Clay County AlArchives News.....History of Wesobulga/Cragford by Frank W. Barnett January 24, 1924
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Linda Ayres http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00031.html#0007674 December 2, 2022, 8:54 pm

Birmingham News January 24, 1924
The officials of the A. B. & A. railroad named Cragford. Some of the old 
citizens wanted it named Goldburg, but nature cried aloud that some notice be 
taken of it and those in authority heard and took note and most appropriately 
christened the new town Cragford, as it is situated in the mountainous section 
of Clay County.
Did you ever hear of Wesobulga? If you do not know anything about Wesobulga you 
are not a Clay County "hill billy" and not up on the French-geography of Hugo 
Black's native heath. Railroads fought shy of Clay County for many years after 
they had forged into many other sections. Wesobulga in its day was an important 
place with its stores, schools, churches and lodges. It isn't by any means dead 
at present, being more fortunate than Gaston. the town in Sumter, written about 
recently, which had practically been wiped off the map. Wesobulga still, 
although a mile from the depot at Cragford, has the school and lodge building as 
well as the Baptist Church, and in its cemetery are the remains of a large part 
of the old pioneers though as a matter of fact the older burying ground at 
Ebenezer not far away, but now almost neglected, are the first burying ground in 
the community. J. W. Lamberth now has a store at Wesobulga, but the rest of the 
business is down near the depot.  Way back the merchants at Wesobulga were Tom 
McMullin, Miles Dobbin and L. Mullins and Morefield. J. F. Carter was the last 
postmaster at Wesobulga. The office was moved two miles west in 1897 and 
discontinued about 1904. Among the old Postmasters were Miles Dobbins and L. 
Mullins. Little Harris for years was the Justice of the peace. His wife was one 
of the first to be buried in the cemetery near the church and school. 
A grave in the cemetery never fails to create talk for it alone of hundreds is 
placed sidewise and standing near the middle of the cemetery is always noticed 
by visitors. Some say it was done at the request of the dying women, while 
others claim it was the fault of the grave digger who dug the grave at night and 
got mixed up in the proper placing of it. The cemetery is filed with many graves 
marked by the rough native boulders without any marking on them. A few have 
slabs cut out of the nearby by hills to cover the rude walls around the grave. 
Some while back a committee raised money and placed wooden headstones on some of 
the graves of which the names were printed, but time and the weather have almost 
erased the data. 
Wesobulga was an incorporated town before the War Between the States, but 
Cragford has never been incorporated. The writer asked one of the leading 
citizens why this he I not been done. Pointing to the bridge which spans Crooked 
creek, over which passengers alighting at the depot have to cross to get in 
touch with the business and residences section at Cragford, be said: "There is 
your answer." The writer for months has been studying up on bridges and has 
written of many famous ones and has still other articles about some of the 
world's great structures to be published. He has studied the question from many 
angles, but this is the first instance he has run across where a bridge has 
stopped a town from being incorporated. The answer is easy. It is expensive to 
keep up being high and long, and then Crooked creek every few years got on a 
rampage and hats destroyed the bridge twice in recent years, or at least put it 
out of commission. It's cheaper for the Cragfordices to let the Clayites bear a 
part of the burden of the upkeep of the bridge than it is to put on airs and be 
incorporated and have the whole expense to carry. Center also finds it better to 
remain unincorporated. 
Hemmed in by hills, Cragford's Main Street runs from old Wesobulga to Crooked 
creek. The schoolhouse, lodge, cemetery and Baptist church being at Wesobulga 
(now Cragford) while the residences line the road for nearly a mile to the 
business section. The first merchants in Cragford were: W. D. Mitchell. J. F. 
Carter, Walker and Lashley, J. W. Lambert. The present ones being J. F. Carter 
and Son, (since 1903). C. H. Mitchell. J. F. Wilkinson (hardware), A. N. Childs. 
The Cragford hotel, a good building, was put up by W. D. Mitchell, run by C. M. 
Carter Drug store, Jordan's cafe and the Whiteside garage. There are four 
gasoline stations. The Cragford warehouse is a brick structure and three of the 
store houses are built of brick. The Cragford bank was organized in 1915. It has 
a capital of $25,000 and a surplus of $5.000. Reuben Bell is president, J. M. 
