OLD BYLER ROAD PROJECT

Byler Road Association

Tuscumbia, Alabama
January, 2014
Dedicated to preserving, promoting, and enhancing the history and scenic beauty of Alabama’s
first enacted roadway for public awareness, education, and enjoyment; and for tourism and
economic revitalization in the north west region of the state.
Objectives Of Byler Road Project
• Passage of Resolution by Alabama Legislature that recognizes
the historical importance and scenic attributes of Byler Road

• Qualify Byler Road for the Alabama Historic Register

• Qualify Byler Road for the National Historic Register

• Qualify Byler Road as a Scenic By-Way

• Establish Signage, Historical Markers, Maps, and

Informational Brochures Along Byler Road For Public Driving
Pleasure, Education, Tourism and Economic Impact in North
West Region of Alabama
 Old Byler Road Story

The world is full of many stories, and from time to time they permit
themselves to be told. Old Cherokee Indian Saying
Byler Road originated as a buffalo trail that was used by Chickasaw,
Creek, Cherokee, and Choctaw Indian hunters moving north toward
The Cumberland River Valley in search of Buffalo.
 The Trail Was Used By Many Indian People
 Ancient Paleo - Mississippian Indian People
 Historic Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw and Creek Indian Tribes
On December 16, 1819, just two days after Alabama became a state, the
legislature enacted, and Governor William W. Bibb approved a law making
Byler Road the first public road in Alabama.

Section 1. Byler Road Law reads as follows:

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the State of

Alabama, in General Assembly convened. That a public road be, and the same is
hereby established, as follows, to-wit: Beginning on the great military road,
leading from Columbia in Tennessee to Madisonville in Louisiana, at or near the
place where Samuel Craig now lives, on the west side of Big-shoal creek in
Lauderdale county, thence, the nearest and best way to the Tennessee river, at
the ferry opposite the town of Bainbridge, Franklin county; thence southeast
from the southern part of said town, the nearest and best way to the county line
between the counties of Lawrence and Franklin; thence south along said county
line, wherever the situation of the ground will admit, and at all times as near
the said line as practicable, to the southern boundaries of the counties of
Lawrence and Franklin, thence the most eligible route to the falls of Tuskaloosa
river
 John Byler
Road Builder
1781 - 1824
Headstone that eulogizes John Byler, a soldier in
the War of 1812. John Byler personally knew all
five Revolutionary War Soldiers buried alongside
him at Rock Springs Cemetery near Mt. Hope
John Byler was married to Elizabeth
Walker, born in 1776. Their daughter,
Elizabeth Catherine, married Eldridge
T. Mallard in 1819.
Mallard was the tollgate manager at
Eldridge on the Byler Road, and the
town was named for him. William M.
McCain, operator of McCain’s Toll
Booth, was another Byler son-in-law.
The Byler Road Law granted Byler
permission and contracted with him to
build the toll road and maintain it for a
period of 12 years. He would keep all
tolls collected for those years.
John Byler died shortly after Byler Road
was completed. He is buried at Rock
Springs Cemetery on Byler Road at
Mount Hope, Alabama in Lawrence
County.
Facts About Old Byler Road

 The roadway was constructed through Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin,

Lawrence, Walker, Winston, Marion, Fayette, and Tuscaloosa counties .

 Over time, segments of Byler Road became known by many names including
Bailey Springs Road (Lauderdale County), Bainbridge Road (Franklin/Colbert
County), County Line Road (Colbert, Franklin, and Lawrence counties),
Stagecoach Road (Fayette and parts of Tuscaloosa County) Main Avenue
(Tuscaloosa County), and Hillsboro Road in east Lawrence County.

 The approximately 140 miles of Byler Road were completed on November 21,
1823.

 The original road was to be “twelve foot wide and devoid of all stumps and
roots”. Commissioners were responsible for seeing this provision was met.

 In 1826, after Tuscaloosa became the capitol of Alabama, the road became
more important than ever.
 Old Byler Road Tolls

• The original toll rate was 75¢ for a four-wheeled carriage

• A two-wheeled carriage was 50¢

• Horseback riders were charged 12 1/2¢

• A pack animal toll was 6 1/2¢

• Each head of cattle cost 1¢, while sheep and hogs were 1/2¢

 Those who evaded the toll were fined $5, plus the toll

Issue 1, Free State Journal newsletter , Steve Hicks and Dennis Bales
Civil War Troops En Route To Elyton, Tuscaloosa & Selma Along Byler Road

This painting by Alabama artist, John Warr, depicts Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest and his men closing in on
C olonel Abel Streight’s Mule Brigade.

