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THE MADISON COUNTY COURTHOUSE MURAL
HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA
ARTISTS
Norman Thomas
E. Monroe, Jr,
MOSIACIST
Ramon Sanches
HISTORIAN
Dr, Frances Roberts
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5-7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20-21
1
c.
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
Historic I�dians
Earliest Settlers
John Hunt
LeRoy Pope
John Williams Walker
Clement Comer Clay
William Wyatt Bibb
Gabriel Moore
Reuben Chapman
Dr, Thomas Fearn
David Moore
Charles Patton
Slave Labor
Confederate Officer
Enlisted
Captain Gurley
Judge Wm, Richardson
Henry Chase
Dan c. Monroe
Samuel R. Butler
William H. Council
Fannie Cabaniss
Judge Thomas Jones
Martha Patton Darwin
Howard Weeden
Dr, Carl Grote
United States Military
Wernher von Braun
Sen. John Sparkman
Hand
�HISTORICAL COMPOSITION OF THE
MADISON COUNTY ·coURTHOUSE MURAL
It was the ancient prophet Isaiah who commanded, 11 Look unto the rock whence
ye are hewn� 11 And with this thought in mind, . this historical mural has been cre
ated to depict many individuals as symbolic of groups who have striven in their
the solid
separate ways to make' possible
·
-- ' growth and development of Huntsville and
Madison County.
For thousands of years before white men entered the Tennessee River Valley to
claim it as their own, the Indians had lived simple but fruitful lives in the
valley amid an abundance of natural resources. Although the prehistoric groups
who lived here l�ft no record of dramatic incidents concerning individuals, their
village sites along the banks 0f streams and near springs have given archeolo
gists and anthropologists much insight into the lives of these people as they
moved from a hunting, fishing, and gathering-type of econ0my to <a mere settled
agrarian life, By the time explorers began to record their observations of Indi
an life in the "Great Bend of the Tennessee River, 11 the Cherokees and Chickasaws
were both settled in the area. *(l, 2, 3, 4) As the Cher0kees moved west along
the Tennessee and the Chickasaws east, they came into conflict with one another
over who had the best claim to the 11Great·Bend. 11
Studies of village sites of the eighteenth century indicate that the Indians
had begun to supplement their simple diets with vegetables and grain which they
produced by cultivating the rich lands along the rivers, Their weapons had
greatly improved and their arts and crafts were also well-developed, but they
were still far behind the white man's civilization.
Shortly after the American Revolution, a group of men from Tennessee, North
Carolina, and Georgia began to take steps to acquire the lands in the 11 Bend of
the Tennessee, 11 and for more than three decades their unsuccessful attempts con
tinued, Finally in 1802, the state of Georgia ceded its claim to Alabama and
Mississippi to the federal government, thus opening the way for settlement. In
1805 and 1807, agents of the federal government, using the conflicting claims of
the Chickasaws and Cherokees as a wedge, forced these Indians to relinquish
their titles to a triangular area which was organized as Madison County in 1808.
It would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to establish by documen
tary evidence just when the first white settlers crossed over the Tennessee line
and began to build log cabins on the fertile lands in protected coves and along
the banks of Flint River in what is now Madison County. However, Judge·Thomas
Jones Taylor, local historian of the late nineteenth century, recorded an inter
view with Isaac Criner, pioneer settler, who lived to be ninety-four. According
to Criner, he and his brother, Joseph, explored the northeastern part of what is
now Madison County in 1804, and built a log cabin for Joseph 1 s family near Cri
ner I s Spring on the Mountain F0rk of Flint River. Judge Taylor also listed the fam�
ilies of Samuel Davis, Stephen McBroom, Thomas McBreom, James Walker, Leban Rice,
John McCartney, Levi Hinds, and John Grayson as very early settlers in the county.
(S, 6, 7)
In 1805, John Hunt (8) brought his family from East Tennessee to live in a log
* Numbers in
text refer to numbered diagram of mural.
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�cabin near a big spring that soon came to be known as Hunt's Spring. Other fam
ilies joined him, and within four years a squatter· settlement known as Huntsville
had grown up around the spring.
From 1804 to 1809, the influx of settlers into the county was very rapid.
