In Plain Sight:

Seven Sites of African American Achievement

in North Alabama

Fort Henderson
In 1862, in the midst of the Civil War, Union forces
retook the town of Athens, Alabama and began
work on what would later be called Fort
Henderson. The fort was intended to serve as a
bulwark against Confederate forces while also
allowing Union forces to reinforce Union supply
lines in the south. African Americans played an
active role in the construction of the fort, which was
completed in 1864.
Artist Rendering of Fort Henderson. Athens-Limestone Com-
munity Association Collection, Limestone County Archives

Fort Henderson was a giant earth-work with five

points on each side. The earth was raised up in
order to create a moat that would run underneath
fort. The fort also had several buildings on the site
in order to house Union troops. Prior to its fall, the
fort housed the 106th, 110th, and 111th U.S.
Colored Infantry. The Fort was in operation for a
little over for less than a year before it was it was
captured during a short battle in 1864 by Postcard of Fort Henderson. Athens-Limestone
Community Association Collection, Limestone
Confederate troops led by Gen. Nathan Bedford County Archives

Forrest. The African Americans troops housed in the

fort were captured and sold back into slavery or
placed in prison camps. After the war, Fort
Henderson quickly fell into ruin.

Trinity principal Rev. William Judson King standing inside

the trench of the former Fort Henderson. Athens-Limestone
Community Association Collection, Limestone County
Archives
 In Plain Sight:
Seven Sites of African American Achievement
in North Alabama

Trinity High
Trinity High School was founded on May 28, 1865 by a woman
named Mary Fletcher Wells and the American Missionary Associa-
tion to provide educational opportunities for African Americans in
the wake of the Civil War. A church originally served as the
schools home. It then moved to a private residence. In 1908, the
school was moved to its final location in a building constructed in
the midst of the ruins of Fort Henderson.
Mary Lee Fletcher founder of Trinity.
Athens-Limestone Community Association
Collection, Limestone County Archives Trinity provided a variety of educational and
recreational opportunities for its students and
the wider African American community. Fairs,
Christmas celebrations, and even a football
team brought the community closer together in
the goal of creating an educational environment
where the youth could succeed. The school
Photo of Trinity High School in 1914. remained in operation until 1970 when the last
Athens-Limestone Community Association Collection, Limestone
County Archives graduating class from Trinity stepped out of
school one final time.

The Alabama Limestone Community

Anne Mitchells classroom, 1914.
Athens-Limestone Community Association
Collection, Limestone County Archives
Association (ALCA) has taken a leading role in
preserving this site. The site has been officially
named the Lincoln-Pincham Community Center
and has tentative plans to form a museum
which focuses on the history of the school and
the larger history of African Americans in the
south.

Lincoln-Pincham Community Center

 In Plain Sight:
Seven Sites of African American Achievement
in North Alabama

WZZA
In 1972 Robert Bob Carl Bailey and four other
investors purchased the WZZA radio station in
Tuscumbia. Under his management the radio station
focused on playing black soul style music. Baileys
willingness to play music that the African American
community in the Shoals enjoyed earned the station
a large following. His continued success allowed him
to eventually become the sole proprietor of the
station. However, some in the community did not like
the idea of a fully black-owned radio station and
Bailey lost some business as a result. Despite these
challenges, the community at large did not abandon
Bailey and he continued to run WZZA until his death
in 2001.

WZZA continues to exist today. Robert Baileys

daughter Tori Bailey now operates the radio
station. The station continues to provide a voice
for African American issues in the Shoals. WZZA
provides information on registering to vote,
sickle cell treatment, and a daily public affairs
program during guests from the community
discuss topics of local concern. The station
reaches an average of 45,000 listeners daily.

Tori Bailey, Owner of WZZA (top)

WZZA Studio (bottom)
 In Plain Sight:
Seven Sites of African American Achievement
in North Alabama

Trenholm High School

Trenholm High School began as Osbornes Colored
Academy in 1877. In 1921, the school was renamed
Trenholm High School after the schools most beloved
and well known principal, G.W. Trenholm. Students at
Trenholm were given the opportunity to explore sports,
music, art, and other recreational activities outside of
regular schooling. Trenholm had a number of athletic
teams that competed against other African American
schools, including Sheffield and Trinity high schools.
The school also benefited the local community, who
helped support and build the school. The school
became a meeting place for many kinds of events that
were specifically tailored to give back to the
community that had supported its mission of
education.