 Colonel Streight’s 1700 man Mule Brigade crossed the Byler near Mt. Hope, engaged on Battleground Mountain
(Cullman County) with General N. B. Forrest’s cavalry and surrendered near Georgia State Line

 General John Bell Hood’s 40,000 man Army of the Tennessee crossed the Tennessee River at Bainbridge, Southport and
Florence going to/from the Battle of Franklin/Nashville in late 1864.

 In March, 1865, a division of Union General J. H. Wilson’s cavalry of 13,480 horseman passed down Byler Road in route
to Tuscaloosa and the Battle of Selma. A Calvary division of about 4000 troops camped at Kinlock Spring off Byler Road on
March 14, 1865.

 General Winslow's division passed along the Byler Road through Lawrence County and stayed the night at David
Hubbard’s Plantation located at Kinlock.

 Brigadier General James Garfield (later US President Garfield) crossed the Byler Road at Leighton and again at Hillsboro
in May 1862 while carrying out his mission to secure the Corinth MS to Huntsville AL railroad assets for Union Army use.
 Let’s Travel Byler Road
From Lauderdale To Tuscaloosa County

Hike And Ride Obsolete Bike Trails and Rural

Road Bed Countryside

Drive Scenic
By Way
 Old Byler Road
Linking Mobile To Nashville

 Old Byler Road begins at

Jackson’s Military Road in
Lauderdale County.

 It meanders southerly across

Colbert, Franklin, Lawrence,
State of Alabama Winston, Walker, Marion, and
Fayette counties.
The Byler Road
 It ends in Northport (original
name Kentuck, Kentucky or
The dotted line is Byler Road from Brown’s Canetuck) in Tuscaloosa County,
Ferry to Courtland , connecting along Gaines at the foot of Main Avenue.
Trace. Pre-settler road called Cherokee Trail.

 Byler Road is the midsection of

the Mobile Trace to Jackson’s
Military Road.
At it’s northernmost point, Byler Road intersects with
Jackson’s Military Road in Lauderdale County
 Southward Journey Down Old Byler Road

This is a relic abutment from the old bridge used by Andrew Jackson’s army
engineers to cross Shoal Creek. This is the start of Old Byler Road, at the junction
on the west bank of Shoal Creek Bridge and Jackson’s Military Road.
Historic Bailey Springs In Lauderdale County
The area near Camp Westmoreland is known as
Bailey Springs. It was a resort in the 1800's due to
the so-called curing agents of the mineral springs.
Families moved to the area due to these springs.
Many famous people visited the springs to enjoy
their effects. Antebellum spas offered wealthy
individuals and families relaxation, social events, and
advertised medical cures. Bailey Springs was one of
the highest regarded resorts in the South.

Jonathan Bailey came to Lauderdale County around

1820. He originally purchased about 200 acres near
Shoals Creek; and later purchased an additional 40
acres, which included the springs, from John Hough.
In 1843 "Mr. Bailey was so afflicted with dyspepsia,
that he was unable to visit distant mineral springs."
He began to use his own springs and found himself
almost well within 4 weeks. The fame of the springs
increased yearly. He built a resort to accommodate
the many visitors. Mr. Michael Tuomey, the state of
Alabama's first geologist visited the springs around
this time. His examination found them to be
composed of carbonate iron, carbonate soda, chloride
sodium, carbonate potassa and sulfur. Bailey is said
to have operated the resort until his death in 1857.
There were a series of owners thereafter.
Shoal Creek Crossing Downstream From Jackson’s Military Road
Bainbridge Crossing of Byler
Bainbridge (Byler) Road On The Northern Route
 Town of Bainbridge, Colbert County, North Byler Route

When settlers rushed to the

Tennessee Valley about 1819, they
dreamed of establishing a
commercial city at the Muscle
Shoals; and they established the
town of Bainbridge. A ferry
operated at the site and crossed the
Tennessee River in 8 to 9 minutes.
Bainbridge became a ghost town Bainbridge was located along Byler Road
after it was bypassed by the railroad on the south bank of the Tennessee
built from Tuscumbia to Decatur. River, 6 miles east of Florence in
Bainbridge is submerged under Lauderdale County. (1826 map of
Lake Wilson. An overgrown Alabama)
cemetery is all that remains of
Bainbridge today.
 Ghost Towns Along Byler Road

