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Farming For A Better Future, page 113
force led by Brigadier-General H. B. Lyon attacked the Union soldiers. The troops were able to fight off the Confederates' attacks no less than three times. Upon retreating for the third time, the Confederate soldiers set fire to the depot with the Union men inside. The fire was put, out and the men and building were saved as Lyon's men moved on to Guntersville. Many of the men in the 101st and 110th USCI were from North Alabama and almost exclusively farmers.
In the early 20th century, there were never more than 20% African American households in Scottsboro. There were 107 (18%) African American households out of a total of nearly 600 households in Scottsboro in 1900. While the total households dropped in 1910, there remained 18% African Americans. The peak percentage of households of color was in 1920 when 19% of the 668 households were African American, however, the overall population of Scottsboro
(Left) 1957 USGS/TVA Topographic Map of Scottsboro, Scottsboro, Alabama Quadrangle (With African American Neighborhood Highlighted) (Below) Excerpt of 1900 Census Record Showing Paris Davis Owning a Farm (National Archives and Records Administration via Ancestry.com)
continued to grow. In 1930, there were almost 900 households, 150 (17%) of them were African American. Even after the Scottsboro Boys trial, there were 164 (13%) households of color in Scottsboro, a city of over 1,200 households by that time.
While the number and percentage of African American households in Scottsboro rose overall through the early 20th century, the number of landowning farmers drastically declined in 1920. In 1900 and 1910, there were 13 and 16 landowning African American farmers in and around Scottsboro, respectively. A decade later, in 1920, there were only 6 African American landowners. By 1930 and 1940, there were four landowners of color in 900 and 1,200 households.
Of more interest may be that few families owned more than one farm and few individuals retained ownership of their farms in this area for more than a decade. In 1900, there were two members of the Mathews and the Davis families who owned a farm, but only one out of 16 farmers in 1910 had previously owned his farm in 1900 - Jim Beard. In 1910, Henry and Dan Campbell owned a farm, as well as John and
113 - DEKALB, JACKSON & MARSHALL - (4641)