"Dr. Leland say he had no idea what war was by all
his reading about it until he saw its effects he say it is beyond
description awful. He thinks so many went
back to tell the History of it that the rest will not be so willing to
go to war after this. some of the heads and feet of those who were
buried were uncovered. He himself would have given One dollar for a
drink of water when he was there and he could not get it he said they
had to drink from water worse than our hogs drink in the street. I think
it is awful to die in a battle. O preserve us from such horrible ends
is my prayer. O for the reign of Righteousness and peace may it soon
cover this earth and first reign in each of our
hearts. O to be kept from the evil of this world while we are in it." Tuscaloosa's Barbara Little in 1861 writing about the first Battle of Bull Run.
" Fifty-six years in business in Tuscaloosa, Victor Friedman represented the Tuscaloosa Merchants' Bureau on last night's program. He told how, when he first came to this city, his first purchase here was a lantern to assist him in walking the streets of Tuscaloosa after dark and to guard him against bumping into cows and hogs and beautiful oak trees on Tuscaloosa's streets."
from the February 14, 1926 TUSCALOOSA NEWS
"Correspondence of the
Gazette.
Of the rights of the people, Mr. Editor, inalienable and
inherent, is to complain at the office-holders. They are a privileged
class. Now, I propose to give them one of their privileges that of being
abused.
I shall
complain, first, that they promise more than they perform. Let us take
up our City authorities What are they doing ?
As I was walking down town
this morning, I was almost lost in the weeds that hedged my path. It
is true there was no hog hiding in the rank tangle to frighten me by
his ugh ! ugh ! but The scent of the swill Hangs 'round it still.
Crossing one of the bridges, one foot caught against a nail that caused
me to stumble and catch the other in an opening in the planks. This
happens frequently. A buggy, the other day, got its wheel lodged between
two planks of the flooring of the Street Railway crossing and was nearly
wrecked, striking against the ends of the cross-ties.
They
will cover there up in due time, of course. Tho City Fathers owe it to
their constituency to give us safe ways for foot and vehicles. Did yon
ever, Mr. Editor, stop and look at that enclosure of trees on Greensboro
St.? It is a picture of real loveliness. Let our colored folk come into
town and hitch their lean cattle to the failing and fallen planks that
environ those lovely oaks, and you have a picture that Harper would envy.
Sunday
is here now. What do you see on this sacred day, Mr. Editor? You don't
see it? There are those who do, and they have the power to arrest it .
While here goes an orderly procession of cheerful and happy faces to the
house of God, there goes a line of almost equal length, finding its
way, by the aid of hired ushers, to the den of the Rum-seller and the
doom of the drunkard. We have men in our midst doing more mischief than
the worst plague that ever visited a people, I complain that there is no
resistance to this worse than small-pox scourge. The City Fathers can
do something and the whole city intelligence will support them.
from the July 20, 1882 TUSKALOOSA GAZETTE
Since the passage of the hog law the following from an exchange is no
longer applicable to Tuskaloosa: "Oh, the hog, the beautiful hog
curling his tail as he watches the dog, defying the law or his bread
and meal ; roaming at large in every street, hunting, grunting, nosing
around, 'till the open gateway is sure to be found, with hinges broken
and ruined quite, by the lovers that hung there Sunday night ; it won't
be shut, it won't hang level ; in walks the hog and raises the very
mischief."
from the March 22, 1888 TUSCALOOSA GAZETTE
"Times:
I would suggest that your East End correspondent in his conspiracy against hogs, remember the fact, that no scavenger cart ever visits this blessed annex, and our main reliance to get rid of dead carcasses on our neglected streets and side paths are buzzards and hogs."
from the January 30, 1895 TUSCALOOSA WEEKLY TIMES
"As it now is with hog gaps on every fence line to catch the floating debris the level of the ditch is constantly changing, causing stagnant pools to form ; a breeding place for mosquitoes and malarial fever.
The poor condition of our streets furnishes a constant subject for unfavorable comment.I
look upon the improvement of our streets as of paramount importance, We
have all the other public utilities, such as sewerage system, water
works, dummy line, electric light and ice plant, but our streets are
rougher than country roads. With out any great expenditure of money our
streets could be rendered level, firm and hard, both in the rainy and
dry season.
from the September 9, 1900 TUSKALOOSA GAZETTE
An
ordinance amending the hog law, by reducing the charges for taking up
hogs on the streets, from one dollar to fifty cents per head, was
introduced by Mayor Foster and adopted. On motion of Alderman McCormick
the salaries of the policemen were increased from $45 to $50 per month..
