Singleton tells of large cave near old fire tower at Midway, Alabama

Historical marker at Midway, Alabama.

(For decades, local historian and paranormal investigator George “Buster” Singleton published a weekly newspaper column called “Somewhere in Time.” The column below, which was titled “Midway cave afforded early man shelter” was originally published in the June 24, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

A limestone cave located near the Midway community has long been a place of interest to the people of northeast Monroe County. Easy to reach by auto, one can drive within 200 yards of this natural wonder. Near the Midway Fire Tower, one only has to walk down the hill to reach this cool, dry cavern formed by mother nature many centuries ago.

An ideal shelter, it is easy to see why the early Indians used this cave as protection from the elements. Measuring about 50 feet across and about 20 feet deep in the center, this cave could house about 30 men, women and children. The entrance faces the south, thus giving ideal shelter from the cold wind and rain sweeping down from the north in the winter seasons.

The roof is blackened by the smoke of a thousand cook fires, giving evidence to the fact that early man lived and worked here. Wood and water are in abundance, and one could imagine the hills in the area covered with patches of maize, squash and sweet potatoes, while the woods were full of wild turkey and deer for the hunters.

Under these conditions, the early Indians prospered and went on to build villages all along the ridges southward through what is now Pine Orchard. The land was fertile and the hunting was good, thus giving them reason to stop their wandering and build permanent villages and settle and farm.

Very few of us today realize the role that this cave has played through the centuries in the development of this section of the country. A landmark since prehistoric times, this small but vital shelter enabled early man to gain a foothold in a wild and virgin land. From this hole in the side of a hill, he could move forth to explore and return to rest and regain strength for other ventures.

Unfortunately, there are signs that modern man has passed this way, too, leaving behind the trash and litter that is common of today’s civilization. Names and initials have been dug in the floor and sides, destroying the natural beauty of the interior. Trees have been cut without cause on one side of the entrance, increasing the chances of a landslide within a short time. If the trend to destroy continues, soon all that will be left is a memory, as the destroyers of our environment run roughshod over the face of the land, pushing us ever onward, onward into oblivion.

(The story above was accompanied by one photo taken by Monroe Journal photographer Aaron White. The captions to that photos read as follows: “The gaping hole in the earth is a limestone cave located near the community of Midway.”)

(Singleton, the author of the 1991 book “Of Foxfire and Phantom Soldiers,” passed away at the age of 79 on July 19, 2007. A longtime resident of Monroeville, he was born during a late-night thunderstorm on Dec. 14, 1927 in Marengo County, graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1946, served as a U.S. Marine in the Korean War, worked as a riverboat deckhand, lived for a time among Apache Indians, moved to Monroe County on June 28, 1964 and served as the administrator of the Monroeville National Guard unit from June 28, 1964 to Dec. 14, 1987. For years, Singleton’s columns, titled “Monroe County history – Did you know?” and “Somewhere in Time” appeared in The Monroe Journal, and he wrote a lengthy series of articles about Monroe County that appeared in Alabama Life magazine. It’s believed that his first column appeared in the March 25, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal. He is buried in Pineville Cemetery in Monroeville. The column above and all of Singleton’s other columns are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here each week for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work and memory alive.)