600 miles each and put in a lot of hours. The fourth I ran over 700 miles. I would take so many photos doing this, that it would take me two weeks several hours a day, after I got home, to just go through, sort and locate where all the photos were taken. After that even more time to process and share to social media and on the website.

I was thoroughly enjoying doing what I was doing and planned to continue till I got all 67 counties. When I got up as far north as Hwy. US-80 which had me working the Eastern Black Belt I started to realize that I was trying to cover too much territory at the time. I was taking hundreds of photos, but I was trying to cover too much too thinly. Doing it this way just did not give me enough time to find out anything about what I was photographing. I was just getting photos but not getting the story behind the photos.

That is when I realized that I needed to focus deeper on one area and stick with it. Because there is so much of what I love in the Black Belt, that was where I needed to be. So here I am.

My goal now is to focus for as long as it takes on primarily the Western, Alabama, Black Belt. Western, meaning the areas primarily West of I-65. I do plan at some point to go back into the Eastern part again and do it the same way. My plan is to capture photos of as many of the pre-1900 churches as I can locate as well as any other things of historical interest. Along the way I will document whatever else that I run across that is interesting, unusual, or basically that catches my attention. I will focus at times on wildlife and primarily birds. The Black Belt is very rich in birds, and I feel that is something else I would like to keep documenting.

As I document the churches, I post them on my website under the tab Black Belt Churches. That page has an index of the counties. Under the tabs of the counties are the links to the individual pages of the churches themselves listed in alphabetical order for that county. That will be an ongoing work where I populate the various county pages as I visit them. Over time it will be into the hundreds of historical churches.

I have been and will continue to write blog posts on whatever and whenever as I travel. They can be viewed as I post them on my web site jacksonsramblings.com. I would like to go back to making some videos but I will not say when that will happen because doing what I am trying to accomplish now is a full time job, believe it or not.

From the information gathered and shared on my website it would be nice to have some books as well as calendars and other material printed.

I have always loved wildlife and at some point, I would like to have my wildlife photos somewhere as well, possibly another page on the website or on another website.

This is a project that to do it justice will take several years quite possibly. A lot of it will take multiple trips into the same area over the coming months and even years.

It would be incredible if I could pick up some sponsors who would love to see this accomplished. I could really use some updates on some of my camera equipment. There is also a considerable cost involved in traveling, maintaining and at some point, replacing my Jeep.  There are also expenses to maintain my small motorhome, as well as fuel and campground fees, meals when traveling, and so forth. There are always computer related expenses as well. My current MacBook is three years old so hopefully I won’t have to replace it for a good while yet.

Between my Facebook groups and pages, I now have in the thousands that follow and I appreciate the friendships that I have already made and look forward to a whole lot more as time goes on. I can only imagine what the coming months and years can and will bring. There are so many that I want to meet face to face and learn their stories and the stories of their family’s contributions to our great Black Belt Reigon.

If you have read this far, I welcome you and hope you will see fit to follow along on this project as I travel our beloved Historical Alabama Black Belt.

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Pine Flat Methodist Church

We woke up this morning as normal. It was a cool early Fall Day with the wind blowing. After we had breakfast and a couple of cups of coffee my wife asked me if I had anything I wanted to do today?

Now if you follow me then you know that it does not take much to get me to head out rambling. We finished our coffee and got showers and packed some stuff for a picnic style lunch and got in the Jeep and headed out.

The quest today was for the very Southeast side of Wilcox County. I had determined that I need to try to make another trip into that area and try to find a few more possibilities for photos and stories. I am trying to do as exhaustive coverage as possible of the Black Belt Region and it requires at times numerous trips into an area.

We covered several things and wound up on Hwy 10 headed East towards Greenville. When we crossed the Butler County Line, I said I will turn around at the next good place I find to get out of the road.

As we rode along, we came to a cemetery on the left (north side of Hwy 10). I slowed and turned in. I decided to look at the headstones for a minute and possibly take a few shots of the cemetery. 

That is when I saw it. Sitting in the back, kind of in a corner was this beautiful old white church building. You guessed it. My phobia kicked in. The one that must take a photo of an old church. I just had to check that out.