WHY
COW LAW SHOULD NOT BE PASSED. 1. For on luckless bovin that teals a
oabbage or an apple from a careleaa grocer, or opens th latehless gate
of so improvident oilizen, there ar butidrada of respectable eows that
anietly brows on onr back streats without molesting anyone. 2. A aow
that bahavaa badly eaa be abated like any other nuisance.
When
there is such a plain rtaort, would it b wis to punish th inno cent in
ordar to suppress the guilty? Thi is ai ti-republioan. 8. Th complaint
against marauding; stock comes from those who bavt no Interest in them.
The weilare of a whole city is not to be sacrificed for a oabbage. If
the driven of country wagons go off and leave their teams and wagons
exposrd contrary 10 an xpreas law ol the city can they justly invoke the
creation of another law to protect tham in their lawlessness ; Or if a
grocer persist in blocking th idewalk with oratea of cabbages where loud
scent attracts a foraging animal, is it not just one of the risks which
he take in putting it there T 4 The back streets covered with Ber muda
grass is th only valnahl free bold of th city.
This
is open to any family that keeps a cow. To cut off thi 'reshold which
bas exiattd front time immemorial would be equiva lent to levying a
heavy tax upon a portion of our citizens least able to bear it. Many a
poor widow, strug gling to support a family of fatherleaa children, fnda
iu thi her greatest source of support. 5. Hundreds of dollars annually
were lost to the city by the passage of th hog law.
There
are heaps ol garbage in our back streets which those scavengers
removtd, and which the town cart dot not reach. The children yet pine
for these delightful spare-rib and tenderloin which their mother
prepared, and now it is proposed to take the milk away from the babte
and sucklings. The law means less of milk to tht poor, and to the rich
it means that diseased milk which comes from confining stock in pens and
feeding them on artificial food. 6. Apart from any sanitary or local
consideration, however, it ia impolitic and unslatearuaiilike to destroy
values, Ia town without pay-rolls, without industries and struggling
for bare x istence, it is not best to sacrifice too much to style.
We have had too mue.h nf that. ,.
The back streets covered with Ber muda grass is th only valnahl free
bold of th city. This is open to any family that keeps a cow. To cut off
thi 'reshold which bas exiattd front time immemorial would be equiva
lent to levying a heavy tax upon a portion of our citizens least able to
bear it. Many a poor widow, strug gling to support a family of
fatherleaa children, fnda iu thi her greatest source of support. 5.
Hundreds
of dollars annually were lost to the city by the passage of th hog law.
There are heaps ol garbage in our back streets which those scavengers
removtd, and which the town cart dot not reach. The children yet pine
for these delightful spare-rib and tenderloin which their mother
prepared, and now it is proposed to take the milk away from the babte
and sucklings. The law means less of milk to tht poor, and to the rich
it means that diseased milk which comes from confining stock in pens and
feeding them on artificial food. local it.
The first Oaks were planted in Tuskaloosa in 1839, by an Irishman named Michael Shelly, who came along about that time. Mr. Erasmus Cooper employed him to plant them in front of the little brick house on the South of Main St., just West of Chestnut St., which now belongs to Mr.Chas Small wood, and to occupied by Mr. Tan.Simpson, as a residence ; and here you will to-day see the finest specimen of Oaks in the City. This man Shelly ,in talking about the trees, always insisted upon giving them what is perhaps then: proper botanical name, and thereby secured for himself, as long as he remained, m Tuskaloosa, the name of " Quircus Aquations." , He next planted a row m front of Bar Room, which in those davs. stood about where now stands the North end of what is known as the Drish Building.' This Bar Room was kept for Mat Duffee, by a man called Jimmy Owen, and it was known in those (lays as the "Old Fort" On or near the same snot iu.raruti B wmi uie omoe 01 ur. Jlullman and the Bnggs' Carriage Shop, landmarks which will per. haps be remembered by some of our i,i mi.:..
