Dale County AlArchives News.....More Early History (by W.F. Cox) October 4 1904 ************************************************ 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: Christine Thacker http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00033.html#0008100 May 18, 2004, 5:03 pm Ozark Tribune OZARK TRIBUNE OCT. 4, 1904 MORE EARLY HISTORY. Mr. Editor: As my other piece did not find its way to the waste basket, I will try and write some more. I will give you a few more names, some that lived on the east side of Claybank creek. There was William Cox, my father, Noel Dowling, Dr. Mack Atkins the noted bear hunter, Samuel Hallford, John Andrews, grandfather of your townsman, Berry Andrews, Rev. Dempsey Dowling, who settled at Skipperville, and it was named after him. Well, I will have to stop, as my mind takes in so many. I told in my other article that there were about 480 able-bodied men in this whole country that were subject to the war. Well, there was a proclamation from the governor for troops to fight the Indians. So they were all ordered to meet at Daleville and lined up so that their names could be taken down, and Seaban Gray was the man who did the writing. When the list was completed the names were put in a hat and mixed up and drawn out. The ones that were drawn out had to go and fight the Indians. There was a demand for substitutes to go. Peace was soon restored. This was a large county then, embracing Dale, Coffee, Geneva and Covington counties. I have heard Elisha Matheny say that he was appointed to collect the taxes of these counties, then one county, about the date of 1830, for the fees were one hundred dollars, and he said that would buy him eighty acres of choice land. See the progress of time. About 1840 the waters were troubled. The court house question was agitated to move it to old Wilburn on Pea river. That called for a division of the county. The court house was at Daleville. Mr. Arch Justice being a man of much vim and determination, his friends run him for the legislature for a division of the county. He won the race against Jerry Warren, who wanted the court house moved west. Justice said during his campaign that he would divide the county if he had to take a broad axe and hew it open from north to south. During the campaign things got so warm that Jerry Warren and Tobias Lee met in the road near Daleville and had a fight about it. On election day in Bear 2, at Levi Dowling's house, the election was held. During the day a man by the name of Blaric wanted to move the court house west and he bought honey by the tub full and treated on it, and that gave rise to the name of Honey Town after that. Justice had an act passed for the division, and the range line between 22 and 23 being agreed upon. This soon brought on something else. The next thing was moving the courthouse to Newton, and Thomas Andrews, Sr., was one of the commissioners at that time. He owned the land and had the town laid off in lots. My father, Wm. Cox, was county surveyor at that time, and he laid off the town into lots, and they were sold. At that time there were no bridges in the whole land called Dale county. Thomas Andrews, Sr., built the first bridge across the river at Newton. It was a toll bridge and "Bertice (second letter faded, could be e, c, or o) Byrd, Sr., kept it for him until the Harrison flood carried it off. Then he kept a ferry for a long time. The next bridge was built by the county, and the Lincoln flood carried it away. Think of the progress of the time. Now we have about 110 bridges, two of iron, and eight wooden ones that are covered, and a good court house and soil, and the county is prosperous and doing well. W.F. Cox Additional Comments: Thanks to Cathy. This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/alfiles/ File size: 4.0 Kb