Conecuh County AlArchives History .....History of Conecuh County, Alabama 1881 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/al/alfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com May 25, 2004, 3:47 am CHAPTER XXIII. Dark Sway of Reconstructionism--Social Chaos---Demoralization--Local Troubles- Sovereignty of the Bayonet--The Negro as a Politician--How the New Order of Things Affected Southern Society--Heroism Displayed, &c. Nothing equalled the wild chaos which prevailed in the South, just subsequent to the close of the war. The disorder introduced by invading armies, the derangement of the system of labor by the sudden emancipation of the slaves, the crash experienced by the heavy loss sustained by their former owners, the shock of disappointment at the failure of Southern arms-all these produced a universal gloom among the whites of the South. Exhilarated by the consciousness that he was no longer under the restraint of a master, the negro unceremoniously threw aside the implements of labor, and met his fellows where they were wont to gather, from day to day, in the rural village, at the depots, in the towns and crowded cities. All industry was suddenly paralyzed. There was a painful consciousness in the minds of the most-reflective that no shield of legal defence existed, and that for once, society was launched upon a wild and stormy sea of disorder. Prompted by the innate principle of self defence, every man resolved to protect, as far as possible, his own interests against the invasion of lawlessness. Hence it was to be expected that there would be occasional outbreaks of disorder. Robbery was by no means a rare occurrence, and here and there a murder was committed, while differences between the two races were frequently arising. Nothing of a serious nature arose in Conecuh. After the establishment, by the government, of military districts, troops were quartered at several points in the county, but here, as elsewhere, they were productive of more disorder than quiet. Every local camp became a kind of confessional, to which the negro would, for the most part, resort, not to confess his own sins, but to make confession of the sins of his white neighbor, and perhaps former owner, especially if these sins had the slightest relation to himself. Hence squads of cavalrymen were traversing the country districts, hunting up the perpetrators of reported misdemeanors, and great was the annoyance to which the people were subjected by these petty commanders of local posts. The feeling of demoralization, which came immediately upon the heels of the war, was gradually displaced by that of desperation, as the people witnessed the removal, by military orders, of the entire official incumbency of the civil positions, and their places filled by military appointees. Legally enfranchised, the blacks swarmed around the ballot-boxes at the first opportunity, and seemed greatly to relish the privilege of citizenship, though they were totally ignorant of the consequence of voting. Conflicting elements would soon have been tranquilized, and serene peace would again have smiled upon the desolate fields of the South, and would have kindled new hopes in the bosoms of her impoverished people, had not a horde of unprincipled politicians swarmed into the States, and fanned into intenser heat the hostility between the races. These, unfortunately, found fellow-helpers among the whites of the South, who, stimulated by no higher motive than self-aggrandizement, sought to widen the chasm between the races, in order to command the negro vote, and secure to themselves the spoils of office. Among those who contributed to this race agitation in Conecuh were William P. Miller and Rev. A. W. Jones. In the midst of this wide spread anarchy, created by the war and its disastrous results, it is wonderful that there was evinced such elasticity on the part of Southern society. A revolution could not have been more sudden or complete, than that into which the society of the South was precipitated; and yet the ease with which it was speedily adjusted to the existing order of things, was indeed marvelous. Men had risen from the most straitened circumstances into easy competency, and with a contentment at once natural and legitimate, were quietly resting from their early toils; and yet, when the crash of disaster came, they had to resume the hard labor of other days, in order to provide the actual necessities of life. Women, unused to domestic drudgery, and the thousand cares of which they had been relieved by competent servants, had to face the dire inevitable, and grapple with the duties to which a disastrous war had subjected them. But with the energy and elasticity for which the Anglo-Saxon race is so famous, these heroic men and women bravely met these trying odds, and distinguished themselves as signally as did their soldier boys upon the bloody field. Year by year, the South emerged from the wreck of the dark and bloody past, her people came more and more to take a calm and dispassionate view of "the situation," the lines of race prejudice were growing gradually dimmer, a spirit of industry began to awaken the sluggish energies of the people, and a wholesome change was being manifestly wrought in all directions. The one event of marked interest in Conecuh, during the year 1866, was the removal of the seat of justice from Sparta to Evergreen. Two principal causes contributed to this removal. The first was the total destruction of the court house at Sparta, with all the county records, and the second was the growing importance of Evergreen, and its easy accessibility from all portions of the county. Two years later, Conecuh lost a portion of her southern territory by the formation of Escambia county. This county was established by an act approved December 10th, 1868. It was carved from Conecuh and Baldwin counties. It has not been allowed separate representation in the General Assembly, until the last few years. List of county officers from 1865 to 1870: JUDGES OF PROBATE. 1868-John M. Henderson. Removed by military force and succeeded by A. W. Jones. 1868-A. W. Jones. SHERIFFS. 1867-James Fortner. CIRCUIT CLERKS. 1868- ______ Greenslate. Of Illinois--appointed by the military authorities. REPRESENTATIVES. 1868-J. Yates. 1870-J. W. Ethridge. Additional Comments: History of Conecuh County, Alabama By Rev. B. F. Riley Pastor of the Opelika Baptist Church Columbus, Ga.; Thos. Gilbert, Steam Printer and Book-Binder 1881 This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/alfiles/ File size: 6.8 Kb