!,,.( , i'i .s. .1 J 1 J! t t t 1 wwiBiaw, lite next Oaks Were planted in 1840 and '41, in the centre of Main Street between Monroe and Market. and constitute that beautiful row which now flourishes in the business portion of the town. The expense was borne by the various parties who owned property ou either side oi tne street. The next were planted out in 1842 by Mr.
Win, M. Prince, tho School master, who advertised himself as "The Thrashing Machine," and for wnommanyot our old citizens re tain a reeling recollection. He plan ted a row around what in those days Was known as the "Indian Queen" Hotel, but which: is now known as The Druid City Hotel. Dr. John Owen, at the expense of the City, next planted them out on Main St., au tne way rroin aiarKet St.
to the capitoL-f, JVlr. Charley Patterson next planted thim on two sides of his Hotel, which stood where Mr. J, D. Spillers store now stands; and from that time the planting of trees increased, until now our beautiful town is Known tar and wide as The City of Oaks. J.
In
a brief talk, Rotarian Jim Horne declared that he wanted it strictly
understood that the new camp site is not to be known as "Horne's Camp"
that though he gave it to the scouts as a whole, he is in no way
connected with it; that it now belongs to the community, theirs to look
after and develop. He stated that his reasons for giving the camp and in
taking an active interest in scouting was due to the fact that he had
no such advantages as a boy himself and that he had determined then to
some day do something that would better the boys' lot. Mr. Horne
then outlined the plans for the new camp which include several large
buildings, a dam and waterworks and declared faith enough in those of
Tuscaloosa, who have the money and the necessary lumber and other
materials to see the project through.
The
Scouts Win Praise Praise for the Black Warrior district of the Boy
Scouts from C. E. Carmack, regional executive over five states, is a matter for some pride in Tuscaloosa and in the group of counties which
compose this district. And an added interest is given to the work here
because of the new things which Mr. Carmack says are expected to come of
the work in this district.
Re-forestation
through Scouting is one of the new things promised the South by the
Tuscaloosa Scout camp, says the regional executive. J. T. Horne, who
presented the Tuscaloosa Scouts with the Herrin's Lake camp had a long
vision of training boys in foresting the hills of Tuscaloosa county,
recalls the visitor here, and now the story of Mr. Horne's vision
is being spread with particular pains to other camps and councils
throughout the South.
And
that is a worthy thing to come out of Tuscaloosa county and a worthy
thing for a Tuscaloosan to accomplish and for other Tuscaloosans to
encourage. Mothers and fathers are showing an interest in the local
Scout camp and in camping programs. The camps in the Black Warrior
district are being thrown open to adult and to family campers when they
are not in use by the Scouts, with the simple" provision that
arrangements be made at Scout headquarters. And the regional director
'sees good to result. Not only will it encourage and add stimulus to
Scouting he says, but two or three days camp by mothers and fathers,
even once a year, under a definite program and leadership can be
expected to add something to the lives of the fathers and mothers.
The
outdoors has many things to offer to add to the lives of older persons,
the executive adds. If Scouting in Tuscaloosa and in the Black Warrior
district can deserve a National recognition and a Nation-wide reputation
for these two things; then Scouting here will have added definitely to
the resources of the Nation not only in timber, but in health and
happiness.
"They started to pour in during 1815. So great did the influx become in 1816 and 1817 that corn, much in demand from the Indians and earlier white settlers, climbed to four dollars per bushel along the main road from Huntsville to Tuscaloosa." page 3 or THE FORMATIVE PERIOD IN ALABAMA 1815-1828 by Thomas Perkins Abernethy.
"These men--Tindall, Moody, the Meeks, and Wyman--are competent witnesses that Thomas York was our first settler. On old maps of the city of Tuscaloosa the avenue we now call Twentieth Avenue is called York Street. No other street or avenue bears the name of any person who is known to have settled in Tuscaloosa at an early date. This fact seems to be corroborative evidence that York was our first settler."
