Alabama History & Culture News: November 14 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Enjoy!

Birmingham creative duo publishes children's book 'Orange Porange' Alabama NewsCenter Community. Alabama's Jacqueline Allen Trimble is an educator, poet, essayist and sharer. The state supplies endless material for a writer, she says.

Book review: Rick Bragg returns with a collection of his short works Chattanooga Times Free Press ... as a chronicler of the working-class South with "All Over but the Shoutin'," a memoir of his northeast Alabama family. Six more books have followed, ...

New novel 'Reviving the Hawthorn Sisters' is as Southern, and as Gothic, as they come StarNewsOnline.com You don't find many dead mules or decaying plantation mansions these days, in real life or in books. Still, Alabama native Emily Carpenter proves ...

Graphic novel version of classic science memoir aims for new audiences Mongabay.com ... as “one of the finest scientific memoirs ever written,” the book explores Wilson's childhood exploring nature in Alabama and the Florida panhandle.

LOOKING BACK AT OUR HISTORY: Zora Neale Hurston: Harlem renaissance writer newportri.com I found the book distinctive for the precision she took in expressing the ... He is called Cudjo Lewis and is living at present at Plateau, Alabama, ..

This grave shelter in Alabama is noted for unusual size, architecture al.com Alongside Alabama Highway 5 near Thomasville, a gate between two brick columns guards one of Alabama's historical cemeteries. Airmount ...

Alabama Power Foundation helps Mobile history museum preserve story of Clotilda survivors Alabama NewsCenter The museum, in partnership with the Alabama Historical Commission, will use the funds to help create, curate and construct the new Clotilda exhibit in ...

Roane State sponsors virtual showing of Playhouse production of 'Alabama Story' Oak Ridger She portrayed Emily Wheelock Reed, director of the Alabama Public Library System who defended the children's book titled “The Rabbits' Wedding.”.

Alabama city celebrates its 150-year-old Black cemetery

al.com

One hundred and thirty Black veterans of America's wars. Dr. Burgess Scruggs, the first licensed Black physician in Alabama. Daniel S. Brandon and ...

Historic Gadsden cemetery erects new headstones for veterans News Break GADSDEN, Ala. (WBRC) - Volunteers restoring a historic Black cemetery in Gadsden say they were able to restore nearly two dozen tombstones of ...

HBO documentary will detail snake-handling Scottsboro preacher's attempted murder case Gadsden Times Whether it's haunted the hills of North Alabama may be debatable, but the story has had staying power — inspired books and prior true crime ...

Trebek's death spurs memory of Alabama woman's Jeopardy! appearance al.com We sat in a circle of people who were majoring in history, English, and political science. When the categories were biology or chemistry, we knew we'd ...

PRESERVING HISTORY Jackson County Sentinel Robinson did the research and paperwork to have the cemetery added to the Alabama Historic Cemetery Register in May 2019. And this fall, he had a ...

Opinion | Jim Martin: The father of modern Republican Party in Alabama

alreporter.com

As commissioner, Martin helped create the Forever Wild land preservation program. Jim Martin has a special place in Alabama political history. See you ...

INSIDE THE STATEHOUSE: Jim Martin helped build modern Republican Party in the South - Tuscaloosa News

Full Coverage

New book shows what's left of Alabama's abandoned mines al.com There's a secret world beneath the ground in Alabama. ... a Facebook page where they share history and photos from their weekend explorations ...

Alabama History: Re-examined WSFA MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - In a bold move, the Alabama Department of Archives and History admitted that early on when it was first established, ...

Restoring headstones to remember Black veterans at historic cemetery Gadsden Times The cemetery was listed on the Alabama Historic Register in 2013, and the City of Gadsden maintains the road to it. A historic marker placed in 2013 ...

Restoring headstones to remember Black veterans at historic cemetery Gadsden Times The cemetery was listed on the Alabama Historic Register in 2013, and the City of Gadsden maintains the road to it. A historic marker placed in 2013 ...

New book aims to inspire wonder for Alabama's rich and diverse wildlife News Courier A new book from Hello Earth Press highlights Alabama's unique natural wonders for readers ages 9 to 12 and beyond. The debut book release is the ...

Alabama-related 'Jeopardy!' clues from over the years

al.com

“Rose Parks changed history in 1955 when she refused to give up her seat to a white person on a bus in this city.” Correct response: What is ...

John Vachon Photographs Gadsden in 1940

I seldom revisit older posts on this blog, but I'm doing that here. In December 2014 I posted "Christmas Shopping in Gadsden in December 1940". In that piece I wrote, 

"These nine photographs were taken by John Vachon in Gadsden, Alabama, apparently on a Saturday in December 1940. Vachon was one of a number of photographers who traveled America from 1935 until 1945 documenting conditions and activities during the Depression and WWII for the U.S. Farm Security Administration and the Office of War Information. He worked for the OWI in 1942 and 1943. Almost 8300 of his photographs can be seen here. Vachon was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1914 and died in 1975."