I walked through the cemetery and captured a few shots of the various graves. One particularly interesting one was one I saw that was covered in seashells. I saw at least one that was above the ground. There were others with beautiful headstones.

I finally got to the back of the cemetery and maneuvered around and captured a few frames of that beautiful old church. 

I would be afraid to guess how many times I have traveled across AL 10 in my lifetime. It is not that often, but it has been a considerable number. I am sure I have seen it before but for some reason I did not remember paying any attention to this church.

I saw the sign outside that said the name was Pine Flat Methodist and it was established in 1858. 

I went on back to the Jeep and we went on our way. I pondered on this one for a while and then my mind went to other things and places as we headed on home.

When we finally got home, and I had opportunity I started to research Pine Flat Church. I found that it is indeed a Historical Black Belt Church.

The first source I found on it was the Greenville Advocate online newspaper (1). The article in the September 27, 2023, titled Pine Flat Church Celebrates 165 years jumped out at me. From that article I found that on October 1, 2023 Pine Flat held the yearly home coming event and this year was the 165thyear. This memorial event is held the first Sunday in October and has been since 1968.

The second source I found on this old church was from a site called (2) Wikimapia. It said, “In the spring of 1858, the present Pine Flat Methodist Church building was erected by the men of the community with the help of their slaves. Virgin pine trees were felled, and the timber sawed with a jigsaw at Bowen’s Mill. The boards were then hand planed.”

“The church lot was deeded by James and Martha Reynolds who lived near the site where the first house was built in Butler County; this home was erected by James K. Benson, government surveyor in 1815”. 

This article goes on to say,  “The church had a slave gallery extending across the front end. This gallery could be entered by stairs leading from the front porch. At morning services, the slaves sat in the gallery and in the afternoon special services were held for the slaves who sat downstairs while the white people attending sat in the gallery. When the church was repaired in 1870 the slave gallery was removed. The pews, communion rail, table, half octagon-shaped pulpit, and doors all are constructed of heart pine and are put together with square nails or wooden pegs. At first the center pews were divided with a solid partition to separate the men from the women. The one odd small bench, in the style of a colonial deacons’ bench, was one of three that were placed near the altar, and were used by those who came requesting the prayers of the congregation.”

This is truly in my opinion a historical Black Belt Church that appears to be in great condition and will hopefully be standing just as well kept for centuries to come. I salute those that are taking care of it and hope the generations that follow will do the same.

Sources:

(1) https://www.greenvilleadvocate.com/2023/09/27/pine-flat-church-celebrates-165-years/

(2) http://wikimapia.org/37239368/Pine-Flat-Methodist-Church

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Ramah Church (Lowndes County)

Recently on my social media page I was asking for input on locating interesting places. Many times, I have done this in the past and had success in finding interesting places and other times it has been a dead end. 

On this particular time, I got several things mentioned and I made notes to figure it all out for some times of rambling in the future.

 One particular comment with a link immediately caught my attention. It was a blog post Michaelclemmer.blogspot. It was titled Ramah-The Church that Hope Built. Here is a link to this site. https://michaelclemmer.blogspot.com/2014/05/ramah-church-that-hope-built.html?fbclid=IwAR3SiRr2H0CY9J8wTsRK5J1quN-eH35Q9fuEWNhfNumQ3k9RY7d8NKyKlHc

Now like most times I read this and was immediately enthused on this great old church. Beings I was focusing on the areas of Lowndes and Dallas Counties I knew I had to find it while I was in the area.

I won’t in this post try to retell this writer’s story, but it is a noteworthy read.

Note that this Old Church was built in 1868 and was not affiliated with any denomination and was remodeled in 1904. From my observation it appears to be pretty much the same since this renovation.

Sitting at the bottom of the hill looking up at this beautiful old church gives one a sense of awe. As I recounted the story told from the linked blog post I could only imagine what it was like back when it was first built.

Reading that it was built by former slaves who were very poor it made it even more significant. Just to look up the hill at it and focus on the prominence of it. The commanding position on the top of the hill gave it distinction. 