Since many people in the older settled areas had some knowledge of the rich lands
in the "Great Bend of the Tennessee, 11 frontier settlers who were natives of Vir
ginia and North Carolina soon migrated to the area from the borders of civiliza
tion in eastern and Middle Tennessee and Western Georgia. The heads of many of
these families were men who had fought in the American Revolution and partici
pated in expeditions against the Indians. They were men of small to moderate
means who had come with the hope of acquiring rich land cheaply, More than 300
of these families made application to the federal government in 1808 to buy
their lands when the tracts were placed on sale at a public land office. These
hardy pioneers, who were already accustomed to carving out a civilized society
from the frontier, wasted no time in establishing a settled pattern of living.
Seven squatter villages emerged in various parts of the county. People worship
ed in small groups, shared the concerns of daily life, and administered justice
in "frontier style."
By August· of 1809, the federal surveyor, Thomas Freemen, had completed his
work in Madison County, and a public land office had been located in N�shville,
Tennessee, for the purpose of auctioning these surveyed lands. What many of the
pioneer settlers of Madison County did not foresee was their vulnerability to
the designs of planters with capital from older states, who were seeking fertile
cotton lands, and to the schemes of land speculators.
During the sale of Madison County lands which began on August 7 and ended on
September 16, 1809, many of the original settlers were disappointed because they
, were unable to bid high enough to purchase their homesteads. Land around Hunt's
Spring brought the highest prices, for it was evident that the land speculators
as well as the original settlers recognized the settlement as the logical loca
tion for the county seat. The quarter section containing the Big Spring was
sold on August 25 for $23.50 an acre--almost four times the price of any other
piece of land offered at the first sale. LeRoy Pope (1765-1844) (9) of Peters
burg, Georgia, and his associates from Nashville, Tennessee, secured this site,
and immediately laid plans for having it chosen as the county seat. John Hunt
and a number of the original settlers at Hunt's Spring bought less expensive
lands elsewhere in the county, but only forty-three percent of those enumerated
in the 1808 squatter census were listed as land owners in the tax returns of
1815. Many who had dreamed of securing rich land at a low price had moved on
with the tide of migration to a new frontier.
In 1810, the official name of the settlement became Twickenham, as LeRoy
Pope's plan for the town was accepted by the commissioners appointed to choose
the county seat. A year later the town was renamed Huntsville and incorporated
on November 25, 1811, by the Mississippi Territorial Legislature, In 1811, the
Nashville Land Office was moved to Huntsville, and the sale of land continued,
as a steady stream of small farmers and planters made their way to Madison
County to establish their homes.
By 1818, a flourishing commercial area had developed arounp the town's
Public Square to serve the needs of those engaged in agricultural pursuits.
In 1817 and 1818, the Huntsville land office sold most of the lands in north
ern Mississippi and the newly created Alabama Territory which had been ceded
by the Creeks, Cherkees, and Chickasaws, The town was crowded with people
from all parts of the nation as they came to invest in town sites and farms
in the Tennessee Valley.
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�Huntsville served as the temporary capital of Alabama from July 2 to December
17, 1819. Here, John Williams Walker (1783-1823) (10) served as president of the
first Constitutional Convention, Clement Comer Clay (1789-1866) (11) chaired the
committee which drafted the document, and William Wyatt Bihb (1781-1820) (12) was
inaugurated Alabama's first state governor at the courthouse on November 9, 1819.
His brother, Thomas ,Bibb, prominent in the early development of Madison County,
later succeeded him as governor in 1820.
Madison County also furnished a large number of political leaders who were im
portant in local, state and national government in the period from 1819 to 1860.
Walker became one of Alabama's first United States Senators, and four of his sons
later served in state and national government. His living descendants still con
tribute to the development of Huntsville and Madison County, and a great, great
grandson is presently serving as a Congressman from Missouri. Clay later served
as a legislator, congressman, governor and United States Senator. One of his
sons, Clement Claiborne Clay followed in his footsteps as United States Senator
while another son, J. Withers Clay edited 11The Democrat, 11 a local newspaper, for
more than forty years. Gabriel Moore (1785-1845) (13) held the office of tax
a:ssessor, territorial representative, state speaker of the house of representa
tives, congressman, governor, and United States Senator from Alabama, Ruben
Chapman (1799-1882) (14) younger brother of Samuel Chapman, first county judge,
served as congressman, then governor of Alabama,
Other leaders emerged from the vrowd to aid the economic, civic, and cultural
growth of Madison County, Among this group were Dr. Thomas Fearn (1789-1863)
(15), Dr, David Moore (1789-1845) (16), and Dr. Charles Patton (1806-1866) (17).