Barfield, vice a president; Bernard Carter, cashier, while the directors are C. 
C. Wilder, M. J. DeVaughan, J. M. Barfield, Reuben Bell. G. W. Walker. The 
Alabama Power Company's line crosses at Cragford, and it is hoped to get light 
and power from it. The dam to be built later on the Tallapoosa River is only two 
o and one-half miles away.  
Tom Bassett before the War Between the States, ginned bales of cotton one season 
which created a great deal of talk. His mill was two and one-half miles 
southeast of Cragford. Billy Weathers had one two and one-half-miles southwest. 
S. W. (Jack) Manning had one a half. Mile south.  The mill at Cragford on the 
left coming from the depot was owned away back by Larry Waits. then Jack 
Manning, then Cockrell and Mitchell. It is now owned by F. W. Mitchell. The 
blacksmiths have been from before the War Between the States until now Archie 
Stroud who is also as preacher. It is related that he was thrown from a steer 
while on his way to the mill and had his shoulder broken. Then came Wash 
Johnson, Bill Amason, Butler Giles, Henry Blake, Bill Rice, Arch Burrus and Bill 
Key (the last one on the Job). The Bell Lumber Company Birmingham F. G. Bells 
manager has a Complete finishing mill at Cragford. J.H. Hunter, W. A. Swann, and 
Oscar Pruett ship the Lever-products of their mill from Cragford. The Cragford 
warehouse buys ties, telephone poles, etc.  
Unfortunately, C. M. Carter. the authority and developer of the arsenic made 
interests in and around Cragford was in Birmingham on the day the writer visited 
his hometown. It is claimed that there is enough arsenic hid in the crags at 
Cragford to kill all the boll-weevils in the south if they could be induced to 
cut the output of the mines if they were developed and run to capacity Clay 
County is rich in minerals. 
C. E. Childs is principal of the school, and he is assisted by Misses Clarice 
Manning and Irda Childs. The building is a large one. The Masonic Hall above one 
of the rooms devoted to school purposes. The trustees are J.A, Carter. Jesse 
Gray, and A. D. Hanson. The teachers have been Jim Dawkins. Samuel Aughey. C. A. 
Upchurch, T. S. Warren, Jim Brittan, Joyner, Lorenzo Leftwich and M. A. Vickers. 
There are grades and 110 pupils. 
Some 10 years back the writer attended a session of the Carey Baptist 
association at Salem Church, situated in old Wesobulga, and now sawing the 
Cragford Baptists. It is yet a strong church and in past days was a power in the 
association. Among its pastors have been men like Sisson, Teague, Scarborough 
and Worthy. The writer knows and loves W. M. "Bub" Worthy, and If be just could 
have found time to run out to his country home be could have gotten a fuller 
story of Salem Church, as "Bud" as he is lovingly by the older generation, 
served their church a quarter of a century continuously and altogether some 32 
years. Marshall A. Johnson served seven years. B. W. Matthews two years, J. D. 
Pickens two years, W.H. Griffin two years, J. L. Jordan a short while and B. P. 
Layton, the present pastor in his third year. The old Baptist families were the 
Walkers. Weathers, Beards, Farrows. Caldwell, Robinsons, Lashley, Mackey, East 
and Moncus. James A. Carter is Sunday school superintendent; Martin Lamberth, 
president of the B.Y.P. U.; Mrs. J.W. Dean president of the woman's missionary 
society, and the deacons are: J. F. Carter. T. A. G. Kelley, T. N. Denney and 
Jesse Gray. the following churches have gone out of Salem Church; Corinth five 
miles west; Holly Springs, eight miles southwest; New Hope, three miles east. 
and Shiloh. (Part of it) six miles west. It now has 137 members but at the 
thirty-fifth session of the Carey association it reported 212 members. 