As I do on almost everyone, I see I stop and think. I try to picture as typical Sunday morning. As I was thinking about it I could picture probably numerous people dressed as best they had to dress. Men, women, boys, and girls. Probably in a community as described there would be no flashy carriages. Probably only mules and wagons and people walking to get there in time for service. I could still visualize gatherings outside with food and laughter. This was a place I felt of peace. It was a place to gather, grow, and be uplifted and strengthened by the community around you.

This is one more place that has stood over 150 years and is still well preserved. Hopefully it will stand that much longer still as a symbol of Hope on this High Hill.

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CME Church At Lowndesboro, Alabama

I say it most of the time when I write about something that I have found. “I love rambling in Alabama.” You never know what is around the next turn. There is always something new to learn. There is always something different to see. Just when you are kind of starting to wonder, “well I wonder what’s next.” Bang here comes something else. It never disappoints. There is always something out there if you keep on looking.

This week I was looking in the area of Lowndes and Dallas Counties. We were staying at the Prairie Creek Campground. We left home around mid-day and drove the camper up and set up for the night. Then we set out for whatever.

I call it whatever because I am looking for whatever. I don’t know what it is but when I see it, I will know. Historical, different, original, yep I want to see it and take photos of it and learn what there is to know about it.

Riding into Lowndesboro, Alabama Tuesday afternoon did not disappoint. The first thing I noticed was the big old pre-1900 churches. I don’t know what it might be called to be the way I am about them, but I don’t seem to be able to pass one of those old churches without stopping and taking photos of it. Lowndesboro is a treasure in that sense.

One such church that I found was the CME Church. Now all of them are neat and I will probably talk about them later but this one is different for sure. At first I saw the church and did not realize exactly what I was looking at. At any rate a friend of mine had told me about this church. I got some photographs of it and the others in town and then went over to the Library at Hayneville. In the Alabama Room at the public library is a treasure trove of Alabama History stuff. 

On one of the shelves, I found a book titled Lowndesboro’s Picturesque Legacies. In that book was the story of this church and how it came to be.

From the story I read in this book a wealthy planter by the name of Major William Robinson was instrumental in the building what was first named the Methodist-Protestant Church. This was a church that was typical of the time. It had a gable roof on it with a portico that ran across the entire front of the church. This portico was supported by four tall wooden columns.

This book and other sources I read online dated the construction of this beautiful church at 1833. Although I did not get to go inside to see for myself. The writing says that there are winding narrow steps inside on each side that lead to the balcony that is across the rear of the church. 

The thing that makes this one more unique than any other in the entire world is the small octagon shaped steeple with the copperplated dome on top. This dome was once on top of the State Capital at Cahaba. I could not believe it. That to me was one of the most amazing things I had ever seen. I have seen a lot of 1800’s churches but never even knew before this week that this one existed.

This is one of the oldest churches in the Black Belt Region of Alabama. The book said that The Methodist-Protestant Church acquired the dome from the capital after the flood of 1933 caused it to collapse. 

Major Robinson wanted to retain this part of the Cahaba Capital. He acquired the dome and according to the book Major Robinson had to use six yokes of oxen to move it and because of the road conditions it took him a month to move the dome from Cahaba to Lowndesboro.

The book goes on to say that when he got there with it there was a dispute among the members and all except two families left the church. They established a new church at the present site of the United Methodist Church.

At the death of Major Robinson in the 1880’s the building and property were deeded to a group of former slaves and their children. It was at that time renamed CME Church.

Services continued in the church until 1966. The building was abandoned in 1983. In 1990 it was leased by a local task force for fifty years so that it could be preserved.

Today it stands a beautiful building that I was so fortunate to get the opportunity to photograph and find out the history on. It is truly a beauty to behold.

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Adams Grove Presbyterian Church

We all have things on our bucket list. For some folks the list is actually a real list and for others it is just something that they keep in the back of their minds. I am kind of that way. I don’t actually have a list made out that I follow but, I do have a lot of things that I want to see and do.

One of those things was to take a photograph of the Adams Grove Presbyterian Church at Sardis, Alabama.

I honestly don’t know the first time I saw a photo of it, but it was years ago. For some reason I have wanted to capture a photo of it ever since. Now you might ask why? I honestly do not know why it has stayed on my mind so long.

