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Blacksher
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BLACKSHER: An old community located 5 miles northeast of Tensaw, was listed in census of 1890 and was probably named for the family of first postmaster, Blacksher, who was appointed in 1889. Once known as Montpelier, Blacksher has beautiful pine timber forests, little traffic, and much history. In 1910, it consisted of six general stores and a (Wilson Naval Store) facility. Made up of about six square acres of land in upper Baldwin County, Blacksher’s timber industry is vital and the main reason for the settlement. Tom Bradley, Francis Earle, Jeptha and Uriah Blacksher and the Coghlin Family are among the names of early settlers. Earle and Bradley were timbermen, farmers and cattlemen. They were large landowners in the settlement with open range land. Their herds of cattle which were in open range were gathered several times a year, marked and branded with each owner’s own ear mark and brand.
Danny Hall, who never married, owned timberland here but most of his land was in the Tensaw area which covered the “Boat Yard” boat landing.
The “Blacksher News Notes” of August 15, 1918, in the Onlooker newspaper tells us “Word has been received here from Mr. Lawrence G. Brown, one of Blacksher’s most popular young men, who left here some time ago for Camp Sevier, South Carolina, said that he had crossed over safely in “yonder land. Also, among those that attended the ice cream social at Little River from here Thursday night were Mr. and Mrs. A. T. Wilson, Misses Gussie and Jaytee Wilson, Miss Alice Butler and Mr. Bosso Wilson.”
This information is from an unknown source, sent in by Carolyn Dickinson of Silverhill
28 files, last one added on Jul 14, 2009
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Blakely
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Today, the unincorporated municipality of Blakeley is a peaceful, growing community. However, its history is marked by years of hardship.
Blakeley is the oldest town in Baldwin County and one of the oldest in the State of Alabama. The town reached its zenith in the 1820s with a population of nearly 4,000. It was a bustling seaport town by the Tensaw River and boasted hotels, stores, churches, beautiful homes and the first courthouse of present-day Baldwin County. While Blakeley once thrived, it is now considered to be “the South’s loveliest ghost town.” The land has been reclaimed by nature, and only the 400-year-old oak trees grace boulevards that used to be the streets of the community, which was wiped out by yellow fever epidemics and land speculation across the bay in Mobile.
Blakeley (some spell it Blakely) was transformed into a fort during the Civil War and housed an army camp of more than 4,000 soldiers. The last day of the war saw a contingent of 20,000 soldiers fight in the last major battle of the War Between the States. Somewhere between 6,000 and 9,000 black soldiers fought at Blakeley for the Union, making Blakeley the site of the third-largest contingent of black troops in the Civil War. Historic Blakeley State Park was created in 1981.
8 files, last one added on Apr 16, 2008
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Bon Secour
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Bon Secour, Alabama is located along the eastern coastline of Bon Secour Bay, (a contiguous bay that sits to the east of Mobile Bay). Over 35 miles due east of the Alabama-Mississippi state line, near Gulf Shores, Alabama and over 45 miles west of Pensacola, Florida. The name "Bon Secour" derives from the French phrase meaning "safe harbor" due to the secluded location on the inside coast of the Fort Morgan peninsula of southern Alabama.
Bon Secour lies on the Bon Secour River. Elevation is 10 feet above sea level. The estuarial river system empties into Bon Secour / Mobile Bay.
The population of the town was recorded as 302. However, since hurricane Ivan, single family housing developments and the population have continued to grow at an amazing rate.
Bon Secour is sometimes mentioned in hurricane report statistics, for the region, since Bon Secour is the first town inside the eastern coastline of Mobile Bay when entering the bay from the south, indicating weather and tide conditions for the population at the south end of Mobile Bay, nearest the entrance to the Gulf of Mexico. By contrast, Mobile, Alabama is located near the (diagonally opposite) north end of Mobile Bay, much farther from the Gulf tide and hurricane storm surges.
Bon Secour has a rich history. It was originally a French fishing village settlement dating back to the late 19th century. Currently it is a beautiful, southern gothic, waterfront community that serves as a safe harbor (as named), to a current commercial fishing fleet. There are several major seafood industry businesses currently operating out of the Bon Secour estuary.
