Boy Scout Jacob Enslen of LDS Troop 52 researched, designed wrote, and had placed this local history marker in the grounds of the Elmore County Courthouse in downtown Wetumpka AL.
The marker reads as follows:
"The land area which now comprises the city of Wetumpka was inhabited by various Indian cultures prior to the inward migrations of the white man at the turn of the nineteenth century. The largest Indian village near here was located on the east bank of the Coosa River one mile south of this point. This village was known as "Oche-Au-Po-Fau" (Hickory Ground) and was composed mainly of Muscogees. After the 1814 surrender of the creek Confederacy at Fort Toulouse, there came an influx of settlers to this fertile land, many bringing slaves.
The US government surveyed the future townsite in 1831. Major part of the site east of the river was still Indian territory, but was ceded to the US by the Cusseta Treaty of 1832. That year lots were auction to the public. By late 1836, all remaining Indians had been moved to reservations in Oklahoma.
In 1834, the state legislature chartered the town of Wetumpka which was on both sides of the river. The west side was an Autauga County, and east side north of the former Indian boundary line which ran easterly from the falls was in Coosa County. The east side south of the Indian boundary line was in Montgomery County, but this latter portion was transferred to Coosa County in 1837.
(continued on other side)
The name Wetumpka was taken from the Indian words "We-Wau" (water) and Tum-Cau (rumbling or sounding), in reference to the noise made by the rocky Shoals of the river.
In 1837, the legislature divided the town and incorporated the area on the west side of the river as West Wetumpka. In 1839, the 2 towns are reunited by the legislature as one city known as the city of Wetumpka. That same year, Wetumpka was chosen as the site for the first state prison.
After the destruction of a prior bridge by flooding, a sturdy, covered bridge was constructed in 1844 by the famous builder, Horace King, a former slave who had been freed by the legislature the preceding year. This covered bridge was located on the same site as the Bibb Graves bridge. This covered bridge was swept away in the great flood of 1886, the same flood which altered the course of the Tallapoosa River and formed Parker's island.
This marker was erected in 1990 as the Eagle Scout project of Jacob Enslen, Boy Scouts of America, L.D.S. Troop 52."
24 years later, look what this young man has become: (
visit link)
"Outstanding Eagle: Jacob Enslen
Jacob EnslenJacob Enslen, Lehi – UT
Police Officer
Jacob Enslen wants to make a difference in the lives of others. Since receiving his Eagle Scout Award, he has served a mission in Chile and pursued a career as a Police Officer. He says, “Law enforcement provides many opportunities to serve and to make a difference whether by investigating crimes, helping a drug addict get clean, offering counsel to a family struggling to communicate without violence, finding a lost child, providing a shoulder to cry on, teaching merit badges, or simply changing a flat tire.” Jacob considers his service as a husband and a father his greatest highlight.
Congratulations to Jacob Enslen!"