Historical marker describes Moore Academy in Pine Apple, Alabama

Moore Academy in Pine Apple, Ala. 

This week’s featured historical marker is the “MOORE ACADEMY” marker in Wilcox County, Ala. This marker is located in front of the old Moore Academy school building, on the west side of State Highway 10 in Pine Apple, Ala.

This marker was erected by the Moore Academy Alumni Association in 1996. There’s text on both sides of this marker, but both sides are identical. What follows in the complete text from the marker:

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“MOORE ACADEMY – ‘A Great Adventure of the Mind’ – Founded in 1882 by John Trotwood Moore, who became a famous author, archeologist and poet laureate of the State of Tennessee, the original two-story wood frame building served the Pine Apple area from 1882 until the present brick structure was completed in 1923. The style is eclectic and typical of early 20th century educational facilities with a T-shaped plan, central arched entrance, bracketed eaves and decorative brickwork at each end of the façade. Moore Academy was widely acclaimed as one of the preeminent educational facilities in Alabama until its closing in 1989. The buildings and grounds were donated to the Moore Academy Alumni Association, Inc. in 1994, and restoration began in 1995. This marker is dedicated to those students, teachers and administrators who have passed through these doors, and in the words of John Trotwood Moore, ‘To him that will, faith finds a pathway home.’ Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage – June 30, 1995.”

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John Trotwood Moore was an interesting man. According to the Encyclopedia of Alabama, he was born on Aug. 26, 1858 in Marion, Ala. He spent the first 26 years of his in Alabama, but lived out the rest of his life in Tennessee. He worked at a wide variety of publications, including The Howard College Magazine, The Marion Commonwealth, Clark’s Horse Review, Trotwood’s Monthly, and the Taylor-Trotwood Magazine.

His best known books included “Songs and Stories from Tennessee” (1897), “A Summer Hymnal: A Romance of Tennessee” (1901), “The Bishop of Cottontown: A Story of  the Southern Cotton Mills” (1906), “Ole Mistis, and Other Songs and Stories from Tennessee” (1909), “The Old Cotton Gin” (1910), “Uncle Wash: His Stories” (1910), “The Gift of the Grass: Being the Autobiography of a Famous Racing Horse” (1911), “Jack Ballington, Forester” (1911), “Hearts of Hickory: A Story of Andrew Jackson and the War of 1812” (1926) and “Tom's Last Forage” (1926).

Moore also had strong ties to Butler County, Ala. He taught in Monterey and then moved to Pine Apple, where he established Moore Academy. During that time, he got married and moved to Tennessee in 1885. He eventually became the State Librarian of Tennessee and died on May 10, 1929. He is buried in the Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville.

In the end, visit this site next Wednesday to learn about another historical marker. I’m also taking suggestions from the reading audience, so if you know of an interesting historical marker that you’d like me to feature, let me know in the comments section below.