"For the first five years of Tuscaloosa's existence all of the settlers were squatters; that is, they had no title to the land. The town was surveyed in 1821. A letter written January 9, 1821, by Josiah Meigs, commissioner of the general land office, to General John Coffee says, in part: "The survey of the township on which the town of Tuscaloosa is situated is much wanted. You will please send a plat of it immediately to this office, and cause the section or fractional section on which the said town stands to be laid off into town lots without delay, forwarding a plat thereof to this office without delay." The actual survey was made by Collin Finnell, grandfather of Judge Woolsey Finnell. Dr. William Cochrane, who came to Tuscaloosa in 1817, at the age of one year, is our authority for the method used in laying out the town. The surveyors began at the boat landing below the Falls and followed the road up the River Hill. From this point a wide street was laid out perpendicular to the river. This street is now called Greensboro Avenue. Broad Street was laid out at right angles to Greensboro Avenue, and the other streets were laid out in conformity with these two. The sale of lots began in the fall of 1821, probably in October. Colonel John McKee was appointed registrar of the land office in Tuscaloosa and served from March 7, 1821, to January 13, 1824. The land sale began with the auctioning of lot number 1, which is located in the northeast corner of section 22. Other lots were sold in numerical order.
In 1903 Colonel H. S. Halbert wrote Thomas P. Clinton from Meridian, Mississippi as follows: "As you are engaged on a history of Tuscaloosa County, I would like to mention a few incidents that I have frequently heard mentioned in my family history. The Rev. Joshua Halbert who was born in S.C. in 1788, was the first man who ever drove a horse wagon to the site of the present town of Tuscaloosa. He married Matilda Nash, and I have always heard that Tuscaloosa was first called Matildaville in honor of her, before it received its final name of Tuscaloosa.
Baptists were the first to organize a congregation in Tuscaloosa. On January 24, 1818, Rev. Thomas Baines and Rev. Nathan Roberts met with the congregation in the home of Benjamin Higginbotham. They organized a church, which they called Ebenezer. In April Rev. Nathan Roberts was called as first pastor, and Collin Finnell was made clerk. Other ministers who served as pastors of this church were as follows: Rev. Daniel Brown (1821-1822), Rev. Thomas Baines (1822-1824), Rev. Hosea Holcomb (1824-1827), and Rev. Robert Marsh (1827- 1831). On October 3, 1818, this group united with nine other congregations to constitute the Cahaba Association. A frame building was erected near the brow of the hill at the north end of Twenty-seventh Avenue. North of and in the rear of the church the first dead of the town were buried. The earliest known burials in Greenwood Cemetery were made in 1821, and it is not probable that burials were made there before that date, as the town was not surveyed until 1821.
from an act of congress, passe March 3, 1817, the Mississippi Territory was divided, and the eastern half erected into a separate district called the Alabama Territory. By another act of congress, passed the same day, a surveyor was appointed for the lands in the northern portion of the Alabama territory, and General John Coffee was made the surveyor general of this district. By the third section of this last named act several sections of land suitable for town sites were to be reserved from entry and sale as public lands. These reserved sectlons were to be laid off into town lots, and offered for sale to the highest bidders, whenever tha President of the United States should direct. The attention of the surveyor general was at once directed to the falls of the Black Warrior as a suitable place for the establishment of one of ' these" towns.
Fractional section 22 of j township 21, range 10 west, which lies on the south side of the river at the lowest falls, was selected by the president as the ' site of a town as yet unnamed to be laid off into lots and sold. This fractional section 22 constituted the original town of Tuscaloosa as laid out by the surveyor general afterwards.
May 12, 1899 TUSCALOOSA WEEKLY TIMES (W. S. Wyman)
John M. Jenkins and Elias Jenkins, merchants. Their log store stood at or near the north-east corner of the present Broad and Market streets, where now stands the store of Friedman & Rosenau. It is proper to remind the reader that the town had not yet been laid off into streets and lots. The houses were scattered here and there, as the people had chosen to build them. Judge Smith says that this corner was about the centre of the town at that time. Benjamin and George Cox. merchants of Newton; James Hogan, merchant, father of the late Alexander Perry Hogan: Captain James H. Dearing, merchant, who removed here from Saint Stephens. He was owner and captain of the Tombigbee, the second steamboat to come from Mobile to the Falls of the Warrior. Captain Dearing's log store was on what was afterwards known as lot 165 in the official plat of the town. Here he afterwards built the two-story block which remains to this day, occupied in 1S98 by H. Gluck and others.
INCORPORATION OF TUSCALOOSA.
