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Farming For A Better Future, page 96
American households owning a farm. Common surnames of African American landowning farmers in the early 20th century include Wagner, Harris, Jackson, Ward, Coffey, and Stewart/Steward. a two-acre lot and constructed in 1922 or 1923. The school cost a total of $1,750 to build with $800 coming from the community of color, $450 from public funds, and another $500 from the Rosenwald 41 Fort Payne In the early 20th century, Fort Payne was home to a small population of African Americans. From 1900 to 1940, the total number of households steadily rose from 484 to 948 households. However, the number of Fackler School* Fackler had one of the three Rosenwald schools in Jackson County. It was a one-teacher school set on Foundation. The school was located north of the crossroads of Fackler on the east side of County Road 42 but all that remains is a wooded lot. The school appeared on the 1936 and 1950 USGS topographic maps as “Rosenwald School,” but was absent by 1970. Fort Payne is located in the approximate center of the Little Wills Valley, which stretches the length of DeKalb County. It became the seat of the county in 1878. The nearby community of Lebanon previously had the honor. The early history of Fort Payne is closely associated with the Cherokee who inhabited the land until Indian Removal in the 1830s forced all American Indians to move west to Oklahoma on the Trail of tears. In fact, Fort Payne was established as a federal post to help expedite the removal of Cherokee from the land. African American households in Fort Payne fluctuated during this time, but ultimately dropped in relative percentage over time. At the start of the century there were 73 households of color, or 15% of the total households. Over the decades, the number of households peaked at 50 in 1920 and bottomed out (Left) 1947 USGS Topographic Map of Fort Payne, Fort Payne, Alabama Quadrangle (Below) Fort Payne Depot, 2010 (Flickr, User Brent Moore) (Opposite Page) Excerpts from the Federal Census (National Archives and Records Administration via Ancestry.com) (First) Excerpt of 1900 Census Record Showing William Williamson Owning a Farm (Second) Excerpt of 1910 Census Record Showing Tom Chambliss Owning a Farm (Third) Excerpt of 1910 Census Record Showing Robert Hightower Owning a Farm (Fourth) Excerpt of 1910 Census Record Showing Charley Sparks Owning a Farm DEPOT KEY | COMMUNITIES CEMETERIES CHURCHES ■ PLANTATIONS ■ SCHOOLS ■ OTHER * Indicates a Historical - Non-Extant Resource - (4624)