Those nine photos and some further comments are below. In this post I add two more of Vachon's Gadsden photographs that have nothing to do with Christmas but were taken at the same time. I included in the previous post  some background on my connection with Gadsden and discussion of details in some of the photos. I repeat that information below and expand on those details.  

I've also done a post on Vachon's photo shoot with Marilyn Monroe in Canada as a lame attempt to connect MM with Alabama. A not-so-lame attempt--Marilyn Monroe and Truman Capote--is coming soon. 

FURTHER READING 

John Vachon’s America: Photographs and Letters from the Depression to World War II. Berkeley, California: University of California Press, 2003

John Vachon [1914-1975]

Source: Wikipedia

In the upper left you can see a bit of the Christmas decorations hanging everywhere along Broad Street, Gadsden's main street at the time and the location of Vachon's photographs. 

As you can see below as well, he seems to have taken many of these shots from the second story of some building. 

On the right a temporary "Grant's Toy Land" sign hangs above the store's permanent one. Grant's was a variety store chain that operated in the United States from 1906 to 1976.

That sign on the left says Lane Drugs. In the photo below with the Texaco sign, you can see Lane's storefront and this sign from another angle. Oddly, I did not find a Lane Drugs in the February 1940 Gadsden telephone directory. 

Behind the Lane sign is the Guarantee Shoe store sign seen again below. In the background on the right are the Texaco sign as well as signs for Hagedorn's, Hoffmans Jewelers [listed in the June 1933 city phone book], Belk-Hudson, Economy Auto Stores, Sterch, and Coca Cola. 

Even in a much larger version of this photo there are a number of signs on both sides of the street I can't make out. 

The Etowah County courthouse is prominent in two photographs; the other one is below.

Are these gentlemen carrying just-purchased Christmas presents?

A Texaco sign is visible here. The ad below is the only one for a Texaco station I could find in the February 1940 Gadsden telephone directory.

Across the street is the storefront and sign for Lane Drugs. Across the street from that business, diagonal from the Texaco sign, is the Grant store on the corner. 

Chestnut Street runs parallel to Broad and is one block over, so I presume this station is the Texaco one being advertised on the sign above. 

Here we can see signs for Guarantee Shoe Company, Allen Finance Plan Loans,  and the Raines and Raines law firm. The shoe store was listed at this same 412 Broad Street address in the June 1933 phone book. In that year, W.G. Raines practiced law solo with a courthouse address; perhaps by 1940 a son had joined him at this office. 

On the right can be seen the signs for Hoffman Jewelers and Belk-Hudson. 

The time appears to have been high noon when this photo was taken. 

Alabama History & Culture News: November 7 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Enjoy!

The Alabama miners strike of 1920—striking a blow at racism Socialist Worker His book, Race, Class and Power and in the Alabama Coalfields 1908-1921, shows how the colour line could break down on the picket line.

Alabama author Fannie Flagg catches up with beloved 'Fried Green Tomatoes' characters in new ... whnt.com (WIAT) – Years ago, Fannie Flagg said goodbye to “Whistle Stop,” the fictional Alabama town best known as the setting for her 1987 novel, “Fried ...

Have you visited these Alabama musical attractions? Alabama NewsCenter Alabama has a rich musical history that has given way to a vibrant musical legacy. We've brought you stories of Alabama Music Makers carrying on ...

Alabama Veterans Museum and Archives in Athens announces new facility whnt.com Museum volunteer Jerry Crabtree said with such rich history embedded in the museum it's a landmark for the community.

Our Picks for the 2020 Portland Book Festival Portland Monthly Genevieve Hudson's Boys of Alabama—“a magical, deeply felt novel” per Kirkus—somehow skipped my radar on its May release, but I've since been ...

Moulton restaurant holds Historic Register dedication Moulton Advertiser Moulton restaurant holds Historic Register dedication ... celebration on Halloween after the restaurant was listed on Alabama's Historic Register.

State officials recognize historical preservation efforts of the Elba Chamber of Commerce WDHN - DothanFirst.com Elba, Ala. (WDHN)—In Elba on Wednesday, a statewide delegation of the chamber of commerce and main street officials came together

Review: “The Witches” is a poor adaptation of beloved book Ithaca College The Ithacan This year's “The Witches” is a new adaptation of the 1983 novel of the same name. The story takes place in 1960s Alabama and follows a young boy ...