Towards the end of the year 1819, the town had grown large enough to feel the need of regular government. On the 13th of December the legislature passed an act to incorporate the town of Tuscaloosa, j Two facts are worth mention in this connection: First, that now for the first time was the town called Tuscaloosa; second, that when the settlement was raised to the dignity of a town, none of the inhabitants owned so much as a square foot of land within its limits. They were all "squatters." for the town site which had been ' reserved from entry and sale had not yet been laid out. On the first Tuesday of January, 1819, all while male citizens of the age of twenty-one. residing on the fraction of land known as the south fraction of' I section 22, township 21. range 10. west, were invited to assemble at the court house and choose by ballots seven householders to act I as emmissioners ef the town of "Tuscaloosa.
THE FIRST COI'RT HOUSE AND JAIL. It is manifest from the words of this act that in the month of December, 1819, there was already a court house for the county within the limits of the town.
So far as I know- there is no record or tradition which enables us lo establish the spot on which this first court house stood. I conjecture that it was a temporary structure of logs . buit on tne k), vv,ich was afterwards de- stined on the plat, of the town as "Court Square." This was the lot on the north side of Broad street, immediately opposite the present Washington hotel. Judge Smith tells us in his "Reminiscences" that the first jail "was about in the center of what Is now Market street, near Main;" that is to say, somewhere between Broad and street and the MeLester House corner. "It was built of heavy hewn logs, and one story high." The prison bounds of this first jail are thus given in one of the old court records: "Commencing at the jail, thence running in a direct line to Living's, including Living's houses; thence to J.
V. Isbell's: from thence to John Read's, including Nash's cotton gin; from Read's to Pewell's; thence to Level's tavern; thence across the lot to the jail." "It would puzzle the oldest inhabitant," says Judge Smith, "to run out these interesting linos .at this time." We can identify . now only one of these limits, namely Lovel's tavern. This was somewhere in the neighborhood of Friedman & Rosenau's corner.
from the June 2, 1909 BIRMINGHAM NEWS
The
earliest settlers at the fails of the Warrior probably came from Tennessee. They were Thomas, Jonathan and Emanuel York, who came in the
spring of 1816. Other settlers rapidly followed, and on December 13,
1819, the town of Tuskaloosa was Incorporated by the legislature of
Alabama at its first session. At the time of this incorporation the
title to the site of the town was still in the United States government;
as under an act of congress passed on March 3, 1817, fractional section
22. township 21, Range 10 west, Huntsville meridian, was reserved for a
town site. The survey of this section into streets and lots was not made
until 1821, at which time the lots were sold by the United States
government.
By act of
congress passed May 26, 1824, the title to the streets and also certain
lots set apart for public use and known as Court Square, the Market
Square, the Jail lot, the spring, the church, the burial ground, the
river margin, the pond and the common, were vested In the city of
Tuskaloosa.
from the July 9, 1909 BIRMINGHAM NEWS
The attention of the
surveyor general was at once directed to the falls of the Black Warrior
as a suitable place for the establishment of one of these towns,
Fractional section 22 of township 21, range 10 west, which lies on the
south side of the Warrior River at the lowest falls, was selected by the
president as the site of a town as yet unnamed to be laid off into
lots and sold at auction. This fractional section 22 constituted the
original town of Tuscaloosa as laid out by the surveyor general
afterwards. A great part of this story is gathered from an article
published in Tuscaloosa Times "Trade Edition" Friday, May 12, 1899, by
Dr. William S. Wyman,
under the title, "The Beginning of Tuscaloosa and Newton." It's the
best kind of a story for it incorporates his own memories, those of
Judge Washington Moody, A. B. McEachin, Thomas Maxwell, W. C. Richardson
and Judge William R.
Smith,
from October 5, 1941 MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER: "To John Coffee as surveyor general and his corps of assistants was
assigned the task of making the original surveys. His deputy surveyors -
were Samuel Bigby, John S. and Jeremiah Doxey, Benjamin and Hardy
Clements, Benjamin Harris and perhaps others."
from George Little's MEMOIRS (1924) "...(Hardy) Clements was a surveyor by profession. and laid off the town of Tuscaloosa; as he went
over the county in his work, he was able to pick up a number
of bargains in land and amassed a large fortune. He lent out
his surplus money and was very conscientious about interest
charges, never charging more than the legal rate."