I have passed through Sardis several times over the years but for some reason I was in too big of hurry. Other times I would totally for some reason forget about it till it was too late to try to figure out where it was located.

On a recent trip to the Dallas/Lowndes County area taking photos and doing research I was in Selma. I had come across Hwy 80 from Prairie Creek Campground where my wife and I had our camper parked. I thought about it and this time it would not leave my mind, so I told my wife that this time I was going to find it before I went back to Prairie Creek for the night.

We drove down to Sardis, and I typed it in the map, and it popped up. I proceeded to follow the directions to get to it. I drove up and pulled to the side of the rode and as silly as it might sound to some I just stood there in the edge of the road in awe. Now if you are not addicted to taking photos of historical buildings that might sound crazy to you. However, for me it makes my mind go to racing.

Like I have done so many times before when seeing something like Adams Grove my mind went into overdrive. As I stood there, I started to picture in my mind what it looked like when it was new. I looked at what I could see from the road. As I stood there, I started to focus on what I could see of the interior. Obviously from the road I could only see a small amount, but it was enough.

I could picture it as it appeared in the 1860’s. I had read that it was constructed mainly in 1853 and somewhere in the back of my mind I thought that I had read it was finished in early 1854. (Researching later I did not find a date of 1854 so I guess that was just a dream.) 

I captured a few frames of it and proceeded back to the Jeep where my wife and Taffy our little dog were waiting patiently for me.

Riding on I was focusing on driving and the church. Pondering on what I had read up on it and what I saw. I had read that there were four different entrances. One for the women, which I assumed from past stories on others of the same time frame was the left front. One for the men which I assumed from the same sources was the right one. Then there were two side entrances for slaves to enter and they sat in the balcony. I have never heard any sources say whether the man and women slaves entered different doors.

All of the sources I have seen said that it was of an Antebellum Greek Revival Styled Architecture.  

As I said earlier, something about it just captivates my mind when I think about it. The time and expense involved in building it. I can see the men, women, and children in my imagination going and coming. I can see the horses and carriages bringing people. Probably some lived close enough as in most cases with many churches of that era to walk to church without a horse or carriage.

Then as I always seem to move forward in time in my mind I can for whatever reason imagine that there were cars. First Model T’s and then newer and more modern cars. 

From the best understanding I can find the last services were held there in 1974 and it was added to the Historic Registry in 1986. It is now privately owned.

This is just one more treasure that is slowly slipping into time and decay. In my opinion it would take an immense amount to restore it but it would be incredible to see it restored to its former glory once again.

This is truly one of many Black Belt treasures that I have been fortunate enough to get to see and hopefully one of many more left for me to find and photograph.

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Mount Carmel Presbyterian Church

Here is a beautiful old church that caught my eye as we were out rambling. It is an example of one that has been preserved on the outside anyway. I do not know what the inside looks like nor if it is used for any kind of functions. 

It is located in Dallas County, a short distance from the Dallas Lowndes County Line. The local community is called Pleasant Hill. 32° 9′ 55.99 N 86° 54′ 31.212 W

According to the historical marker out front of this church it was a very old church that stopped meeting long ago. It served two different congregations for what would be considered by some standards generations.

It was originally a Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Originally it was named Mount Pleasant. It was organized on this location approximately 1821 by Rev. William James Moor. Rev Moor was a missionary from the Elk Presbytery of Tennessee. 

It was renamed Mount Carmel in 1827. The maker goes on to say that it provided early leadership for the Alabama Presbytery of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. 

The present structure was built in 1852. 

Pleasant Hill Presbyterian Church, PCUS, was formed in 1873 and shared this building with Mount Carmel.

Mount Carmel was defunct by, and Pleasant Hill became defunct by 1935. Pleasant Hill was dissolved in 1963. Pleasant Hill Cemetery Association was formed in 1973 to oversee the care of the property.

If you read my blogs and have further information on it feel free to share any information you might have on it. I always love to learn more and more information on these things.

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Ft. Deposit Methodist Church

Yesterday my wife and I were out rambling. We had our motorhome parked up in Southern Lowndes County. As always, we were looking for interesting things to photograph and learn about.