'Alabama Story' sparking conversations at CCP Crossville Chronicle Emily Wheelock Reed, director of the Alabama Public Library Service Division, put the book into circulation. State Sen. E.W. Higgins wanted the book ...

Mobile trail gives visitors glimpse of city's multicultural beginnings Alabama NewsCenter While conducting a tour of Mobile's historic Africatown, Karlos Finley said his ... Dora Franklin Finley African-American Heritage Trail from Alabama ...

St. Bartley Primitive Baptist Church celebrates 200 years! WAFF Alabama history. American history. [ READ MORE: State's oldest black church, baptisms, beginnings remembered during bicentennial ].

Dothan native serves up a tasty thriller [Charles McNair] Dothan Eagle I held a Nikon; Charles gripped a copy of his first novel, the Pulitzer ... Even so, every one of my novels is set in Alabama … and I think the ones I write ...

Anne Hathaway Takes On Role Anjelica Huston Made Famous In Remake Of 'The Witches' Spectrum News NY1 In this version, grandma is from Alabama. In the book, she is from Norway. Spencer says she hopes their version of “The Witches” is a family affair for ...

Local spots steeped in haunted legends The Alexander City Outlook Every graveyard, church and lonely bend in one of Alabama's highways is ... The cemetery sits back from the road, surrounded by a chain-link fence, ...

Dick Cooper's photo exhibit at Alabama Music Hall of Fame dives into Shoals music history whnt.com — Through the end of the year, patrons visiting the Alabama Music Hall of Fame will have the opportunity to dive into even more music history. The ...

The Haunted History of OldTown The Southeast Sun The tale of Grancer Harrison may be the most well known ghost story in Alabama but OldTown carries even more history. About one mile down an old ...

Pea River Historical and Genealogy Society has museum opened back up for tours WTVY, Dothan “What we do as to collecting and preserving and making available the history of the southeast Alabama doesn't just include Coffee County so our ...

LAMP graduate launches historic magazine at UA WSFA (WSFA) - A Montgomery student is making history at the University of Alabama. Tionna Taite, LAMP graduate and Alabama sophomore is the creator ...

Fannie Flagg takes us back to Whistle Stop in 'Fried Green Tomatoes' sequel al.com The 283-page novel takes readers back to the people and places Flagg ... In the past, she's made it a point to begin her book tours in Alabama -- “It's ...

Preserving a legacy at this roadside Alabama BBQ joint al.com All of the employees at Hughes' restaurant are women, and they all do a little bit of everything, she says.(Photo by Art Meripol, from the book "Alabama ..

Kathryn Tucker Windham's ghost stories through the eyes of her daughter Dilcy Windham Hilley Bham Now As one of Alabama's greatest storytellers, I saw her often at library events or book fairs before she died in 2011 at the age of 93. Even though we never ...

Alabama's Fannie Flagg Returns to Whistle Stop in New Novel alabamawx.com Alabama's Fannie Flagg Returns to Whistle Stop in New Novel. October 26, 2020 @ 6:00 pm • By Alabama News Center. Click HERE to see the full ...

Mobile's Magnolia Cemetery is a 'magical landscape'

al.com

... of the first citizens to be buried in Magnolia Cemetery: Judge Henry Hitchcock, one of Alabama's first millionaires, who died of yellow fever in 1837.

The Slave Preacher Owned by Alabama Baptists

Last year I wrote a blog post on a slave named Harry Talbird who saved several Howard College students during a fire in Marion in 1854 and lost his own life in the process. Money was raised for a monument to him which stands in Marion Cemetery. In this post I want to write about another Alabama slave who also has a monument of sorts.

Caesar Blackwell has a Wikipedia entry; more about him is given in the piece below by Pastor Gary Burton. Wikipedia notes his birth year as 1769, but neither it nor the Burton item give information about his life until he appears as a slave of John Blackwell in Montgomery County. In 1821 Caesar joined the Antioch Baptist Church in Mt. Meigs, the first Baptist congregation in the county. The church was founded in 1818 by James McLemore, an important leader among early Baptists in Alabama. 

Caesar Blackwell could read and write, unusual skills for a slave. When his owner Blackwell died, the Antioch church tried to buy his freedom but was unsuccessful. Then the Alabama Baptist Association purchased him, and he moved in with  McLemore, who already owned Caesar's wife and child. McLemore preached to large crowds of both whites and slaves; Caesar became an assistant preacher and had a library of books for study. 

Caesar also preached to blacks, and was praised by whites for his efforts to convert his audiences from black "superstitions". He was very busy and paid well for his efforts until 1835, when the Nat Turner rebellion  in Virginia struck fear into whites across the South. After that, Caesar could only accept expenses and his activities were restricted.