from MATT CLINTON
“Tuscaloosa, Alabama – Its Early Days 1816-1865”:
John B. Pass and William Toxey came to Tuscaloosa in 1820. On the corner now occupied by the First National Bank they built the first two-storied brick building. Pass and Toxey used the lower story for their store, and the upper rooms were used as a hotel by Billy Dunton, who called his hotel the Golden Ball. From time to time this building was added to and became Washington Hall. It extended northward through the block. The first to build on this corner (or near it) was Thomas Lovel, who built a two-roomed log house. The place was known as Lovel's Tavern. A few years later the Jenkins brothers occupied the corner. There is no record of Lovel's owning the lot. Possibly he was a squatter, as indeed were all who settled here before the town was surveyed in 1821. At the land sales of 1821 William Toxey bought the lot. It is probable that the brick building was not built before 1831. Dr. John Neilson, who came to Tuscaloosa in 1831, stated that when he came here a log house stood on the corner. John O. Cummings, a native of Tennessee, came to Tuscaloosa in 1824. He formed a partnership with John T. Irby and, after the closing of this firm, entered partnership with Charles G. Picher. The Cummings and Picher business was located on the First National Bank corner. They probably succeeded Pass and Toxey in that location. This firm met with disaster in the panic of 1837. Both men retired to live on farms. Their friends tried to reestablish them in the business world, and Cummings became a commission merchant in Mobile. In 1859 he fell a victim to yellow fever. Picher had lost confidence in himself and refused help. The man who had been a prosperous merchant, wearing linen of pearly whiteness, boots of the nicest fit, and a hat of finest beaver, had degenerated into a listless farmer wearing blue jeans, a home-made wool hat, and brogans. Ed Sims and David Scott came to Tuscaloosa in 1822. They built a large brick storehouse on the northeast corner at the intersection of Broad Street and Twenty-third Avenue. When Tuscaloosa became the state capital, the State Bank was located on this corner. At a later time the famous "Bee-Hive" store of Thomas Maxwell was established there. The Belk-Hudson Company now occupies the old site At the land sales of 1821 Sims and Scott bought many lots for speculative purposes and profited considerably from their merchandising and real estate businesses. Sims was particularly interested in establishing schools for girls. He presented the Methodist Conference with a brick house to be used as a boarding school for girls. It was established in 1828 and was known as the Sims Female Academy. It was located on the northwest corner at the intersection of Fourth Street and Twenty-second Avenue. Dr. Wyman says that it was probably the first boarding school for girls located in Alabama. Later Sims cooperated with other citizens in starting the Tuscaloosa Female Academy, an interdenominational school. Later this school came under the control of Professor and Mrs. Samuel Stafford. Sims also aided in the establishment of the Wesleyan Female Institute, which was located opposite the First Methodist Church on Eighth Street in the building formerly owned and occupied by E. N. C. Snow and later used as the Doctor's Clinic. Sims lived on the Hargrove Road in the present Mosely home. Scott withdrew from the firm and started a cotton factory in Bibb County. Before the Civil War Scott returned to Tuscaloosa and reestablished his business.