Bailey Springs Resort Lauderdale County By Shoals Creek

Bainbridge Colbert County, under Lake Wilson
Barker’s Stand Lawrence County, near Mt. Hope
New London Winston County by Bankhead Forest
DeGraffeinried’s Inn Winston County by Pebble
Pruitt’s Stand Winston County by NW AL Hospital
Arc Winston County by Rocky Ravine PK
Winston Winston County on Hoggle Ridge
Biler Winston County SE of Haleyville
Larissa (Ferris Inn) Winston County, south of Nat. Bridge
Majic Winston County south of Larissa
Dublin (Tidwell’s Stand) Fayette County, SW of Eldridge
Dry Creek Fayette County, NE of Fayette
Sheffield Fayette County, NE of Fayette
Old Dublin Fayette County, E-NE of Fayette
Buck Snort Fayette County bet Bankston & Berry
Newton Fayette Co AL
Strongs Fayette County, south of Bankston
Crump Tusc County/9 mi N of Samantha
Marcumville Tusc County/6 mi N of Samantha
 “King Cotton” Along Byler Road
This was a popular slogan used during the American Civil War by the Confederacy to support
secession from the United States

With the invention of the cotton gin in 1793, cotton became the “Agricultural
King” to the Indian People and settlers who claimed north west Alabama. Cotton
was grown in the fertile river valleys along Byler Road and transported by wagon
loads on the road to be ginned and then shipped from Tuscaloosa for commerce.
 The Oaks Plantation
The Oaks Plantation was owned by Abraham Ricks, Sr. He was born 1791 in North Carolina and died 1852 at The Oaks in
Colbert County. He left North Carolina in 1818 with 30 families and his slaves for Alabama. Portions of the 10,000 acre
plantation were purchased during the United States government land sales of 1818.

A log cabin was already built at The Oaks by

Cherokee Indians who occupied the area from 1770 to
1816. Abraham Ricks added and attached the main
part of the house to the log cabin

South of Bainbridge at Leighton in Colbert County

 William Russell’s Grave in Franklin, County

Major William Russell was born ca. 1760 in Tyron County ,NC . He died in 1825 in Franklin County,
Alabama. Major Russell was Chief-Of-Staff to General Andrew Jackson during the War of 1812. Russell’s
Valley in Colbert County and the Town of Russellville in Franklin County are named for William
Russell.
 General Phillip Roddy’s Birthplace
Along Byler Road North Route
Moulton, Alabama
 General Phillip Dale Roddy was born on
this site about 1820 near downtown
Moulton within a few blocks of Byler Road.

 In October 1862, at Tuscumbia, Roddy

raised a company that became part of the
4th AL Cavalry. He served as captain,
colonel, and brigadier general.

 His efforts in keeping the Union Army

north of the Tennessee River earned
him the title “Defender of North
Alabama.”

 Roddy's battlefield encounters included

Shiloh, Streight's Raid, Gen. Dodge at
Tuscumbia, and actions in MS and GA.
 General Leroy Pope Walker Lived Along
Byler Road In Lawrence County
Leroy Pope Walker
1817 - 1883
The Original Confederate Cabinet: L-R Judah
Benjamin, Stephen Mallory, Christopher Memminger,
Alexander Stephens, LeRoy Pope Walker, Jefferson
Davis, John Reagan, Robert Toombs
 Leroy Pope Walker was the son of John W.
Walker who was House Speaker of the AL
Territory, the first constitutional convention
president, the first US AL senator, and
namesake of Walker County, AL.
 Leroy P. Walker began his political career in
Lawrence County. He lived on Market Street in
Moulton, a few blocks from Byler Road. He
served in the General Assembly from 1843 to
1849 and 1853 to 1857. He was speaker of the AL
House (1847 and 1849).
 Confederate President Jefferson Davis
appointed him 1st Confederate States
Secretary of War. Walker ordered the attack
upon Fort Sumter that started the Civil War.
 In 1883, Walker successfully defended Jesse
James' brother, Frank, for an 1881 Muscle Shoals
robbery.
Cruising The Scenic North Byler Route, Bankhead
National Forest, Lawrence County
 Sections Of Old Byler Road Are Obsolete
The name “J. C. Fannin”, date “1831,” is
carved into this old beech tree along Byler
Roadbed near Byler Gap, William B.
Bankhead National Forest near Mount
Hope, Alabama in Lawrence County.

