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Butler
County
Alabama
History
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County
History
The county of Butler was established in 1819.
It derived its name from one of the earliest settlers—Captain
William Butler. There is a great diversity of soil and a
corresponding variety of productions in the county. Its climate,
health, location, and resources give promise that it will become one
of the leading counties of this great timber section. Its area
embraces 800 square miles.
Population in 1870, 14,981 ; population in
1880, 19,649. White, 10,684 ; colored, 8,965. ,
Tilled Land: 87,010 acres.—Area planted in
cotton. 35,851 acres; in corn, 24,648 acres; in oats, 7,494 acres ;
in sugar-cane, 338 acres; in rice, 17 acres; in sweet potatoes, 679
acres.
Cotton Production : 11,895 bales.
The general surface of Butler county is
rolling with some hills in the west. The lands are beautifully
adapted to diversified husbandry. In the northwestern portion the
soil is prairie and prolific. Through the middle portions there are
red lands whose value is highly prized by the planters of the
county. In the southern portion the soil is both red and gray. Along
the higher table-lands of Butler are found the sandy soils which
belong to all high pine regions; but like the lands of this class
throughout the Timber Belt, there is a clay subsoil of considerable
depth, which gives to the deep-rooted crops immense advantage. In
the hilly portion of Butler, where the highest points are of thin
soil, the slopes and valleys are quite productive. There is a
considerable mixture of lime with the soil in the creek bottoms.
This is due to the washings from the neighboring lime hills.
The soils of the county produce cotton, corn,
oats, sugar-cane, rice, barley, rye, peas, peanuts, sweet and Irish
potatoes.
No crop raised upon Southern soil can be
planted in Butler without receiving an adequate return, provided the
seasons are favorable. Many of the lands are fertile, and when
they are comparatively thin they are easily fertilized, and where
they need such aid, are well calculated to retain the manures. A
fact of great practical value maybe mentioned here as admitting of
equal application to every county in the great Timber Belt, viz: In
the sections which need the application of fertilizers there are
wonderful quantities of pine straw and leaves, which, when thrown
into stables and pens, serve to make the best domestic fertilizers.
For more than a half century this
course has
been adopted by planters, and their lands have been kept enriched
from year to year. Through a long period of years cotton and corn
were almost the exclusive crops; but a marvelous change is now being
wrought in the practical industries of the county. The production of
oats is engrossing more attention than formerly. The same is true of
rice. Sugar-cane is so easily grown and its yield is so abundant
that it is fast becoming one of the staple productions of the
county.
Perhaps in no county in the Timber Belt is
more attention bestowed upon the orchard than in Butler. Superior
apples, peaches, pears, and watermelons are produced. Figs thrive in
the fence corners and out-of-the-way places, and with no attention
the yield is very great. With slight attention, the fig would thrive
quite as well here as in any part of the world. The grape has
received considerable attention, and the returns from the culture of
the vine are excellent. In the town of Greenville, Honorable J. C.
Richardson has given considerable attention to the production of
fruits, and especially of the different varieties of grapes and
pears. The yield is quite large every year and the fruits grow to
perfection. Major D. G. Dunklin, of the same place, raises grapes
for shipment, from which he derives considerable revenue.
The fields and forests of Butler are
overspread with native clovers and grasses, which are encouraging
stock-raising. About the centers of population great quantities of
milk and butter are produced for home consumption and the local
markets. Raising beef for distant markets, and wool-growing, are now
receiving some attention.
Vegetables grow to perfection, and truck
farming and market gardening are somewhat engaged in, especially in
the neighborhood of Greenville.
In different sections of Butler county there
are splendid forests of timber comprising the several varieties of
oak, pine, ash, gum, cedar, poplar, hickory, dogwood, maple, beech,
and magnolia. Of the yellow, or long-leaf pine, there are vast
districts, and the timber is equal to that of
any other section of this Belt. In the northern or prairie region of
Butler there are belts of cedar growth as fine as can be
obtained in the Union.
The county abounds in excellent water
supplies. Springs, wells, and creeks abound in freestone and lime
water. The county is somewhat noted for its mineral springs. Butler
Springs have long been noted for their medicinal waters, and when
easier accessibility is had, the springs will come into note. But
one of the mast remarkable mineral wells is found within three miles
of Greenville—McCall's Mineral Well. Its waters are pronounced the
"strongest" of the various mineral waters known
in America. For dyspepsia and chronic derangement of the urinary
organs, and all phases of eruptions, the waters are excellent. Large
quantities of this water are shipped to all parts of the country
every year. When properly advertised and better known, these waters
will be mast earnestly sought by sufferers.
Of the chief streams of the county it may be
said that Pine, Barren, and Cedar creeks head in the northwest,
while the tributaries of the Sepulga river run through other
portions. Pigeon and Panther creeks are excellent streams of
water.
Greenville, the county-seat, with a population
of 3,500, Georgiana, Garland, Monterey, and Forest Home are the
centers of interest. All have remarkably fine educational
advantages.
At Greenville there are three institutions of
repute, viz: The Greenville Collegiate Institute, the South Alabama
Female Institute, and the Greenville High School. Public schools are
located in every township in the county.
In the northern portion of Butler have been
found some superior specimens of iron ore scattered over the
surface. Whether these are indications of deposits of neighboring
hills, is not known.
Some of the leading lumber interests of South
Alabama are found in Butler along the line of the Louisville and
Nashville railroad. They are devoted exclusively to the manufacture
of pine lumber, which is shipped to the most distant parts of the
country. Many other industries, such as gins and water mills
abound.
Those desiring land may secure them in many
localities at nominal figures. The present market price extends from
$1.50 to $10 per acre. There are in the county 13,160 acres of
public lands subject to homestead entry. In addition to this there
arc7,000 acres of railroad land which can be purchased at $1.25 per
acre.
Pleasant and cheap homes are here afforded
those desiring to settle. The people are industrious, thrifty, and
quiet, and immigrants will be well received.
Source: Alabama As It Is by Benjamin Franklin
Riley, D. D., 1887 , Transcribed by C. Anthony
