East Alabama & Chattahoochee Valley History Presentations

Presentations Available:

Dr. Stephen Miles Ingersoll: A Ruling Spirit

Dr. Stephen Miles Ingersoll—a true Renaissance man. He was one of the first residents of Columbus, Georgia and perhaps the first white settler to live in Russell County, Alabama. 

Alabama's Revolutionary War Patriots: A Shower of Patriots

Just like the numerous meteors that showered our state in 1833, over 1,200 brave Revolutionary War patriots settled throughout Alabama during its earliest years of statehood. Their passion for liberty burned as brightly as the “falling stars” that entranced the residents of Alabama. 

Cowboys and Cattlemen of the Mimms Trail

In 1838 Frank McElvy established a cattle trail in the “Piney Woods” of East Central Alabama to provide beef for Columbus and for Montgomery. Cattle drives continued until the start of the Civil War in 1861.

Lafayette's Journey through the Creek Nation in 1825,  Lafayette: "The Favorite Father".

In March and April of 1825 General Lafayette, "the Nation's Guest" journeyed through the Creek Nation as he traveled from Georgia to Alabama. In 1825 the Creek Nation was still an independent nation. How would the Creek leaders respond to a former enemy?

Riding the Rails on the Mobile and Girard Railroad

In 1845 influential men from the vicinity of Girard, Alabama and Columbus, Georgia met to discuss a railroad line to serve the surrounding area and Russell County. A charter was drafted for the Girard Railroad Company to extend southwestward to connect with Mobile Bay.

Seeking Summerville

Few people realize the close connection which once existed between Columbus, Georgia and Phenix City, Alabama. In 1838 Robert S. Hardaway and 10 other prominent Columbus business and political leaders established an elite settlement with summer homes and schools in the hills of Alabama to protect their families from Yellow Fever.

Travelers and Tales of the Federal Road 1811-1837

The Federal Road was established in1805 as a postal road through the Creek Nation. It extended from Fort Wilkinson at Milledgeville, GA to Fort Stoddert at Mount Vernon, AL. By 1811 the trail had been widened to allow for the travel by military troops and hardy pioneers seeking land in the west. Travel on the Federal Road was extremely challenging, and it became known as "The Very Worst Road." Did you know that P.T. Barnum and John James Audubon traveled on the Federal Road?