RuralSWAlabama

Bladon Springs Methodist Church at Bladon Springs, AL (ca. 1874; listed on the ARLH)

This church was built circa 1874 by Peter D. Flint who built many of the buildings in the area including the Bladon Springs and Cullom Springs Hotels. The Bladon Springs Church is a contributing property to the Bladon Springs Historic District that’s l …

Bladon Springs State Park in south Choctaw County at Bladon Springs, AL

Bladon Springs State Park is a 367-acre Alabama State Park at Bladon Springs, AL that is centered around four mineral springs. Park facilities include campsites, shelters, tables, and grills. This property, originally owned by John Bladon, was referred …

Bobby’s Fish Camp at Bladon Springs, AL (one of the oldest restaurants in southwest Alabama)

Bobby’s Fish Camp is located at the old Bladon Springs landing on the Tombigbee River in the southeastern part of Choctaw County. Bobby’s Fish Camp has been in operation for over half a century and is one of the oldest restaurants in southwest Alabama. …

Broadhead Memorial Park at Needham, AL

This is a small park that is located in the community of Needham, AL in central Choctaw County. It is proof that a park need not be large or elaborate to be a real pleasure. The park is built around the old Walter Wilson gristmill which was the center …

Choctaw County Courthouse at Butler, AL (built 1906; listed on the Alabama Register)

Choctaw County was established in 1847.  The current courthouse in Butler is Choctaw County’s second courthouse – built 1906 and occupied in 1907. There were additions to the courthouse in 1956 and 1965.  It was placed on the Alabama Register of Landma …

Choctaw County Historical Museum at Gilbertown, AL

This is an interpretative museum that’s located beside the Town Park at downtown Gilbertown.  The main building of the museum contains artifacts that illustrate life in Choctaw County during earlier times.  Behind the main museum is another building th …

Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge near Womack Hill, AL (Choctaw County)

Choctaw National Wildlife Refuge is a little off the beaten path but well worth the trip. Water defines this 4,218 – acre refuge, covering roughly one-half of the refuge in creeks, sloughs, lakes, and backwaters of the Tombigbee River, which borders th …

Coffeeville Lake Service Park at Bladon Springs, AL

Service Park sits on the shores of 97-mile-long Coffeeville Lake, the third largest lake on the Black Warrior- Tombigbee reservoir system and the last reservoir on the Tombigbee River before it reaches the Gulf of Mexico. Service Park’s campground offe …

Denton & Mattie Mosley Cabin at Skinner Park in Toxey, AL

This small cabin originally belonged to Francis Marion and Lottie Mosley Tindle. They sold it to their oldest daughter, Mattie, and her husband, Denton Mosley, when they married circa 1916. Denton and Mattie Tindle Mosley reared their 11 kids in this h …

Dogtrot Log Cabin at the Broadhead Memorial Park in Needham, AL

The dogtrot cabin was a common style of rural home in the South during the 1800s. The dwelling would often begin as a single-room log cabin with the attic used as a sleeping loft. As the family grew, a second log cabin would be built and the two cabins …

Ezell’s Fish Camp located on the Tombigbee River at Lavaca, AL (a legendary restaurant that evolved from a dogtrot)

For many customers, Ezell’s Fish Camp is much more than a restaurant. It is a cultural institution, representing a way of life very much connected to the community’s river heritage and to family tradition. This well-known landmark, on the Tombigbee Riv …

First Oil Well in Alabama at Gilbertown, AL (oil struck in 1944)

On January 2, 1944, the State of Alabama granted Hunt Oil Company a permit to drill the A. R. Jackson Well No. 1 at Gilbertown, AL.  Hunt Oil Company was owned by the famous oil man, H. L. Hunt of Dallas, Texas.  The drilling commenced on January 10, 1 …