15 files, last one added on Jul 14, 2009
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Elberta
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Elberta was founded in the early 20th century by a Chicago based land company. The Baldwin County Colonization Company was organized in 1903 and the first settlers arrived in 1904. The community was founded by farmers who had immigrated from Germany to the midwest of America. The land company advertized the area as having rich soil and a climate that allowed year round farming. The first two organized churches were Lutheran (1908) and Catholic (1911). ("Land of Milk and Honey" by John Haupt as told to Nina Keenam, 1990)
The land company laid out Baldwin County in the manner found in the midwest; that is to say, roads were laid out on section lines that were due north-south and east-west. Property, especially farms, were laid out in squares. With the immigration taking these farmers through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and other midwestern states, the early years of the community resembled midwestern farming communities more than those of the deep south. In the 1930's through the 1940's, the town boasted a farmer's hall where dancing and singing were enjoyed, a hotel, a movie theatre, as well as a butcher shop, grocery and drug store. Many of the residents spoke German and St. Mark's Lutheran Church offered German language services until 1976.
The State Bank of Elberta was incorporated in 1922. The bank was unusual in that it did not close during the Great Depression.
The town was incorporated by vote on December 9, 1952.
To support the town's volunteer fire department, "The Elberta German Sausage Festival" was started in the 1980's. This event is held the last weekend of March and the last weekend of October and features polka music, smoked German sausage, and home made baked goods.
The town is the home of the Baldwin County Heritage Museum. The museum is located on US Highway 98 east of the town. It features exhibits devoted to the development of Baldwin County. The museum includes a large amount of farm equipment and exhibits of life in farm homes. The old St. Mark's Lutheran Church building was moved to the grounds and restored.
28 files, last one added on Jan 05, 2009
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Daphne
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Historical records indicate Spanish explorers discovered this area as early as 1557. Researchers have excavated many valuable relics showing that the Tensaw, Alabama, Choctaw, Creeks, and Seminole Indians all lived in this area prior to 1557. The community of Daphne dates as far back as 1763 when it was commonly known as "The Village". French troops and later British troops occupied the area. Other well known historical areas can be found in nearby battle grounds located at Blakeley, north of Daphne; Fort Morgan at Gulf Shores: and Fort Gaines at Dauphin Island near Mobile.
Records indicate April 9, 1874 as the actual establishment of the town to be called Daphne with the designation of a Postmaster and official Post Office for the Community. Daphne was a resort area prior to the War between the States . In the early 1900's, several Italian families settled in Daphne and brought with them great expertise in agriculture and a tradition of foods and wine. Their family names remain an important part of Daphne's heritage. The "Festa Italiana", sponsored by Christ the King Church Sodality, held each spring in conjunction with the Eastern Shore Chamber's Arts & Crafts Festival, entices the crowd with homemade pastas, sauces, and delightful foods and crafts prepared from family traditions. The Festa truly emphasizes the wonderful heritage brought to this area from Italy.
Daphne was incorporated on July 8, 1927 with a population of only 500. Originally, Daphne was the Baldwin County seat of government. However, Daphne's courthouse records were stolen one night by the rival community of Bay Minette, where the Baldwin County seat of government remains today.
17 files, last one added on Mar 24, 2008
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Fairhope
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In 1837 the area now know as Fairhope was Alabama Village. You may see it on our 1837 map of Baldwin County.
Fairhope was founded in November, 1894 as a utopian single tax colony by the "Fairhope Industrial Association": a group of 28 followers of economist Henry George who had incorporated earlier that year in Des Moines, Iowa. Their corporate constitution explained their purpose in founding a new colony:
"to establish and conduct a model community or colony, free from all forms of private monopoly, and to secure to its members therein equality of opportunity, the full reward of individual efforts, and the benefits of co-operation in matters of general concern."
In forming their demonstration project, they pooled their funds to purchase land at "Stapleton's pasture" on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay and then divided it into a number of long-term leaseholds. The corporation paid all governmental taxes from rents paid by the lessees, thus simulating a single-tax. The purpose of the singe-tax colony was to eliminate disincentives for productive use of land and thereby retain the value of land for the community, offering "a fair hope of success" and a clear vision.[2]
"Fairhope Avenue" was one of the properties on the 1910 version of the board game "The Landlord's Game". Today this game is known as "Monopoly".
58 files, last one added on Jul 18, 2009
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Lillian
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Lillian is a community of about 6,000 people, on the eastern side of Baldwin County, Alabama. Lillian sits on the north shore of Perdido Bay. It is the second-largest organized unincorporated community in Baldwin County. As of March,12, 2006,the Mobile Register reported that the community is trying to incorporate itself to stop it from being annexed by the city of Orange Beach, the third fastest growing in Baldwin County, Alabama and first in annexing communities around it. The community was named for Lillian Kee, the daughter of William Thomas Kee, postmaster.
4 files, last one added on Jul 14, 2009
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Loxley
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John Loxley came to this area at the turn of the century (1900) to establish a lumber camp that included a commissary and a sawmill. A large number of men came with him, then stayed to settle and marry here. John Loxley is considered the founder of Loxley. There was a small village named Bennet here when Mr. Loxley arrived.