They and other like them, helped to establish and maintain an economic base for
fruitful living. They used their resources, over and above the call of duty, to
help build churches, schools, theaters, libraries, lecture halls, and parks.
They helped to maintain community government to protect life and property and to
render services which individuals could not finance. Descendants of many of
these men still form an important segment of the leadership in Hunt3ville and
Madison County today.
The old saying that "many good works are known only to God 11 can be applied to
countless thousands who aided in the development of Madison Coi;.nty through the
years. The slave labor force (18) which numbered more than half of the popula
tion in 1860 contributed its share to the agricultural production of the county.
Farmers and planters contributed their efforts to make the economy prosper during
the ante-bellum period, Skilled craftsmen and builders such as George Steele and
Thomas and William Brandon created beautiful structures which have endured to the
present time, Outstanding ministers, lawyers, judges, and scholars of Madison
County spread their influence far beyond its boundaries.
When the War between the States broke out in 1861, the county furnished its
share of officers (19) and enlisted men (20, 21) who fought for 11The Cause" 11 One
of the most colorful figures of this period was Captain Frank Gurley (1834-1920)
(22) who not only survived many narrow escapes, but also kept alive the spirit of
those who fought for the Confederacy for many years after the war, The county
also furnished leaders who opposed secession and sought to reunite the South with
the United States.
The reconstruction period from 1865 to 1875 was a very difficult time for the
people of Madison County. Faced with the problems which accompany inefficient
government and economic depression, the county's leaders began to explore new
avenues of economic endeavor. With the return to more normal times in the late
1870 1 s, the citizens of Madison County took a more active interest in state and
national affairs, but few of them became successful candidates for state and
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�national office. The only notable exception during the period from 1865 to 1937
was Judge William Richardson (1839-1914) (23) who served as Congressman from the
Eighth District from 1899 until his death in 1914.
Between 1880 and 1900, business leaders worked to revitalize the economy by
improving agriculture and encouraging a variety of industries. Nurseries were
established, cotton textile mills built, and numbers of small factories opened
to produce wood products, small tools, and implements. Monte Sano was developed
as a summer resort and people were encouraged to build summer homes on the
"Mountain of Health. 11 Diversification of agriculture brought increased wealth
to the county's rural population, and this prosperity in turn helped the growth
of commercial interests in the towns. New banks were chartered, railroads built,
and roads improved, Typical of this generation were business and civic leaders
such as Henry B. Chase (1870-1962) (24) and Dan C. Monroe (1869-1957) (25). Not
only was Chase president of Chase Nursery for many years, but he also served as
mayor of Huntsville without pay and gave his support to churches, schools, city
beautification, and historic preservation for more than seventy years. Monroe,
who operated a number of businesses including a music store and a printing com
pany, gave much of his time to organizing musical groups and initiating other
cultural activities for Huntsville and Madison County.
In the field of education, Samuel R. Butler (1868-1947) (26) and William H.
Council (1848-1909) (27) were among those who provided leadership in the de
velopment of public schools. Butler gave his whole life to the improvement of
public education in Huntsville and Madison County. Council, an outstanding
leader in the Negro community, was largely responsible for the counding of Ala
bama A. and M. College, and served as its first president. His work and that
of Dr, J. F. Drake resulted in the development of a four-year, state-supported
cqllege for Negroes in Madison County.
Of the many who served ably in the offices od county government during the
late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Fannie Shepherd Cabaniss (18551937) (28) and Judge Thomas W. Jones (1876-1958) (29) are outstanding for their
long and faithful service to the people of Madison County, Miss Cabaniss work
ed with her father, the first register in chancery, until his death, and con
tinued to serve in this office for forty,-two years longer. Trained in the field
of law, she was a guide and counselor for many people including three generations
of young lawyers, Judge Jones spent most of his adult life in the probate office.
