Stories about old homes and old places and events of the past. Be sure to go to full screen with your sound on. If you know or have information regarding these or any other old home in the area, please let us know about it.

The Monroe Bush Home
The original part of this house was built in the late 1940s. It was the house where many kids in the neighborhood saw their first TV as Mister Monroe was one of the first in the community to have a TV. It has been expanded and remodeled over the years to be easily one of the ...

The Carl J. Kennedy home, built by Carl and Alma Kennedy in the mid 1940's. Here they lived while he was principal and she was a teacher at the Red Hill School.

This is the Ransom log cabin on Dopson Point Road, build in the 1920's. It was used by Ed and Nita Flurry Hall as their first home after they married in the late 1940's. It had no water or power and they carried their water from the home of Mr. R. B. Darden about 200 yards down Martin Dam Road.

This was the house of my grandmother, Cynthia Kennedy Hall. It was just being finished up at the time of this photo, probably in the mid-1930's. Her brothers donated the land and the money for it and she called it her "Hoover Panic House." Mr. Marion O'Daniel is shown standing in front of the near...

This is the house that Glover and Sue Cotton McManus built in the mid 1950's on what is today Andrews Mill Road. It is currently owned by Raymond & Linda Hall.

This home at 855 East Cotton Road was built by Denson Ingram circa the early 1930's. He raised four children through the years, one being one of our Red Hill Community Club members, Bobbie Ingram Walls. The current owner is Windell Taunton.

This home located at 3876 East Cotton Road was built by Ivora "Ivy" Taylor in the early 1900's. There was once a water mill on the creek nearby as well as a tannery that made shoes during the Civil War. Bertha Mae Hall Smith, the wife of the previous owner, Russell Smith, was born and also died in...

Willis Hall built this home for his new bride, Alma Taylor Hall, back in the late 1920's or early 1930's. It is located down at the end of Griffith Road, just before it connects with East Cotton Road. It once overlooked Gold Branch Creek before the rear area of the home became so badly overgrown. ...

This home, built by John and Amy Lee Kennedy in the late 1920's, was a wonderful place for a young 10-year old boy to ride his bike up into their yard and purchase milk and butter for his mom from his Aunt Amy Lee in the late 1940's. It has 90 acres of land with it and was on the market at the time...

Faintly behind the rapidly growing young pines in this yard stands the old home that Martin Alva Taunton and his wife Burte built in the late 1930's. In this home, that had a basement and a barn out back, they raised their 4 children, Roma Lee, Charles, Huette and Noma Kay in the 1940's and 1950's....

This is today's Country Mile store building, currently housing an art gallery. On this spot stood the grocery store operated by Mr. Elmer and Fain Nail Dopson during the 1930's, 40's, and 50's. It was your typical country store of the times, complete with a gravity fed gas pump, in which you pumped...

This was the home of Lloyd and Grace Garnett, probably built in the early 1930's. In this home they raised their children, Richard, Betty, Afton. and Bill. To this home this editor was privileged to be invited to a birthday party for Afton in the 1950's, and then hurt her feelings and made her cry...

This home was build in the 1920's by Alvin Berry and Lottie Nail Dopson. Berry and Lottie raised identical twin girls here in the early 1930's, Ida Faye Dopson Green Griffith and Ila Mae Dopson Lindsey. Mr. Berry died in the 1930's and Ms. Lottie then married Homer Hall. Homer wanted her to move ...

This was the Will Nail home at 3382 East Cotton Road a few years back. If you took East Cotton Road to go to Eclectic, he would often be sitting on the front porch waving to passersby. It was torn down several years ago and a new home built down the hill behind it.

This is the Holley House located at the intersection of Alabama Highway 63 and Holley Mill Road. It has been preserved by members of the Holley family. A plaque by the front entrance dates the house at 1882. One of the rooms in this classic old home was used as the United States Post Office in Jor...

This is the Castleberry classic dogtrot home on East Cotton Road. It is very likely the oldest home still standing in this area. The year 1903 is inscribed in the mortar on the chimney.

This was the home of John & Izetta Taunton, probably built in the 1920's or 30's. Here their daughter, Miss Carmen Taunton Holley was raised. She,in turn, raised her children, Olive Holley Golden, Sonny Holley and Tim Holley, with Mr. Louis Holley, in a house back off the road just to the southeas...

In this home, during the 1940's and 50's, Dallie and Mary Pruitt Shores raised their children,Mary Dell, Curtis, Clyde Wesley, Minnie Lois, James Hershel, and Jimmy. Dallie's brother, Spot, also lived with the family. Minnie Lois states that the house was supposed to be almost 100 years old when t...

This home was built by Mr. Arvel Griffith in the mid 1930's. He married Ms. Myrtice Cason around 1940. He was drafted into the Army Air Corp in WW II and served in the China-Burma- India theatre until the war was over. As a result of his serving in the CBI theatre, he became the first person in th...

