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Farming For A Better Future, page 438
511
Unknown Church of Priceville*
This church no longer exists. The only record of this church is within the Morgan County Land Books for 1920-1937, noted as the “Col.” Or “Negro” Church in the NW % of the NW % of Section 11, Township 6 South, Range 4 West. While the symbol for a church appears on the 1936 USGS/TVA topographic map, it
(Above) 1920 Morgan County Land Book (Morgan County
Archives, Decatur, Alabama) (Below) 1928 Morgan County
Land Book (Morgan County Archives, Decatur, Alabama)
does not label the church. Just to the southeast of the church was a sizable concentration of African American landowners and presumably farmers.
52 ■
Unknown School of Somerville*
The proper name of this school is unknown. It does not appear on any topographic maps or other records.
The only indication of it is in the 1920-1928 Morgan County land books. More research is needed to discern which school was located here.
(Above) Portion of the Morgan County Land Book from 1920-1928 of Township 7 South, Range 2 West, Section 7, Showing the Unlabeled School (Morgan County Archives, Decatur, Alabama)
53i
Walnut Grove*
Walnut Grove was one of the large estates owned by James Fennell and later his widow, Mary Curtis King Fennell. The house was built about 1840 and survived until it was burned about 1920. Fennell also owned the Summerseat Plantation.
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Wayman African Methodist Episcopal Church
The Wayman African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, commonly known as Wayman Chapel, dates to 1877 when Rev. T.W. Coffee was assigned to the Decatur Mission along with five other members. Rev. Coffee travelled the South helping to establish the AME Church at the turn of the 20th century. Wayman Chapel is one of several churches he helped grow into a lasting establishment. Built in 1907 on Church Street between McCartney and Madison streets, the modest brick church is named for Bishop Alexander Walker Wayman (1821-1895), who was ordained a deacon in 1881 by Pastor Winfield Henri Mixon, leader of the AME Church in Decatur.
55 ■
West Decatur
The neighborhood of West Decatur became a predominately African American community in the early 20th century. Several African American homeowners took up residence in the Decatur Land Improvement & Furnace Company's additions to the city's suburbs. Churches, schools, and the nearby Magnolia-Sykes Cemetery serviced this community. It was also accessible from Decatur via the streetcar line between downtown and Moulton Heights.
56 ■
Westview Plantation
Originally owned by Johnathan Burleson, the house was built in 1841. Burleson came to North Alabama as a child. As an adult, he moved to Morgan County and amassed large amounts of land and slaves. By 1841, he owned a total of 43 slaves. By 1850, Burleson was one of the largest landowners in North Alabama and
(Above) Portion of the Morgan County Land Book from 1920-1928 of Township 6 South, Range 4 West, Section 27 (Morgan County Archives, Decatur, Alabama)
one of the largest slaveholders in the state. He owned 65 slaves that year when only 1,500 households in the entire state owned as many as 50 slaves. Upon the eve of the Civil War, Westview was home to 49 slaves.
Burleson died in 1866 at the close of the Civil War, and most of his land was sold off. One of his 27 children bought the 2,600 acres around the house, which stayed in the family until at least 1982 when it was added to the National Register (#82002068). The house still stands on the west side of Indian Hills Road, north of Hartselle.
Johnathan Burleson was awarded the land patent for Section 28 in 1837 (no. 8351) and most of Section 27 in 1835 (no. 5914 and 7238,) 1852 (no. 32631), and 1858 (no. 20051). In the 1920-1928 Morgan County land books, the house is indicated as the “Burleson
Home Place” at the edge of Sections 27 and 28. - (4966)