The grandson of Probate Judge Thomas Jones Taylor, he began his work as a clerk
in the court at an early age and then served as probate judge for thirty years
until his retirement in 1952,
The role played by women in Madison County's history has been largely t hat of
homemaker and guide for the men who assumed leadership in all aspects of group
life. But Martha Patton Darwin (1876-1966) (30) and Howard Weeden (1847-1905)
(31) are worthy of mention for special reasons. Mrs. Darwin, wife of Dr, James
Darwin and mother of three children, found time to render outstanding service as
librarian of the Huntsville Public Library from 1917 to 1940. Miss Weeden, on
the other hand, devoted her whole life to preserving 11 Gems of the Old South"
through the media of art and poetry.
Dr. Carl Grote (1887 •-1964) (32) the first full-time public health officer in
Madison County, was also influential in the development of public hospital faci
lities. Hiw work, together with that of many dedicated physicians and dentists,
has resulted in the emergence of Huntsville as a well,-recognized medical center
in the south.
During the twentieth century, Madison County, along with the state and nation,
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�experienced many changes. The growth of rapid means of transportation and commun
ication and the development of cheap electrical power by the Tennessee Valley J•
Authority helped to improve rural agricultural economy and link it with urban in
dustrial life. Commercial areas in the smaller towns lost much of their business
to Huntsville when it began to emerge as one of the larger cities of Alabama.
Madison County 1 s contribution to the wars of the twentieth century included
many officers of high rank as well as thousands of enlisted men. Among this··
group were several whose bravery has merited the nation 1 s highest award-the Con
gressional Medal of Honor. (33)
i
)
During World War II, a tract of 40,000 acres of farm land south of Huntsville
was purchased by the federal government as a site for two large arsenals. The
operation of these installations caused a modest influx of people into Madison
County. Between 1940 and 1950 the population increased from 66,317 to 72,903.
When the two arsenals were combined in 1950 and redeveloped as Redstone Arsenal,
the center for guided missile and rocket research, an even larger influx resulted.
By January of 1�67, the population of Huntsville had risen to an estima.ted T44,om
people and that of Madison County to 194,000.
Dr. Wernher von Braun (1912) (34), Director of the George C. Marshall
Space Flight Center since its creation by the National Aeronautics and Space Ad
ministration in 1960, has been a key figure in the missile and space vehicle pro
grams of the United States. He and members of his team as well as other leaders
in the Redstone Arsenal complex, have contributed much to the enrichment of
economic, social, and cultural life in the county.
In recent years the political leadership of Madison County has once again
emerged�n state and national affairs. Representative of this group is Senator
John Sparkman (1899) (35) who has served in the Congress of the United
States since 1937. After completing five terms in the House of Representatives,
he was elected to the post of United States Senator from Alabama .in 1946,. a
position which he currently holds.
'j
Today the people of Madison County are still on the move toward high goals.
As in years past, many of its leaders are rendering services over and above the
call of duty in order to keep Madison County a place where all groups can enjoy
purposeful living, realizing that a successful future depen�s upon harmonious
utilization of natural and human resources. (36)
Frances C. Roberts
MADISON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
James Record, Chairman
Dudley Clark
Edwin Jones
James Bell
Lawrence Cobb
Reprinted 1969
On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the state of Alabama
from
11 Dedication, Madison County Courthouse 1967 A. D. 11
by
The Tennessee Valley Genealogical Society, Inc.
P. 0. Box 1512
Huntsville, Alabama 35807
')
)
�on the occasion of
the 150th anniversary
of the state of Alabama
VALLEY LEAVES, a special edition
December 1969
(October mailing anticipated)
Over 100 pages devoted to Madison County, the first North Alabama county
Indexed
$3.00
Contains:
➔!Madison County, Alabama Map showing original boundary
-:}11 The Public Square in Madison County Histo ry, 11 by Dr. Frances Roberts
�-Madison County;Mississippi Territory Appointments, 1808�1817
➔!Madison County; Alabama Territory and State Appointments, 1818-1822
➔}Deed of Trust, Madison County, 1820 (listing of many early pioneers)
-l}Reprint of a history of Madison County written by Thomas Jones Taylor
in the 1880 1 s about Madison County from 1820-1840
A welcome addition to your library.
