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Exploring Alabama’s Stagecoach Stop at Blount Springs
The place I call home is little more than a ghost town from the early 1800s.
The people of that era had a very difficult life. Especially when you compare how they had to live off the land and travel in ways that we would think practically impossible today. They had no cars, no trains, no cell phones and very primitive maps. The stagecoach route was how this nation traveled in 1826. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...oach_sized.jpg A neighbor of mine tells me he believes he has found the old Blount Springs stagecoach stop. Needless to say, I wanted to learn more. With little more to go on than a general area of proximity, I set out to see if I could locate the mysterious stagecoach stop at Blount Springs. :brow |
DeBandi,
always enjoy your ride reports. Look forward to reading and seeing your photos. Thanks :thumb mcc66 Michael |
With Hunstville situated 74 miles to the north, the stagecoach patrons would pay $5.50 each way to get to Blount Springs.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...otelAdd3-1.jpg That's serious money in 1826. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3232.jpg This is the old stagecoach route. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3231.jpg Let's go look around. :pynd |
lookin forward to this :nod
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Ooooooooo I'm on board.
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Quote:
:ear Waiting for more! |
Why did the stagecoach stop at Blount Springs? :scratch
This area is blessed with bubbling mineral springs. It was known as the “Alabama Fountain of Youth.” The wealthy and healthy would come to escape the heat and bathe in the mineral baths to stay young. The sick would come in search of cures for scrofula, rheumatism, dyspepsia, sore eyes, gout, pimples, blotches, lost appetites, paralysis, and many other ailments. This is how the area of the springs looks today. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...pings15001.jpg I can only imagine what it looked like back in the early to mid 1800s. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...pings15001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...pings14001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...pings13001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...pings12001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...pings11001.jpg The population would reach 3,000 people in the summer months. The elite had summer cottages here. This was circa 185 years ago. :nod More later...... |
Sooooo in!!
:lurk |
I’m having trouble finding what I’m looking for. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3236.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3237.jpg All along the old stagecoach route is very dangerous. You have to pay close attention when you explore in these woods. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3207.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3206.jpg There are cisterns and wells everywhere from the old building sites / homesteads. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3210.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3211.jpg Old cistern. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3200.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3202.jpg Old well. :eek1 More in the next few days… |
more please!
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Subscribed..............again. Really enjoy your reports. Thanks for taking the time!
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Great report! Is this area public land that anyone can explore?
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Always enjoy your ride reports. Love the historical aspects and great photos. Thanks for sharing.
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:happayLOVE the reports!! Keep 'em comin'.
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This is all private property today.
-Churches -Bottling factory -General stores -Hotels -Post office -Boarding houses -Livery stables -Train station (after 1872) -Cottages -Cabins -Homes -Horseracing track It was all here. Everything a resort community needed. Some of the original homes still stand today. Most have long since been consumed back to the earth due to the ravages of time. I did find a remaining fireplace still in use today. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...i/IMG_3191.jpg The original log cabin is gone. The current property owners did a great job saving the original fireplace. Super people! I can only imagine what this cabin looked like back in the day. http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans1001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans2001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans3001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans4001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans5001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans6001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans7001.jpg http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/x...ntrans8001.jpg Yes, that is the same fireplace. I’m off on vacation. We’ll continue to explore when I get back. :pynd |
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