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Farming For A Better Future, page 351
Huntsville has long been a home for people of color. Madison County is known for a sizable population of free people of color before the Civil War and successful communities of professionals, politicians, religious leaders, educators, and businesspeople through to the present day. However, the city
and its surroundings also have a long history of displacement and destruction of historically African American communities and neighborhoods. While other historical places and buildings are preserved, several of the historical landmarks of the communities belonging to people of color have been lost.
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Indian Creek Primitive
Baptist Church
This church was first organized in 1869 when property records for the church known as “African Baptist Church” were recorded at its present location. Reverend Ned Colman, also known as Ned Clay, founded the church and served as its first pastor. The church property was once the farm of Jerry Thompson, who owned the land from 1920- 1954.
Landowner and cornerstone of the community, Dan Tibbs, Jr. was baptized here in 1939. In 1944, Tibbs Jr. became the choir director while both he and his father, Dan Tibbs, Sr. were deacons. The original building and everything in it, except the piano, was destroyed by fire in 1969. When the church rebuilt, both of the Tibbs' names were on the cornerstone.
(Top) Excerpt of the 1940 Census Showing Jerry Thompson and Family Owning a Farm Worth Approximately $200 (Above) Indian Creek Primitive Baptist Church in Madison County Land Records, 19451959 (Index to Madison County Land Records (Left) Photograph of Congregation, Circa 1950s (Indian Creek Primitive Baptist Church website)
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Indian Creek School*
The Indian Creek School was an African American school until about the time of integration. It appears on the 1958 USGS topographic map until the most recent version; however, by 2002, the school was torn down and replaced by a large industrial lot.
Dan Tibbs, Jr. taught math here from 1960-1964. He then became principal for three years until integration forced him to move to the New Market Junior School as an assistant principal. The land was purchased by Yancy Horton, Sr. in 1942 after leaving the Pond Beat area of Redstone Arsenal. The land passed to Yancy Jr. in 1945 and to fellow African American farmer, Nick Fitcheard in 1948, who owned it until 1959.
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Inman (Emiline) Cemetery
This cemetery is located on Redstone Arsenal on the west side of Anderson Road. While there is little evidence of who began the cemetery and who is buried there, the name and land records suggest that the Inman family settled in the area prior to the 1830s. They owned land in the southwest portion of Madison County, and census records show Isaac and James Inman had two slaves. Isaac Inman left no slaves in his will. However, the only markers present today are those of five African Americans. What
(Below) Indian Creek School in Madison County Land Records, 1945-1959 (Index to Madison County Land Records)
351 - MADISON - (4879)