Since the call for the election of the first officials of the town of Tuscaloosa was issued in December, 1819, and since the call specified that the meeting was to take place in the court house, we know that there was a court house in Tuscaloosa as early as December, 1819. There is no existing and known record to tell us where that court house was located. On this point Dr. Wyman says: "I conjecture that it was a temporary structure of logs built on the lot which was afterwards designated on the plat of the town as 'Court Square.' This was the lot on the north side of Broad Street, immediately opposite the present Washington Hotel." In 1899, when Dr. Wyman wrote the article in which this statement is made, the Washington Hotel was on the southwest corner at the intersection of Broad Street and Twenty-second Avenue, that is, the present site of the post office. (Washington Hotel was the Bell Tavern with a new name. It is not to be confused with Washington Hall, which stood where the First National Bank is now.) In 1821 the Masonic Hall was adopted as a temporary seat of justice. An annual rent of $80 was paid for use of the building. In 1822, by a vote of the people of Tuscaloosa County, the seat of justice was moved to Newtown. Newtown had been incorporated in December, 1820, and, because Tuscaloosa had not been surveyed at that time, grew faster than Tuscaloosa. The courthouse in Newtown was located in lots 9 and 10 of the survey of that town, that is, west of Thirty-second Avenue between Sixth and Seventh Streets. The Newtown Company donated the land and the building. A "handsome brick edifice" was erected, and court was held in the building until 1826, when the courthouse was moved back to old town. Peter Donaldson was paid $15 "for use of house in which to hold court." Donaldson was a hotel keeper in Tuscaloosa and was probably at that time proprietor of Washington Hall. It is possible that court was held in the large room on the second floor of that building. In 1830 a two storied brick court house was erected at the northwest corner at the intersection of Market (Greensboro Avenue) and Union (Seventh) Streets. A special tax was levied for three years for the purpose of paying for the lot. John S. Fitch was paid $25 for drawing the plan of the building; Pleasant Wilson was paid $15 for legal services; and a contract was made with Edwin Sharpe for the building of a court house. The contract price was $2,478. In 1845 the courthouse was moved to the southeast corner of Greensboro Avenue andSixth Street, the corner on which the Alston Building is located. The purchase price of $4,000 was to be paid from a special fund derived from sales of unclaimed runaway slaves and strays. In 1846 the town government was authorized to erect a tower at the west end of the courthouse. On this tower there was placed a clock which remained the property of the town. The courthouse we now have, at the southwest corner of Greensboro Avenue and Seventh Street, was built in 1907. The first county jail was built by John Baker in 1818. It cost $138 plus $10 for making a lock. Soon after the building was put up, $75 more was spent for "repairing and making secure the door of said jail." During the first three years $240 was paid to different persons who served as guards at one dollar per day. The location of the first county jail is a puzzle. An early record defines the prison bounds of the Tuscaloosa County Jail yard as follows: "Commencing at the jail, thence in a direct line at Lewin's, including Lewin's houses; thence to J. V. Isbel's; from thence to John Read's; including Nash's cotton gin; from Read's to Powell's; thence to Lovel's tavern; thence across the lotto the jail." The paper is signed by Abel Pennington, probably a deputy sheriff, and is dated June 14, 1819. Lovel's tavern was located where the First National Bank is now, and the jail lot seems to have been located between that corner and the McLester Hotel, that is, in the middle of what is now Greensboro Avenue. Charles Lewin later moved to Newtown and was one of its incorporators. When the court house was moved to Newtown, the jail was also moved. Lot number 91 was deeded to the county for the jail lot. Lot number 91 of the survey of the Lower Part of the Town of Tuscaloosa was located on the northwest corner of Richmond and Sandusky Streets. Today these streets are called Fifth Street and Thirty-fourth Avenue, respectively. There is no record of the land or the building costing the county anything, and the conclusion is that the Newtown Company paid for the jail. In 1847 a jail was built on lot 168 of Tuscaloosa at a cost of $403.87. Lot 168 is on the southeast corner at the intersection of Broad Street and Twenty-third Avenue and is now occupied by the Kress store. In 1856 a jail was built on the southwest corner at Sixth Street and Twenty-eighth Avenue, that is, across the street from and south of the old Capitol building. The building was erected by William B. Robertson at a cost of $8,029.40. In 1890 a jail was built on the courthouse lot (Alston Building) at a cost of $11,000.
ANCIENT
HISTORY FITTS DEED 61 YEARS OLD TO METHODIST CHURCH THIS CITY On August
6th 1S34 Goodwin G Griffin his wife Milley of Marengo 1 county executed
a deed tor a con-; sideration of $300 for lot no 209 containing half
acre to Edward Sims, Thomas Owen, JDennis Dent j Edward F Carnege,
Benjamin h Fontain John H Vincent and George Curling, trustees of the f .
t T T7 1 ".I . i iuecnoQisr .episcopal vnurcn 01 j Tuskaloosa, Ala. The
deed war acknowledged before Nathanie' -Norwood, Notary Public, on 25th
September 1S34 and recorded ir deed book no. 1 page 243.
Very
few of our citizent, excep:jevery probably Jno Glasscock knew per '
sonally said Trustees. John 1 Vincent was the father of Bishoi John H
Vincent, who preachei n our Methodist Church last win ter one the ablest
and most eloquer. sermons ever delivered in tha church. The Bishop was
born i the dwelling in which the lamentt Dr Stillman died, and a table j
his memory is placed over the do of the dwelling. JSK.
.JPG)