After the tragedy of the shooting deaths that occurred in the store he was operating on Martin Dam Road in 1934, Mr. Arthur "Spot" Ingram built this home on Red Hill Road in which he and his wife, Lurena Griffith Ingram raised the following children: Junior, Retta, Lafayette, Wesley, Della, Mozie a...

This is the home where Sam Griffith was raised. It was built in 1935 by Sam's father, Dee Griffith. He and Ms. Hixie Griffith also raised Myrtice Griffith Darby and Eloise Griffith Hilyer in this home.

In this house, built in the late 1920's, Mr. John Griffith and Ms. Velma Tucker Griffith raised their two daughters, Montez Griffith Johnston and Willie Irple Griffith Bridgman Worton. It was at this house that this editor obtained his first job, thinning corn for Mr. John at 10 cents per hour. I...

Neven Kennedy had this house built in the late 1920's by stone masons Forrest and Willis Hall of local stone picked up from the fields in the vicinity of the home. His son, Jim Kennedy, later lived in this home in the early 30's, along with his wife Mildred. Here they raised their two daughters, V...

This old home was built in the early 30s by Bill Joe and Ester Bell Orr. It is where their three sons Bobby Joe, Howard and Wylie grew up in the 30's and 40's. It was later sold to T. I. and Annie Beulah Cotton. It is currently owned by Bart and Ellen McManus. Bart is a grandson of Miss Annie Beu...

In this old home, built in the late 1920's, Harvey Elmer Dopson and his wife Iris Fain Nail Dopson lost an infant in 1928, raised twin boys born in 1930, farmed, supplied milk and eggs to Red Hill School, ran a country grocery store just south of this old home in the 1930's, 40's and 50's and worked...

This old home was built by John & Clarice Nail Castleberry circa 1919. They moved to Eclectic sometime before 1930 and were soon on their way to becoming one of Eclectic's several if not the first, of its citizens who became millionaires. It then became the home of James Elmer and Georgia Castleber...

This is what remained of the William Wesley Castleberry estate a few years back. This property was known to have been occupied in 1859. Will Castleberry, his wife Nancy Andrews Castleberry and the estate are key characters and property featured in the novel "Channahatchee" by Raymond E. Hall and F...

Another view of the circa 1859 William Wesley Castleberry house. This building was designed to be a barn on the first floor and a residence on the upper floor. It was located just off Deer Track Road in Red Hill, at roughly the 1100 block.

The Sula Vilula Letlow house on East Cotton road. It is believed to have been built in the early 1900's and was passed on to the family of Wally Roberson in the 1940's. She was Wally's great grand mother. Wally's mother, Sula's granddaughter, Willie Lee Fuller Roberson, was a student at Red Hill S...

This abandoned and trashed 2 room house, probably built in the mid 1940's, was the home of Mr. Oscar "Petey" Walls for many years. Mr. Oscar was the janitor/custodian for the Red Hill School for many years. He was a quiet, soft-spoken and caring man who was loved by all the students. He dealt wit...

When this house was built in the 1930's by Lorenzo Dow Griffith for his new wife, Gladys Mae Grier, it was one of the nicest homes in the community of Red Hill. Here they raised Aaron, Christine, Herbert and Shirley Gayle. Years of neglect have take a toll on the appearance of this once fine home.

The original portion of this house was built by Andrew Milton Griffith for his wife Beatrice Dolly Griffith, probably in the mid-1930's. It was here that they raised their two sons, James and Harold Webster Griffith. Webster was tragically drowned on Lake Martin in 1973. Mr. Milton added a great d...

The Dalton and Martha Kennedy home, built in the mid 1930's, and where their children, Martha Louise Kennedy Griffith Davis and her brother Billy Ray Kennedy were raised.

This was the home of Austin and Mary O'Daniel Davis from the mid 1930's until the mid 1970's, and is located on East Cotton Road. It was of sturdy rock construction, similar to the home of his father-in-law, Mr. Marion O'Daniel. Austin and Miss Mary had no children but provided summer jobs for the...

What remains of the home that James and Ruth Deloit built in the Griffey town section of Red Hill in the late 1930's. Here they raised their two children, Norma Joy and Douglas. Miss Ruth enjoyed referring to their home as "Elm Knoll. Time has take its toll on the place as well as those who lived...

Behind the extensive stonework of this home, plus several add-on sections, stands the original structure of a home Forrest Hall built for his wife, Cloma Taunton Hall in the early 1940's. Forest was a stone mason specializing in the irregular shaped field stone so commonly found in this area of Ala...

Another small Red Hill home, built in the 1930's by William Florence "Bill" Griffith and his wife, Ollie Victoria Taunton Griffith, probably in the 1930's. Here they raised two sons, Elder Fred Murray Griffith and Charlie W. Griffith. The home was extensively remodeled and is currently owned by Br...

The original portion of this home was built by Buck & Voncille White, probably in the late 1930's or early 1940's. Here they raised their two children, Hubert Earl and Sheryl. In the late 1940s they both worked at the cotton mills in Alexander City on the same shift, My mother, Faye Adair Hall Ab...