A few weeks ago, I had been through Ft. Deposit AL. taking pictures of the town as I have done so many in the past. When I came through before I had captured some images of a beautiful old church that I later learned was the Ft. Deposit Methodist Church. On the day I had come through before there was a food give away going on and there were cars lined up all over town waiting for the food that was being distributed. Because of that fact I could not get a shot of the church without cars in it, and I do not like to do that if possible. I had told my wife that if I could I would like to ride through and possibly capture some more shots of that one. 

We headed up to Ft. Deposit and made the turn down the street that this church was on and sure enough this time there was not a car in sight. That was awesome. I was excited beyond measure. On top of that they have been working on it when I was up before and now, they had painted the front and it looked incredible. I could not wait.

I parked my Jeep across the road and got my camera out and started to get into position to get a few shots. I heard a voice come from across the road where some men were working on finishing up the work on the paint. I walked across and the young man who introduced himself to me as Alan Little whose crew was working on the building started telling me about the building.

He asked me if I would like to get a few photos of the inside? Asking me that question would be like asking a pig if he liked mud. Of course, I wanted to. For me that is a rarity. Normally I do not go up close enough to these old churches to get inside. I do not want anything to happen to one and me be seen as the last one there. Normally I stay away although I love to take photos of them. Therefore, getting invited to take a few photos of this incredible old building was absolutely a treat.

He opened the door, and I went in. I was awestruck. Inside it is beautiful. I walked around and took random photos of the inside. The stained-glass windows were incredible. From my understanding they dated back to around 1800 but it was not clear to me where they had come from. I took several photos of the inside of the building, and they are shared here but honestly, I felt that they did not do this work of art justice. It is a show piece in my opinion.

As I walked through this incredible building, I was so thankful for the opportunity to get to witness it firsthand. I could imagine the finely dressed families coming in and sitting on the beautiful pews. I could in my mind hear the singing and then preaching that would have been there. 

As I walked out the door still daydreaming of what it might have been like I could visualize the carriages and wagons that people who drove would have been riding in. Being in town I would have figured that many would have quite possibly just walked to church thus not having a carriage or wagon to have to deal with. What an incredible show it would be to be able to see all of this as it was back then.

Once back outside, I saw on the side of the building a plaque that said Erected in 1861 Perfected 1899. From the best understanding I could determine the building was originally built in 1861. Then that building was destroyed or severely damaged and this building was completed in 1899. In the conversations concerning it I understood that the first service in this building was in Jan. 1900 although I did not catch the date.

After this preservation this grand old building should be standing several more decades and hopefully will continue to be preserved for centuries to come.

It was definitely an uplifting visit for me and I am so thankful that I got to witness it and be able to share it with those who follow my writings.

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Cane Creek Methodist Church

History is an incredible thing. Many of us take it personally to know all that there is to know about those things from our past.

Up till probably a year ago I did not know that Cane Creek Methodist Church at Chance Al existed, or should I say did not remember it existed.

Now in years past I had been to that part of the world and had ridden numerous back roads in and around it. I am sure that I had at some time passed it probably just oblivious to it. I am sure that I had seen it in fact but for whatever reason it never stuck.

About that time, I ran across a distant cousin of mine on Social Media and we were talking about our relatives from the past. Her grandfather and my grandmother were brother and sister. 

Knowing that I rambled backroads taking photos of old churches and such she asked me if I possibly had any photos of the Old Cane Creek Methodist Church. At that point it clicked. 

My Grandmother Ruby Bradford Knight was born in that part of the world in 1908. She had told me many stories of her early childhood living in that area. Now I can’t tell you for sure that she ever mentioned Cane Creek Methodist Church, but her family apparently were Methodist or she identified as Methodist although she never went to church that I knew of.

My great-grandmother and my grandmother’s brothers and sisters left the Chance area when my grandmother was 8 years old. That would have been 1816 apparently. She never mentioned the month or season of the year that I can remember anyway. Not totally sure of the circumstances under which they left. 

They were according to her version of the story traveling with an oxcart hauling their possessions that they brought with them. Their destination was Vredenburgh, Al. I have heard her recap numerous times the fact that they traveled to the ferry which apparently would have been at Lower Peachtree. 