In 1920 the businesses in Loxley were an egg store, grocery store, two general merchandise stores, a train depot, drug store, telegraph office, land office, repair garage, post office, bank, hotel, butcher shop, orange packing shed, cement block plant, a blacksmith, a feed and lumber store. The main road was Highway 90; it was not paved then. Walter "Pop" Hammond had a grocery in the George Marinos building.
The only church in town was the Methodist Church, the Baptist Church having blown down in the 1916 hurricane. Everyone went to the Methodist Church. The Episcopal Church was considered "out in the woods" as it was located northwest of town.
The railroad was first opened on May 5, 1906. The only roads were the wagon roads to Bay Minette. The railroad was called the Fort Morgan Line, as it originally intended to go that far.
The present post office was officially opened in 1906 by Octavia Sauer. She was the official postmistress and depot agent combined.
The grammar school was built in 1925.
After the timber had been cut Mr. Loxley returned to Chicago. Real estate men tried to sell the land for $.25 an acre, but people declined rather than pay taxes on it.
The Town of Loxley incorporated in March, 1957.
In the 1870s Fred Loxley moved his sawmill operation from Michigan and set up of what we now term Loxley. There were many mills In the area of South Baldwin and the entire area of Baldwin. By 1900 when the L & N Railroad come through much of the area had been cutover and Baldwin had its start as farm land and a prosperous farming community at this time. Loxley today Is surrounded by beautiful grazing cattle land, pecan groves and forming. Like all of our communities It started with the simple cabins and grew into the fine comfortable self-sufficient farmsteads such as the Bill house.
Credits to: http://en.wikipedia.org
7 files, last one added on Sep 09, 2007
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Magnolia Springs
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Magnolia Springs, five miles west of Foley, Alabama, near the Gulf of Mexico, offers the weekend traveler a trip back in time. Founded in the early 1800s by a Spanish land grant, it is the last town in the United States where mail is delivered year-round by boat.
The springs which give the town its name burble up from the bottom of the Magnolia River. The water was alleged to have curative properties; by the early 1900s hundreds of visitors a year came to the area seeking to recover their health by drinking the waters. Today the main legacy of Magnolia Springs’ heyday as a resort is the canopy of oak trees which arch over the main street.
Magnolia Springs, at the headwaters of the Magnolia River, is located in the southwest quadrant of Baldwin County, Alabama. From the earliest times, the small community has been accessible by small craft and steam packets. Originally, the Magnolia River was known as River de Lin, or River del Salto.
In 1800, the Spanish granted the tract of land, including what would become Magnolia Springs to Joseph Collins. Collins operated several turpentine stills in the area, and a small settlement surrounded them. During this time, a plantation home was built at the head of the Magnolia River.
When Union soldiers, now 20,000 strong, moved from Navy Cove to Spanish Fort in 1865, they passed near the mills. To prevent its capture, the owners burned the stills. The plantation home was spared. Six years after the war, in 1881, Mrs. Lizzie Breed purchased the land for 50 cents an acre. She and her son opened an Inn in the home named the Breed Hotel. In 1894, a large parcel of land along and back from the river was subdivided into the Lymans Addition of Magnolia Springs creating 52 lots, and several streets.
24 files, last one added on Jan 05, 2009
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Malbis
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Toward the end of the last century a young man of poor parentage was brought by his father from Doumena, a small town in Greece where he was born, to the nearby monastery of the Great Cave in order to be consecrated there and hear the word of God. The young man whose name was Antonios Markopolos, remained in the monastery for several years humbly performing the duties of a Monk. Yet, the narrow confines of a monastery was not the proper place for such an active and ambitious young man imbued with the teachings of the Gospel. Spreading the Gospel was his primary aim and purpose. He was a Christian, humanitarian and a philanthropist all rolled into one. Several of his friends had sailed to America so he decided to go also. He traveled to Chicago from his home in Greece and found his friend William Papageorge. Antonios had his legal name changed to Jason Malbis while in Chicago. Jason and William lived together sharing the bills while in Chicago planning their future. One day during the year 1906 he and William set out in search of the land of their dreams. They traveled from city to city through the states of Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Mississippi and after a six month journey arrived in Mobile, Alabama.
One day in the late afternoon following work, the two friends were sitting on a park bench at Bienville Square, planning the course that they would take to achieve their goals which were to purchase land and spread the gospel. It seems their intention was to start a commune to do this. They looked up and saw a sign which read " Low Cost Land For Sale" They contacted the real estate office and arranged a trip to Daphne to see the property. They purchased 120 acres at $5 per acre in 1906 at the present day Malbis location. They made friends with Mr. and Mrs. William Grabham who lived in the area and took up residence with them until they built a suitable home.
