This is the deed to what became the Bailey Springs AME Church, in S22, T1S, R10W. This congregation was founded ca. 1886 near the Bailey Springs resort. A historical marker for the church, which is still in existence and meets regularly for worship, was unveiled on Saturday, June 22, 2018 by Robert Steen, chairman of the City of Florence Historical Board in conjunction with a Brown and Brannon family reunion.

The text of the deed reads as follows:

Smotherman to Trustees ME Church

The State of Alabama, Lauderdale County

We Cornelius W Smotherman and my wife Setha Smotherman in consideration of Twenty One Dollars to us in hand paid by Charles Hough, Green Bailey, Abraham Hewitt[,] Smith Welch[,] Anthony Brandon [sic] and Mary McVay, we do sell to said C Hough[,] Green Baily [sic], Abraham Hewitt, Smith Welch, Anthony Brandon [sic] and Mary McVay[,] their heirs and assigns the following lot or parcel of Land to wit, Beginning at the SE Corner of N ½ E ½ of NE ¼ of Sec 22, T 2 R 10 West: thence South ½ ° Six Chains thence West 2 ½ ° Three Chains and fifty links to the beginning corner and containing two acres and to an acre said Land is situated in said County of which we are seized in fee? [illegible] of we warrant against all persons. Given under our Hand and Seal This January 22nd , 1886

Attest Robert Rice CW Smotherman
Johnson Washington Williams L.M. Smotherman
Lauderdale County

I, WE Harraway, Judge of the Probate Court of said County, hereby certify that Robt Rice a Subscribing Witness to the foregoing Conveyance known to me acknowledged [illegible] before me this day and being sworn States that the grantors in the Conveyance Voluntarily executed the same in his presence and in the presence of the other Subscribing Witness on the day the Same bears date that he attested the Same in the presence of the grantors and of the other Witness and that such other witness Subscribed his name as a witness in his presence[.] Given under my hand this 10th day of April, 1886 WE Harraway, Probate Judge

I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true Copy of a Deed filed in office 10th day April[,] 1886

W.E. Harraway, Probate Judge

Transcribed by Lee Freeman, January 22, 2018.

]]>
(1) A.M.E. Church collection]]> (2, 3, 4) Smallpox Outbreak]]> (5, 6) Death of Reverend N.L. Edmundson]]> (7) Jacob Wytch, AME church steward]]> (8) "Escape for Thy Life." Florence historian Lee Freeman notes: "To combat the "evil" consequences of alcohol in 1901 Florence closed all public saloons and opened two public "dispensaries," one in downtown Florence, one in East Florence, both run by the city; anyone wishing to buy alcohol had to purchase it from one of these two dispensaries which were only open between 6 am and 6 pm. In 1902 the AL State Legislature declared these dispensaries to be unconstitutional and the saloons opened back up however all of Florence's churches, black and white, supported the dispensary."]]> (9) "An Ideal Children's Day"]]> (10) Concert for the benefit of the AME church]]> (11) Death of Amelia Robinson, wife of Rev. Robinson of the AME church]]> (12) Reverend M.H. Leath transferred]]> (13) Annual Conference ]]> (14) Eleven-year-old boy Charles Turner preaches at St. Paul]]> 1881-02-23 (1)]]> 1901-05-02 (2)]]> 1901-05-09 (3, 4)]]> 1901-05-16 (5)]]> 1901-05-17 (6, 7)]]> 1901-08-15 (8)]]> 1903-06-26 (9)]]> 1903-08-23 (10)]]> 1908-02-07 (11)]]> 1911-12-01 (12)]]> 1912-11-08 (13)]]> 1920-06-24 (14)]]> A_Worthy_Tribute_II.jpg (5)]]> This is volume II of a collection of items relating to St. Paul AME Church.]]> (1) Reverend R.R. Fain]]> (2) North Alabama Conference at St. Paul's]]> (3) Reverend R.R. Fain letter to the editor]]> (4) Members of St. Paul deserving of just praise...]]> (5) The Negro Preacher Bryant]]> (6) Faith Without Works]]> (7) Warning to Fake Lecturers ]]> (8) Ms. Elizabeth Handy remembrance ]]> (9) Incident at St. Paul/ floor collapse]]> (10) Want to Build ]]> (11) Old Landmark Going]]> (12) The Corner Stone]]> (13) Conference at Florence]]> (1) 1886-01-02]]> (2) 1887-01-01]]> (3) 1887-04-02]]> (4) 1887-04-09]]> (5) 1890-03-13]]> (6, 7) 1893-02-04]]> (8) 1895-08-29]]> (9, 10) 1895-08-31]]> (11) 1895-09-05]]> (12) 1895-11-02]]> (13) 1900-11-02]]> This is a brief newspaper article about the construction of Armstead Chapel in Florence, 1946.]]> 1946-02-18]]> This is volume I of a collection of items related to Church Springs ME/ St. Paul AME Church. Florence historian Lee Freeman notes: "Church Springs Methodist Episcopal (ME) Church/St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, Florence’s oldest black congregation, was founded ca. 1839 on lot no. 311 on Court and Bluff Streets by slave and free members of the Methodist Church (now First Methodist) with assistance from several white trustees of that congregation. The first building was a brick cow barn built by the Hon. John McKinley purchased in 1857 from free mulatto barber John H. Rapier, Sr. (1808-1869). It was referred to as the "African Church" or the Zion African Church" but apparently chose Church Springs as its official name as the public spring ran through a corner of its property. Its first pastor was a slave of the Lightfoot and Childress families named Robert "Robin" Lightfoot (ca. 1791-1864) who was martyred in 1864 by men in Col. William A. Johnson’s 4th AL Cav., CSA, apparently for reckless behavior and/or agitating against slavery. At some unknown point Church Springs ME Church officially affiliated with the AME Church (founded in 1816 by blacks who had formerly been members of the predominantly white ME Church) to become Church Springs AME Church.