One interesting thing about the story is that they spent the night at what was known as the King Plantation Mansion. This was a large Antebellum house that stood in that area. In the 1960’s it was dismantled and moved to Uriah, Al where it stands to this date. They spent the night there at the end of their first day of travel. They then left early and crossed the ferry with the oxcart. 

She never mentioned, that I remember hearing how long it took them to get to Vredenburgh. I would think that they would have had to spend one more night between the ferry and Vredenburgh but I do not know for sure. 

Anyway, back to Cane Creek Methodist Church. I am sure that there is a rich history of this old church as there is for most of the ones build throughout the US in the late 1800’s. From the design of it I would venture to say it was probably built mid to late 1800’s but that is only a guess. 

At the time of this writing I have not found anybody that has that history and I can only hope that possibly somebody reading this will come forward and give me that information because I would love to have it and possibly even write another blog post on it.

Like I mentioned earlier my cousin mentioned me getting a picture of it. So, I went and found it and got a few photos of it. The day I went there was logging equipment parked all around it where a logging crew was cutting timber there, so it was hard to get good shots of it but I was able to get a few. 

I had been planning to make a trip back into that part of the world in the not-too-distant future to get some more pictures of it. Hopefully this time there would be nothing around to interfere with good angles.

About a week ago I saw some photos on social media of it. I was shocked. A storm had come through and it had been blown off the blocks and severely damaged. I knew then that I had to go through and get some shots of it before it was gone.

This particular morning, I got up and headed out to Chance. 

I rounded the curve and saw it and it hurt me to see it. I pulled up and got my camera out and walked to various angles and took a few shots of it. 

As I stood there pondering over the dilemma that was present for this old church my mind went back in time. 

I started to think of all of the families and friends that had been there many years ago. I could visualize the men, women, boys, and girls coming and going. First, they would have come probably on wagons or riding horses. Possibly with Oxcarts or mules pulling them. Then I started to think, wonder when the first cars possibly came? 

As I walked to a different angle I started to think about the dinners on the ground. I pictured in my mind an outdoor table with fried chicken, and vegetables, and biscuits, and cornbread. I almost giggled as I pictured a washtub with sweet tea in it and a dipper to fill the glasses. 

As I walked back to the Jeep to get ready to leave, I started to focus my mind back to reality. This might be the last time I would ever see this old church. It was definitely the best condition, as bad is it was, that I would ever see it in. 

Like so many others here is one more that is about to be gone forever. A place that was community. A place where fellowship occurred. Where couples met. Where they were married. Where children were dedicated. A place of refuge. A place that was once held of high prominence that was now a fast-fading memory that the future generations would not even know existed.

It was a sad day that unfortunately for myself and many others like myself I will see played out hundreds of times in the future as I see old churches like this one that are slowly but surely being reclaimed by the earth back to the ground to be remembered no more.

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Lower Peach Tree United Methodist Church Visit

On a recent trip out in the areas on the West side of the Alabama River where the counties of Monroe, Wilcox, and Clarke all run together I went into an area that is almost like a no man’s land so to speak. The reason I say that is part of it belongs to Monroe County and is cut off by the river with no way to access it but, to come around through Clarke County, or go up and cross the river and come through Wilcox County. The areas of Clarke are remote and distant, and the areas in Wilcox are the same way. 

On this trip I wound up in Lower Peach Tree. Basically, Lower Peach Tree is an intersection of Wilcox County roads 35 and 1, with a convenience store most noticeably on the corner. I approached from the West coming into the intersection. Turning left and traveling North for only a short distance I found an old white church standing tall and stately beside a cemetery.

This was yet one more historic old Methodist Church with a strong long history in the Southland. Upon closer examination I found a small sign on the side of the church sign stating that it was listed as one of the Blackbelt Treasures. There was a number to call to get a recording on the history of the church.

Below is MY INTERPETATION  of what was given on that recording.

Peachtree Methodist Church and Cemetery.

The earliest church building was a log hewn building dating to their early 1820s. This was shortly after lower Peachtree was settled and Alabama became a state. 