In 1969, Trenholm High closed like

many all-black schools due to
integration. In its place is a small
memorial has been placed. This small
marble memorial lists every principal to
serve as the leader of Trenholm over
the years. In addition, a historic marker
with information about the history of
Trenholm High School has been placed
close by.
 In Plain Sight:
Seven Sites of African American Achievement
in North Alabama

Shady Dell
A.W. Davis was born in Marion County, Alabama
in 1875. Davis attended Talladega College,
graduating with a bachelors degree in science.
Davis then attended Meharry Medical College,
graduating in 1903. That same year, Davis
moved to Tuscumbia and opened his medical
practice, becoming the first African American
physician in Tuscumbia area. Davis quickly made
a name for himself in the community, so much so
that he treated both black and white patients at
his practice. He was successful enough that in
1920, he and his wife (who had married in 1905)
had a two-story Dutch Colonial Revival home
constructed across from his office. The house,
th
known as Shady Dell, is located at 606 E 8
Street. Davis died in 1941, leaving behind a life
of achievement and service to his community.

Today, Davis office building no longer

stands. A stone sign, however, marks the
original location. His home is the only re-
maining physical structure tied to his leg-
acy in Tuscumbia. The house has stood
empty for many years and is in need of
restoration. A leak in the roof has made
one of the rear rooms unstable. The
owners have applied for an Alabama
Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit to help
restore the home.
 In Plain Sight:
Seven Sites of African American Achievement
in North Alabama

P.B. Swoopes Tailors

and Dry Cleaners
Paris Baker Swoopes was born to
former slaves John and Eliza Swoopes
on February 26, 1902. As a young
man, Swoopes attended Sheffield
Colored School and before moving to
Trenholm High School, where he was a
member of the one of the schools
earliest graduating classes. Shortly
after graduating, Swoopes attended
the Tuskegee Institute. After finishing
Painting of P.B. Swoopes Tailors and Dry Cleaners.
his studies at Tuskegee, Swoopes Courtesy of Clay Allison

opened up his first shop in downtown

Sheffield in 1928.The shop moved in 1941 to Montgomery Avenue, where it
remains to this day. Swoopes Tailors and Cleaners was by all accounts a largely
successful business, remaining in business for 63 years before P.B. Swoopes
decided to sell it in 1991.

P.B. Swoopes was a noted supporter of the

war effort in World War Two, helping to sell
war bonds. Swoopes also led the Sheffield
March of Dimes, an event that was
organized to fund research devoted to
curing the polio virus. Swoopes was also the
first black man to sit on the grand jury in
Sheffield.
Faded sign in front of the former store

This site has not been preserved in recent years.

Currently, there are no known plans to rehabilitate or repurpose the building
 In Plain Sight:
Seven Sites of African American Achievement
in North Alabama

Where the Tennessee River, like a silver snake, winds her way
through the clay hills of Alabama, sits high on these hills, my home
town, Florence. W. C. Handy

William Christopher (W.C.) Handy was the son of Charles Bernard Handy and Elizabeth
Brewer, both of whom had been enslaved prior to the Civil War. The Handy family
resided in a log cabin built by W.C. Handys grandfather. Handy gained his appreciation
for music from from his grandfather and a fiddler known as Uncle Whit. Handy spent
several years traveling across America with various troupes before coming back to
Alabama teach at Alabama A&M for a short time.

What set Handy apart from many other talented musicians is his written composition of
the famous song The Memphis Blues. Blues musicians rarely wrote their work down,
many of them lacking knowledge of traditional musical notation. By writing The
Memphis Blues down and publishing it, Handy earned the moniker Father of the
Blues. After the song became a hit, Handy traveled across the world playing music with
famous troupes while continuing to compose and write his own music.

The W.C. Handy Museum and Library charts the course of Handys life from his birth to
his death. The museum focuses around the cabin where Handy grew up, which was
rescued from demolition by Handy himself in the 1950s. The museum features
photographs and artifacts from Handys life, including the piano on which Handy wrote
the famous St Louis Blues. The museum, which opened in 1970, is now home to the
Black Heritage Library as well.