Members of Byler Road Association

hike a section of obsolete roadbed
near Byler Gap, William B.
Bankhead National Forest , Mount
Hope, Alabama in Lawrence
County.
 John Byler Home Place

The old rock chimney is all that remains of the John Byler home located on the
North Byler Route at Mount Hope in Lawrence County.
 Alabama’s Earliest Caucasian Settlers Migrated From Surrounding
States And Territories To North West Alabama Along Byler Road

This log house at Mount Hope is located adjacent to John Byler’s home place. The house is
reminiscent of the rustic dwellings built by the early settlers.
 Legendary “Aunt” Jenny Brooks Johnson
The Feud
When the Confederate Home Guard came to her
door in 1863, Louisa Elizabeth Jane Bates Brooks
was 37 years old. A pretty, blue-eyed half
Cherokee from Walker County, she married
Willis Brooks from Kentucky when she was 14
and he was 35. They raised a large family and
ran a roadhouse on the Byler Road in southwest
Lawrence County.

The Home Guard killed 57 year old Willis Brooks.

When son John tried to save his father, he was
shot dead. Placing all her boys’ hands in the
blood on their father’s chest, Jenny made
them swear a “blood oath” that they would
never rest until all eight killers were dead. The
feud that started with the killing of Jenny’s
husband and oldest son lasted forty years. The
eight men were killed by Brooks and her sons.
Until she died at age 98, she claimed to be proud
of her boys, who she reportedly said, “died like,
men, with their boots on”. She is buried in Johnson
Cemetery, a few miles from her home on Byler
Road. Jane “Jenny” Brooks Johnson
1826 - 1924
Old Byler Road, Bankhead National Forest, Between Poplar Springs Cemetery And
Aunt Jenny Brook’s Place, Was A Trail From Prehistoric Indian Times

Only Osage orange trees and barn wood remain at Jenny Brooks Johnson’s place on Byler Road in Bankhead
Forest. These trees were called bow-wood trees by early French settlers because Indians used the trees to make
their bows.
 Beautiful Kinlock Falls
North Byler Road Route
William B. Bankhead National Forest
Lawrence County, Alabama
 Kinlock Rock Shelter

Kinlock Rock Shelter is a treasure trove of ancient Indian history in Bankhead National Forest.
 The High Town Path
 This route was some1,000 miles in
length and ran from Old Charles Town,
South Carolina to Chickasaw Bluffs near
Memphis, Tennessee.

 It is named in honor of the Indian village

of High Town located near present-day
Rome, Georgia.

 The Moulton Fork of the Byler Road ran

from Moulton through Youngtown, and
up to the mountain at McClung Gap

 The two Byler Roads joined at a site

known as the 66 mile tree which was
located about one-half mile west of the
junction of the High Town Path and the
Moulton Fork. The 66 mile tree was
thought to be a designated tree at the
forks of the two roads. Sign Marking The High Town Path In
Haleyville, Winston County, Alabama
 Capt. Jacob Pruett 1761- 1845
"AN OUT-STANDING American soldier and citizen.“
The Huntsville Democrat May 21, 1845 issue

Jacob Pruett was a principal investor in the

Byler Road project. Pruett was one of the 'Free
State's' earliest and most colorful settlers.

A private in the American Revolutionary War at

an early age, Pruett was a captain of the
Mounted Volunteers of Tennessee during the
War of 1812.

Jacob Pruett's stand (tavern) was a popular

stopping place on the Byler Road in the 1830s
and 1840s. A two-story poplar log structure
with four 20 foot square rooms per floor, it was
located near a large spring and netted a
handsome profit as most of the hogs and cattle
driven to south Alabama passed this way.

There are many undocumented tales of highway

Pruett died while chasing a bear on horseback at robbery and murder on the Byler Road, and it is
age 81 years. He is buried near his beloved said some of those early Alabama travelers slain
"Pebbly Branch" at Haleyville, AL were tossed into "the big hole" near the tavern at
Haleyville, AL.
 Natural Bridge On South Byler Route

Natural Bridge is located in Winston County at Natural Bridge, the smallest town in
Alabama. The entrance to Natural Bridge is less that ½ mile from Byler Road. The
natural bridge formation within the park is the largest natural arch east of the Rockies.
The sandstone and iron ore bridge is 60 ft. high and 148 ft. long.
Approximate Location Of Byler Road Toll Booth
Town Of Eldridge, Walker County