 Around 1825 the Asbury Chapel or Church was built in the vicinity of Asbury Cemetery. Asbury Cemetery is now known by most as lower Peachtree Cemetery.  Both the church and cemetery were named in honor of Methodist Bishop Francis Asbury. 

In 1832 the Alabama conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church was formed.  Preaching places within the bounds of the Mobile district included lower Peachtree. 

The circuit preachers were John Laney and Gerald Whittington and the church continued in that circuit until 1846.

The church continued to be called Asbury Church by the local congregation. The first preacher appointed full time to the lower Peachtree circuit was Reverend Andrew J Hill in 1846.

Click picture to enlarge
Click picture to enlarge

The new site for the Lower Peachtree Methodist Church South occurred in 1873. At this time the Northrup family donated the land on which the present church is located. Construction of the current building was completed in 1874. The church remained active through the 1900s. This was in spite of the terrible tornado that hit lower Peachtree in 1913. That tornado left 28 dead and many others injured and much of the buildings in town demolished. Most of the persons killed by the storm are buried in the lower Peachtree cemetery.

 In February 1986 a meeting was held, the closing of the church was considered. The result of the meeting was continuous service on each 5th Sunday.

 There were less than 20 members on role. After that it was stated that services usually have over 20 persons present counting active members and visitors.  The annual homecoming is celebrated on the 4th Sunday in May.

Click picture to enlarge

I am not sure of the date of that recording. I am not sure when or if they have any kind of service at this church anymore. From the unkept appearance it is no longer in use but that is just an assumption. At any rate it is in need of sprucing back up. 

Click picture to enlarge

As I stood and looked at this beautiful old building and the surrounding property, I could only imagine the good times that had been experienced there by those in generations past. I could imagine the folks in the beginning coming on horseback and on wagons. In later years in buggies and finer carriages possibly. Then in times after that cars coming with some horses and mules still tied to the side. Finally just cars and pickups.

I could picture in my mind young people laughing and running. I could picture diners on the ground with piles of food. Ha ha I could almost smell the fried chicken and I got hungry and had to leave.

It saddens me every time I see one of these old churches that sits empty and no appearance of every being rejuvenated. Sitting out in a very rural area with no viable population close by.  As sad as it sounds it appears that this one will not last for another generation to enjoy.

I so hope I am wrong.

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Liberty Methodist Church

I was recently traveling through the area where Monroe, Wilcox, and Clarke, counties join. This is a very remote area West of the Alabama River. 31.911855, -87.611717

I was able to see this beautiful old church standing beside the road. I was excited to see that it was listed as one of the Black Belt Treasures. Above I shared the tag that you can call the number and get the information on it from.

Upon closer examination I found it to be an old Methodist Church. As with so many of the old churches I see in my travels it had the trademark single doors one on each side. I mention it often when I comment on these old churches. This appears to be a very common way to date many of these old churches as mid to late 1800’s builds. Although not all inclusive it seems to be a common thread of many. It was not a particular of any one denomination. 

On more than one occasion I have been told that the single doors one on each side were for a reason. The men and older boys would enter and sit on the right-hand side of the church through the right door. The women girls and small children would enter through the left door, and they would sit on the left side of the church. Walking through the grounds of this beautiful old church one could only wonder at the numbers of families that this church had served in the years it was in active service.

Click picture to enlarge
Click picture to enlarge

Standing on the property it is like one can feel a sense of unity, joy and peace that it has brought to hundreds, if not thousands over the century that it has stood.

Liberty Methodist Church is located in Southwestern Wilcox County, Alabama. It is located on County Road 1 about three miles South of the community of Sunny South. You see it on your right as you head South towards Lower Peachtree.

Liberty Methodist was built in the mid 1800’s and was active through the mid 1900’s. At the time of this update, I have not heard a date that it closed for regular services. The church is now under private ownership.

Click picture to enlarge

There is now an annual homecoming event held each year the first Sunday in October. The church stands adjoining to a well-kept cemetery that contains the graves of many of the early settlers of the area around where it stands.

This is yet one more reminder of a great beautiful old church that was in all probability the glue that held a community together until the numbers of people in the community dwindled until there was not enough left to keep the doors open.