Caesar died on October 10, 1845. The Association raised money for his grave marker; you can read the inscription below. Burton says about his grave, "The marble slab today is obscured by shrubs only a few feet outside the fence that encloses the McLemore-Taylor Cemetery located in the posh neighborhood of Greystone in East Montgomery."

Caesar Blackwell was one of a number of slave preachers in the antebellum South. His remarkable life deserves a more extensive telling.

For further reading, see  Flynt, Wayne (1998). Alabama Baptists: Southern Baptists in the Heart of Dixie. University of Alabama Press, pp. 45–47

Source: Find-A-Grave

The material below is taken from the Find-A-Grave site. The author of the text is unidentified there, but is taken from 

Burton, Gary (2007). "Caesar Blackwell (1769-1845): the work and times of central Alabama's nineteenth-century slave-evangelist". Alabama Baptist Historian. At the time of publication, Burton was the pastor of Pintlala Baptist Church, Hope Hull, Alabama; he is still there today. 

BIRTH	1769 Mitylene, Montgomery County, Alabama, USA
DEATH	10 Oct 1845 (aged 75–76) Montgomery County, Alabama, USA
BURIAL	McLemore Taylor Burying Ground Montgomery County, Alabama, USA

Although he lived and died in slavery, his ownership changed from John B. Blackwell to the Alabama Baptist Association (ABA). Caesar's early creative attempt at missions was quite impressive. The effectiveness of the slave-evangelist, Caesar, indicated by the surviving references to the high demand for his preaching and related services, is a powerful confirmation to his skill as a communicator. His itinerant ministry was widespread within the association and sometimes beyond. Despite his fame, most historical treatments of Caesar's ministry have been expressed in one or two paragraphs.

Caesar's Popularity

A Negro slave, named Caesar, a bright, smart, robust fellow was ordained to preach. His ability was so marked, and the confidence which he enjoyed was so profound, that Rev. James McLemore would frequently have Caesar attend him upon his preaching tours. He was sometimes taken by Mr. McLemore into the pulpit, and never failed of commanding the most rapt and respectful attention....

In 1821, Caesar, a servant of John Blackwell, joined the Antioch church by experience and baptism. Two years after he was licensed by the church to preach the Gospel, and in 1827, he was solemnly ordained to the ministry by a Presbytery consisting of elders Harris, Davis, McLemore and Harrod. ... After he became the property of the Association, he made his home at Rev. Jas. McLemore's, who
owned his wife and only child. He was furnished with a horse to ride--and had an extensive library of books, and as he had been taught in early life to read and write, he spent his time, when not otherwise employed, in reading and study. 'Uncle Caesar' was an excellent mechanic, and before his strength failed, he devoted a part of his time working for the neighbors, who rewarded him liberally for his services. While thus engaged with his hands, he was in the habit of having his Bible, or some other good book before him, and occasionally reading a paragraph for study and meditation, and in this way he acquired much of that knowledge which elevated him above others of his race. As a preacher of the Gospel, 'Uncle Caesar' had few superiors in his day and generation.

Caesar's Death and Posthumous Recollections

The ABA trustees reported on "our late colored brother, Caesar." The report was referred to the Committee on Documents, which encouraged the trustees to finalize Caesar's affairs by the next year and to expend the necessary money for a tombstone. Caesar's affairs were not resolved, and the tombstone had not even been ordered. Once again the trustees were encouraged to bring the matter to closure.

When Caesar died in 1845, the ABA took note of his death and did so with profound appreciation. His trustees were authorized to sell his house and real estate in Montgomery. The proceeds were used to furnish his grave with a marble slab inscribed:

Sacred to the Memory of
REV. CAESAR BLACKWELL,
Who departed this life Oct. 10, 1845.
in the 76th year of his age.
He was a colored man, and a slave;
But he rose above his condition, and
was for 40 years a faithful and acceptable
preacher of the Gospel.
The stone is reared as a tribute of respect to his memory, by his brethren of The Alabama Baptist Association.

The marble slab today is obscured by shrubs only a few feet outside the fence that encloses the McLemore-Taylor Cemetery located in the posh neighborhood of Greystone in East Montgomery.

In remembering Caesar, one person wrote with much fondness:
When I used to see old Caesar coming down the lane to my father's house, Saturday evenings, that he might preach at the log church not far away the next day, I used to run with all my might to meet him. He would lift me from the ground and place me near the mule's wet ears and I would embrace and kiss old Caesar. I was only a child, but with the frosts of many winters on my head, whiter now than was old Caesar's then, I still love the memory and cherish it
as did my father and mother, till they, as I am, grew old and with old Caesar joined.., angels, whose melody doubtless provoked the celestial conflict of which I was dreaming.

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