Lowndesboro, Alabama - Alabama Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Lowndesboro is a small town with a population of under 200. There are many buildings and residences from the 1800s. This marker is in front of an open field on Broad Street, near the intersection with Water Street.

"The site on which Lowndesboro now stands was part of the territory ceded by the Creek Indians with the signing of the Treaty of Fort Jackson, which ended the Creek War in 1814. Beginning in 1815, the area, located just north of the Old Federal Road, was settled by several families from South Carolina. Between 1817 and 1830, spurred by Alabama's admission to the Union in 1819, the area was extensively settled, mainly by Presbyterians from the Carolinas; it initially was named McGill's Hill after two of the first settlers, John and Selina McGill. In 1830, McGill's Hill merged with the nearby community of Loch Ranza and was renamed Lowndesborough (as it was originally spelled) in honor of William Lowndes, the congressman from South Carolina after whom Lowndes County was named. Lowndesboro was officially incorporated as a town by an act of the state legislature in 1856.

Its location amid Black Belt cotton plantations and its proximity to the Alabama River enabled Lowndesboro to become a center of the cotton industry. It was also among the earliest sites of the Alabama peach industry. The town was home to families who grew wealthy from the industry and who built large, Greek revival-style homes. Many of these homes survived an 1865 raid during the Civil War by Union forces under the command of Gen. James H. Wilson. According to local legend, town physician Philip Cilley met Wilson and his troops at the edge of town and convinced him that a smallpox epidemic had struck there; the ruse worked, and most of Wilson's men bivouacked outside of Lowndesboro. Although its historic structures were spared, Lowndesboro's economy and population suffered severely after the Civil War, as was the case with many other Black Belt towns." source: (visit link)

Marker Name: Lowndesboro, Alabama Marker Type: Urban Addtional Information:: The text of the marker reads: Lowndesboro, Alabama Lowndesboro developed from a small community of early settlers to a thriving township in the 1830’s. The settlers’ plantation interests were maintained in the lowlands along the Alabama River, while they built their cottage and antebellum homes in the Greek architectural style on the ridge of McGill’s Hill. The Alabama River ports of Newport Landing and Loch Ranza were adjuncts to the town. Planters stored their cotton in warehouses located there. Boats brought choice merchandise upriver from Mobile. People from other communities came by stagecoach and carriage to spend the night in the local hotels in order to shop for select wares. The Lowndesboro Boys Academy was established behind the C.M.E. Church. The Lowndesboro Female Institute was a thriving women’s college located on the site of Lowndes Academy. Horse racing was big business, and Lowndesboro had its own track. The community prospered in this era and produced this quotation from a traveler from Virginia, who wrote in 1837, “In northern Lowndes County there can be found a refined and polished Society.” Erected by the Alabama Tourism Department and the Town of Lowndesboro May 2010 Date Dedicated / Placed: May 2010 Marker Number: Not Listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   12/27/2013 hoteltwo visited it