Six months later a third friend joined them. His name was John Vocolis from Chicago and his purpose was to pool his resources with the two pioneers. John was also a devout Christian. In this manner the three friends comprised an ideal, al worked together and cooperated for the success of the common cause. After some time two more friends arrived from Chicago who brought and contributed their savings to the common cause.
After the third year (1909) the group decided to purchase an additional 600 acres of the adjoining property. Gradually more friends arrived and united their efforts with the workers already their. They had everything in common and all did there best for the cause. Things went along normally and the years passed by quickly. The colony's enterprises were expanded and more newcomers were added daily to the community. They came in search of a Christian life of peaceful coexistence and love.
To be continued....
This book report is by Max Ard, Summerdale, Al.
"The Faith of Jason Malbis" written in 1967 by his followers.
11 files, last one added on Sep 09, 2007
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Spanish Fort
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Established on July 19, 1993, Spanish Fort is the newest incorporated city on the Eastern Shore. Located high on a hill overlooking the delta, it is directly east across the bay from Mobile. The city’s name fits its history, as it was occupied on two occasions by opposing armies during the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Civil War. Breastworks from the Civil War still remain throughout the city in area subdivisions.
Now a very popular residential community, the City of Spanish Fort also features one of the area’s largest shopping centers, the Eastern Shore Centre. The city has an integral part in the Eastern Shore’s continued economic growth, as well as in its overall quality of life.
Spanish Fort
Civil War Alabama
American Civil War
March 27-April 8, 1865
Major General E.R.S. Canby's XIII and XVI corps moved along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay forcing the Confederates back into their defenses. Union forces then concentrated on Spanish Fort and Fort Blakely.
On March 27, 1865, Canby's forces rendezvoused at Danley's Ferry and immediately undertook a siege of Spanish Fort. The Union had enveloped the fort by April 1, and on April 8 captured it.
Most of the Confederate forces, under the command of Brigadier General Randall L. Gibson, escaped and fled to Mobile, but Spanish Fort was no longer a threat.
Result(s): Union victory
Location: Baldwin County
Campaign: Mobile Campaign (1865)
Date(s): March 27-April 8, 1865
Principal Commanders: Major General E.R.S. Canby [US]; Brigadier General Randall L. Gibson [CS]
Forces Engaged: XVI and XIII Corps [US]; Spanish Fort Garrison [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 1,401 (US 657; CS 744)
9 files, last one added on Jul 30, 2009
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The Civil War
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Mobile Bay
Passing of Fort Morgan and Fort Gaines
Civil War Alabama
American Civil War
August 2-23, 1864
A combined Union force initiated operations to close Mobile Bay to blockade running. Some Union forces landed on Dauphin Island and laid siege to Fort Gaines.
On August 5, Farragut's Union fleet of eighteen ships entered Mobile Bay and received a devastating fire from Fort Gaines and Fort Morgan and other points. After passing the forts, Farragut forced the Confederate naval forces, under Admiral Franklin Buchanan, to surrender, which effectively closed Mobile Bay.
By August 23, Fort Morgan, the last big holdout, fell, shutting down the port. The city, however, remained uncaptured.
Results(s): Union victory
Forces Engaged: Farragut's Fleet (14 wooden ships and 4 monitors) and U.S. army forces near Mobile [US]; Buchanan's Flotilla (3 gunboats and an ironclad), Fort Morgan Garrison, Fort Gaines Garrison, and Fort Powell Garrison [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 1,822 (US 322; CS 1,500)
Location: Mobile County and Baldwin County
Campaign: Operations in Mobile Bay (1864)
Date(s): August 2-23, 1864
Principal Commanders: Admiral David G. Farragut and Major General Gordon Granger [US]; Admiral Franklin Buchanan and Brigadier General Richard L. Page [CS]
Credits to: http://www.americancivilwar.com
9 files, last one added on Sep 01, 2008
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The Old Spanish Trail
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The Old Spanish Trail followed Highway 90 through Baldwin County. The Palms Court Motel seen in the Loxley Album was constructed with a Spanish design as a result of this trail.
The Old Spanish Trail auto highway (the OST) once spanned the country with a full 3,000 miles of roadway from ocean to ocean crossing 67 counties and eight states along the Southern border of the United States. Work on the auto highway began in 1915 and, by the 1920s, the trail linked St. Augustine, Florida, to San Diego, California, with its center and headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. The cities in between boasted a shared heritage of Spanish missions, forts and Spanish colonization.
Courtesy : http://en.wikipedia.org
2 files, last one added on Sep 01, 2007
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