If the story of the three-room building which crowns one of crags the was fully 
written, it would one of heroic self-sacrifice on the part of the president, the 
teachers and the trustees Salem Church, the Carey association and other churches 
associations in east Alabama. Rev. John W. Dean, who was its president front Its 
founding in 1915 (with the exception of two years) to its close last year, had a 
vision of usefulness on his part and of service to the boys and girls in the 
hills of Clay, Randolph and Chambers counties. He labored faithfully and a 
heroic band of men women d at his side, but it was a losing fight. The public 
high school has almost made it impossible to run a denominational academy. In 
the opening year the president, now pastor at Columbiana had in the faculty. J. 
D. Pickens and Miss Thelma Jacobs. The school opened with 51 pupils running 
until 1924. W. H. Griffin was president for two years. The Original trustees 
were W. S. Childs, J.F. Carter and Dr. W. H. Price. W. D. Mitchell gave 20 acres 
of land, G. W. Walker gave 10 acres, and J. D. Padgett gave three acres Salem 
Church not subscribed liberally at the founding, but every year gave from $300 - 
to $500 from to current expenses. The Carey and other associations helped, and 
so did individuals, but somehow the school was never sufficient backed by the 
denomination and for the time being it is inactive.
Unfortunately, there was no one at Cragford whom the writer met who was able to 
give much definite information about its history. The oldest families going into 
it were the Roberts, Fetners, Orrs, Mannings. Bates, and Wilsons. Rev. Vernon S. 
Smith is the present pastor. while Wesley Lashley is the Sunday school 
superintendent. The stewards are Thomas Harris, George A. Padgett and Charles 
Young. It has 22 members. The Cragford Christian Church was and organized in 
1915 by E. M. Carter, but the congregation did not get into the new building 
until 1917. The charter members were Mitchells, Knight, Wilsons and Padgetts. 
The first preacher was E. M. Carter then Charley Carter, and now Dr. E. L. C 
Beougher, president of Bethlehem College at Wadley. C. H. Mitchell is the Sunday 
school superintendent and Mrs. E. M. Mitchell is president of the Christian 
Endeavor society. The membership is 30. 
Now New Harmony Christian Church, in the county, was organized by "Uncle Doc" 
Elder some 40 years ago with such families as the following in it: The Knights, 
McCormick's, Fetners, Mitchells, Lashleys; Vinsons, McCullers and Brownings; The 
first preacher was James D. "Doc" Elder. then his son, H. W. "Whit" Elder, then 
"Bud" Dollar, G. A. Hunt, G. O. Lankford, Rev. Hughes, Charley Carter, John 
Dollar and now Rev. Mr. Carpenter.
Depot agents have come and gone, but W. S. Childs, the postmaster, the first at 
Cragford, is still on the job. and he is a mighty useful citizen. The R. F. D. 
men going out of Cragford are E. A. Childs. R. F. D. 1; A. D. Hanson, R. F. D. 
2, and W. 0. Satterfield, It. R.F. D. 3. They have from 26 to 32 miles to cover. 
They all use automobiles. Buggies were discarded some years back. The depot 
agents have been Cleve Roop, H. L. McBride, Ware Aubrey, W. S. Florence, D. H. 
Palmer and J. D Thrash. R. O. Moody is foreman of the section gang. (There was a 
Post Office at Old Goldburg, one-mile front Cragford, where W. D. Mitchell was 
postmaster and ran a store).
W C. Wilder now 74, spoke of the following pioneer preachers: Charley Sisson 
Baptist and Dick Manning, Methodist, Gib Joiner Baptist. He gave as the 
physicians Dr. W. L. Heflin and Dr. Ferrell. Among the old-timers he told of 
William Farrow, W. D. Mitchell, Thomas Bassett, William Robinson, Spencer 
Morris, William Fetner (born in 1833, buried about 10 days ago. having lived 
nearly 93 years) Jack Handley (Capt. 'Bill" Handley's father), Jake Orr. Jacks 
Manning, Jim Lashley, Floyd Mackey, James McCormick, John Blake, West DeVaughan, 
Willis Pursley, William Moncus, Joe Eidson and Nat Bradford. (The latter having 
told him that for nine consecutive Monday mornings in the old days he had gone 
out in the hills nearby and brought in a buck every hunt.)

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