The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1870 when several African-American congregations still affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal (ME) Church, left to found their own communion of churches. This new communion attempted to appropriate existing AME Church properties, as evidenced in June of 1871 when William H. Miles, a bishop of the CME Church, attempted to claim as belonging to his church the existing Church Springs church and property in Florence. This caused apprehension on the part of the trustees at Church Springs who worried if they opened their doors to ministers of the North Alabama Conference which was convened in Florence their church and property would be taken from them. To that end Church Springs trustee Sydney De Priest, grandfather of future Republican Illinois Congressman Oscar S. De Priest, published a letter in the Florence Journal explaining the church's position.



In July of 1880 Church Springs moved to 103 W Alabama Street, on the corner of Court and Alabama into the old Fant Wool Factory (ca. 1820-1895) and changed its name to St. Paul AME Church. In August of 1895, during the pastorate of Rev. NL Edmondson, after sleepers under the floor collapsed at WC Handy’s mother Elizabeth’s (1854-1895) funeral, a new sanctuary, which was designed by local mulatto barber and musician Constantine "Constant" Perkins, Jr. (1870-1942), was built on the site. This building was torn down in 1967 and St. Paul moved to Cherokee Street; it is now known as Greater St. Paul AME Church. WC Handy’s family were affiliated with St. Paul, as was Handy’s eccentric teacher Prof. Young A. Wallace (1848-1937). "

]]>
1: Deed, Rapier & Rice to others ]]> 2: "Fair and Supper"]]> 3: "Don't Forget"]]> 4: "The Fair"]]> 5: "At a Revival of Religion"]]> 6: "Wm. H. Miles"]]> 7: "Bishop Miles" ]]> 8: "Sydney Depriest . . ."]]> 9: "A Conference" of the colored Northern Methodist Church]]> 10: "The District Conference"]]> 11: Members of the ME Church (colored) propose giving a supper]]> 12: "Alabama African Methodist Episcopal Conference"]]> 13: Dr. Jabius P. Campbell preaches at Methodist Church]]> 14: Dinner given the Bishop and Elders of the AME Church]]> 15: AME Church supper at City Hall ]]> 16: Young folks of colored Methodist Church had a supper,]]> 17: Colored Methodist Sunday School picnic]]> 18: Colored Methodist Church supper]]> 19: Alabama Serenaders benefit for AME Church]]> 20: The colored Methodists of Florence have bought the old brick building on Main street]]> 21: Elder JD Hay (sic) Obituary
Note: The name should be JD Ray.]]>
1: 1857-09-04]]> 2: 1859-12-21 ]]> 3: 1859-12-28]]> 4: 1860-01-04]]> 5: 1860-03-21]]> 6: 1871-06-13]]> 7: 1871-06-14]]> 8: 1871-11-29]]> 9, 10: 1874-09-30]]> 11:1874-07-22]]> 12, 13, 14: 1878-12-18]]> 15: 1879-04-16]]> 16: 1879-05-28]]> 17: 1879-06-11]]> 18: 1879-08-13]]> 19: 1879-09-17]]> 20: 1880-07-17]]> 21: 1883-07-03]]> Rapier_to_Rice_&_Others_II.jpg ]]>
1915-08-27]]> 1897-11-26]]> This is a photograph of the Bethel A.M.E. Church in Sheffield. The church was built in 1917. ]]> This is a newspaper article about Mount Zion A.M.E., which celebrated its 90th anniversary in 1969.]]> 1969-07-17]]> mtzion2.png
mtzion3.png]]>
This is a newspaper article about the Reverend Earl V. Elliott, minister at Lesley Temple CME in Tuscumbia. ]]> 1969-05-23]]> elliott2.png ]]>