Eldridge T. Mallard was the tollgate manager at Eldridge on the Byler

Road. He was John Byler’s son-in-law. The town of Eldridge and Mallard
Creek are named for him.
 Byler Crossing

Byler Crossing is near the ghost town of Dublin (Tidwell’s Stand), and
south west of Eldridge, in Walker County, Alabama, along the southern
route.
 Byler Road (Also Know As Old Stagecoach Trail)
Alabama’s Other “Lost Highway”

Fayette County, Alabama On The Southern Route of Byler Road

 Collins Plantation House, Tuscaloosa, County

Splendid Southern Architecture Along Byler Road Southern Route

 Old Byler Road Crossed North River (Now Lake Tuscaloosa) And
The John Welch Prewitt Plantation
 John Welch Prewitt, slave trader and successful
planter, was said to have owned more than 600
slaves. Prewitt’s estate covered more than 6,000
acres north of Northport, near North River.

 Prewitt is reported to have owned slave ships

that docked in Mobile. He had a vested interest in
the Byler Road because it connected his
plantation to the Mobile Trace and the Port of
Mobile.

 Prewitt funded and built about 15 miles of the

Byler roadway using slave labor.

Once a toll road over land that was swallowed by Lake Tuscaloosa, Byler Road
connected the Warrior and Tennessee rivers, and ran through the John Welch
Prewitt plantation.
John Welch Prewitt
1793 - 1873
Prewitt Slave Cemetery
Northport, Alabama
 In the 1820’s, John Welch Prewitt
designated a two-acre parcel of land
on his plantation at Northport as a
burial ground for slaves and their
descendants.

 It is possibly the largest existing

slave cemetery in Alabama with 300-
500 graves. The last burial was in
1945.

 The markings range from initials

scratched into stone to full names and
dates going back to 1819, the year
Alabama became a state.

 Pole Bridge Baptist Church owns and

maintains the cemetery.
 Northport and Byler Road in 1820’s
This is a rendering of what the
foot of Byler Road looked like
in the 1820s.

This was before the town

moved a few blocks north to
what is now 5th Street
(Columbus Road) ; and before
the first wooden bridge was
completed in 1834-5.

First Street (Land Bridge Street

or Battle Street were other
names) was added going east-
west along the river to connect
the Byler Road to the new
bridge.
 From Wagons To Cars
Byler Road In Northport, Tuscaloosa County

This is a 1905 photograph taken from the foot of Byler Road in Northport where the cotton warehouses
were located, and Winfield Scott Persinger at the wheel of the first car in Northport.
 At The Foot Of Byler Road
Northport, Alabama

This photography was taken in 2006 at the foot of Byler Road, showing Barnes
& Norris Gin shortly before it was torn down.
 Tuscaloosa, Alabama
State Capitol 1826-1846

Tuscaloosa, Alabama functioned as the state capital city from 1826 to

1846. For almost a century the Classical Revival domed state capitol
building stood in Tuscaloosa to the west of downtown; however, in
1923 it burned down. Today all that remains of the historic site are Old Alabama State Capitol Ruins
ruins preserved in what is today known as Capitol Park Capitol Park , Tuscaloosa, AL
 Here Bring Your Hearts, Here Tell Your Anguish,
Earth Has No Sorrow That Heaven Cannot Heal
Sir Thomas More, English Humanist
(More was an ancestor of some early English inhabitants to the region)

This compelling headstone is located in a slave cemetery about two miles from the Prewitt Plantation
Slave Cemetery. The cemetery is along a section of Byler Road that is listed on the National Register of
Historical Places (1974) . Although the inscription is barely legible, the simply carved heart poignantly
conveys the most essential human emotions; requited love and longing for people that matter the most in
our lives.
Relax At The End Of Old Byler Road
City Café is perhaps the best known
eating establishment in the Tuscaloosa
area; it’s where Coach Bear Bryant
always had his morning coffee,
making it a magnet for the past 50
years.

It is located on Main Avenue (Byler

Road) in Northport. Northport didn’t
exist until Byler made the town.

City Café is one block from the

Warrior River, at the south end of
Byler Road, where goods were loaded
onto ships headed to many unknown
destinations.
We Hope You Have Enjoyed The History and Scenic
Beauty Along Byler Road
The Road Told You It’s Story, Just As The Cherokee Indians’ Said It Would Do