The inner portion of the building on the right was the home built by Maynor and Izella Hall in the mid 1930's. In this home they lost their first child, Rosemary, and raised six more, Betty, Bobby, Eddie, Ronnie, Ricky and Lenore. In the early 1960's, Maynor began to put his own business together ...

An old home with a mysterious past about which I so far have no definite information. It is located on Alabama Highway 229 between Mile Markers 17 & 16 on the left as you proceed south. If any one knows a bout this place, please let me know.

Home place of Barney Bascomb Griffith taken in the 1930's. The property was located between site of the Cast Ministries Camp and Sam Griffith property-Hwy 50, Martin Dam Road Tallassee, Alabama. The property was surrounded by family lands, i.e. Foster, Griffith and McKinnish.

The house in the foreground was built by Henry Absalom (Abb) Griffith who was born on August 15, 1911 and died on April 29, 2002. Abb built this house on property purchased from his father, George Washington Griffith, circa 1929. He had married Miss Rubie Grace Porter, who was born August 4, 1911 ...

This home at 3860 Red Hill Road was built by Jesse and Jinnine Mullins Griffith in 1950. Jesse was the son of Abb and Rubie Griffith. It has been enlarged and improved through the years, with separate enclosed garage and shop building. They raised their 3 children, Stanley, Craig and Jeanne here ...

Coffer dam-Cherokee Bluffs

Photo of Cherokee Bluffs overlooking the Tallapoosa river before the construction of Martin Dam.

Picture of surveyors at Cherokee Bluffs before the construction of Martin Dam.

Ferry on the Tallapoosa River. There were many ferries below Cherokee Bluffs to ferry from Elmore County to Tallapoosa County. The Burson Family-an original family of what is now called Red Hill owned the Double Bridge Ferry for a while.

In the early 1900's this old general store was the center of Channahatchee, Alabama and served as its Post Office as well. It was owned by the great grandfather of the babies laying on the blanket, Henry Taunton. The babes on the blanket are Charles Taunton, son of Martin Alva and Burte Foshee Tau...

The home of Walter & Nancy Mullins Lloyd which was located on the old Red Hill-Kent Road, today's Lloyd Road. It burned some years back but the location can be approximated as behind the stone retaining wall near Lloyd Road, on the left just after you turn off on to it from Alabama 229. Miss Nancy ...

Almost covered by the untrimmed roadside brush growth along side the current day Lloyd Road, just off AL 229, is an old stone retaining wall and steps, all that remains of the classic old home of Walter and Nancy Lloyd. Down these steps Mr. Walter or Ms. Nancy used to descend to check their mail. ...

This pic shows the old wooden railing on the old bridge over the Channahatchee Creek, not many years after the road from Red Hill to Kent was finally paved. It was located just down the hill from the Walter Lloyd home, where Lloyd Road ends at the creek today. This was a spooky place after dark. Ma...

The home of Belle Kennedy Jordan, as it stood in the 1940s. It was located on what is today 2476 Red Hill Road. A new home was built here in the 1970s by her nephew, George Dewey Hall. It was at this home that this editor, her grand nephew, was privileged to spend some nights at her place and per...

A pic of the old Refuge Church, located just south of where the current rock church building stands today. The occasion may have been a homecoming and it was probably taken in the mid-1940s. In the pic, in the middle, is my grandmother Cynthia Varilla Kennedy Hall. On the left is my great uncle an...

This abandoned, boarded up old building in Eclectic was the place to catch the train in the Red Hill area from around 1913 until the mid-1930's. It served as the passenger station for the B&SE railroad during those years. The next two photos, supplied by Jimmy K. Lanier, show aerial views of this ...

Aerial of the Eclectic train station in the early 1930's. The large gabled building in front of the white roofed freight terminal was the old Collins Hotel.

2nd aerial view of Eclectic train station in the 1930's. This was the passenger area and a train car can be seen extending beyond the right end of the building.

In the background of this photo of the Paul Bunyan of Red Hill, Ronnie Joe Hall, is the old Lloyd Dopson home. It was reported to be the oldest surviving home in Red Hill prior to its burning a few years back. This photo, taken on Monday, October 19, 2009, may be the last pic taken of this old home...

Truly forgotten by most people in our community. It is difficult to believe that there were once 3 people living in the home that these remains represent. Carl Robinson and Wilda Melton Robinson raised their granddaughter, Brenda Miller, in this house in the 1940's. My brother Roger Hall was smitten...

A pic of the old abandoned home of Joe and May Lindsay, built in the 1940's. They lived here briefly before Mr. Lindsay was transferred to another post while serving in the Army. Also living here at the time were their sons. Jimmy and Danny Lindsay. A pic of this at the time is shown at another se...

This old home is on the Prospect Road just off Al Hwy 63, not far from the intersection with Al Hwy 229. I understand it is referred to as the old Adams house locally. It is a magnificent building that has been kept up well. I would love to know about it if anyone has info on it.