'A valuable aid to genealogists and historians.
A thoughtful Christmas gift.
Published by The Tennessee Valley Genealogical Society, Inc.
( VALLEY LEAVES is a regular quarterly publication of TVGS. This, however,
is a Special Edition and is complete in itself.)
The Tennessee Valley Genealogical Society, Inc.
P. 0. Box 1512
Huntsville, Alabama 35807
copies of the December Special Edition of VALLEY
Please send
LEAVES at the prepaid cost of $3.00 each to�
(name)
(address)
(city)
Che ck enclosed:
$----
(state)
(zip)
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
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Eleanor Hutchens Collection
Identifier
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Eleanor Hutchens Collection
Description
An account of the resource
Eleanor Newman Hutchens (October 9, 1919 to November 9, 2016) attended Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, majoring in English and Greek. After receiving her B.A. in 1940, she attended the University of Pennsylvania, acquiring an M.A. and Ph.D. in English literature (“Eleanor Hutchens - Obituary”).
Hutchens first held a part-time teaching position at the University of Alabama in Huntsville in 1955, then joined the faculty with a full-time position in 1957. She taught English, her specialties the English novel, literary criticism, and 18th century literature. Hutchens also chaired the steering committee “for its initial accreditation and the first committee for the selection of majors,” and served as the first elected president of the Faculty Senate. She moved to Agnes Scott College in 1961, remaining there until 1966. She eventually returned to UAH and remained a member of its English department until her retirement in 1979 (“Eleanor Hutchens - Obituary”).
Hutchens wrote prolifically over and after her career, publishing Irony in Tom Jones, Writing to Be Read, and “numerous articles in national and international journals” (“Eleanor Hutchens - Obituary”).
Hutchens was very active even outside of her academic career, serving as "president of the Huntsville Hotel Company, owner of the Russell [sic] Erskine Hotel, and as a director of the Huntsville Land Company, the West Huntsville Land Company, and the Mountain Heights Development Company.” She was "a founder and charter member of the board of Randolph School," a board member of the Huntsville Public Library and the Huntsville Symphony, and "an active member of the [Episcopalian] Church of Nativity.” Hutchens was also a member of "the Historic Huntsville Foundation, the Huntsville Historical Society, the Botanical Garden, the Burritt Museum of Art, the Huntsville Museum of Art, and the Friends of the Huntsville Public Library” (“Eleanor Hutchens - Obituary”).
Sources
“Eleanor Hutchens - Obituary.” Legacy.com, 3 Jan. 2019, www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/eleanor-hutchens-obituary?pid=182447617.
Relation
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<a href="http://libarchstor.uah.edu:8081/repositories/2/resources/156">View the Eleanor Hutchens Collection finding aid in ArchivesSpace</a>
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
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loc_hutc_518_524
Title
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"The Madison County Courthouse Mural, Huntsville, Alabama."
Description
An account of the resource
Reprinted as part of the Alabama sesquicentennial celebration, this pamphlet was originally produced for the dedicated of the new Madison County Courthouse in 1967. Includes an order form for a special sesquicentennial edition of <i>Valley Leaves</i>.
Creator
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Roberts, Frances Cabaniss
Tennessee Valley Genealogical Society
Date
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1969
Temporal Coverage
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1960-1969
Subject
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Alabama Sesquicentennial Celebration, 1969
Courthouses--Alabama
Huntsville (Ala.)
Madison County (Ala.)
Type
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Pamphlets
Source
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Eleanor Hutchens Collection
Box 5
University of Alabama in Huntsville Archives, Special Collections, and Digital Initiatives, Huntsville, Alabama
Language
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en
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This material may be protected under U. S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S. Code) which governs the making of photocopies or reproductions of copyrighted materials. You may use the digitized material for private study, scholarship, or research. Though the University of Alabama in Huntsville Archives and Special Collections has physical ownership of the material in its collections, in some cases we may not own the copyright to the material. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in our collections.
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loc_hutc_2019_02
Provenance
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This collection is digital only. The heirs of Eleanor Hutchens retain the originals.