Singleton weighs in on location of the Battle of Burnt Corn Creek

(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 “Found: Site of Battle of Burnt Corn Creek” was originally published in the Dec. 30, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

Little is mentioned in the history books concerning the Battle of Burnt Corn Creek. The exact time and place seem to be in doubt. This can be explained easily because of the time element involved, and due to the fact that the battle itself was a running battle of sorts.

The battle was fought over several miles of wooded area, and the survivors apparently gave different accounts of what happened.

This fracas took place in the spring of 1813. As the story goes, some Indians, returning from Pensacola, Fla. by way of Wolf Trail, had camped by what is known as Burnt Corn Creek. They had with them guns and powder that they had purchased from the British in Pensacola.

The local militia attacked the Indian camp in the early morning and drove them away in the woods, leaving behind the pack mules and equipment. After driving off the Indians, the militia became so involved with dividing up the spoils of war that they failed to notice that the Indians had re-grouped.

The Indians attacked the disorganized militia, driving them into the swamps and canebrakes. The exact number killed is not known, but it was several days before some of the defeated militia, sick and nearly starved, found their ways back to familiar surroundings.

I had searched on several occasions for some evidence pertaining to the Battle of Burnt Corn, but to no avail. The day before Christmas, my good friend Milford Champion, called and told me that he had someone with knowledge of the location.

We traveled east from Burnt Corn on the old Wolf Trail for a few miles, then parked our vehicle and proceeded south for a short distance.

A lot of changes had taken place since our guide had last been to the site of the battle. Timber had been cut recently and the ground had been scarred by heavy machinery used to move timber away. Tree tops and brush covered the area completely.

We located the small stream that is known as Burnt Corn Creek, and after much walking found four or five old graves. A couple had sunk below the surface of the ground, but there were three that appeared to be still in the approximate shape as they were when placed there.

This was the only evidence that gave us any indication of this historical event. Before long this too may be destroyed, as have many of our points of interest over the county.

Sleeping there beneath the pine tops and brush lie some of Monroe County’s earliest settlers. Forgotten by all, as is the cause for which they died. These are the people who made our great country what it is today. Whatever the circumstances, we should not forget them.

[This column also included a photo, taken by Singleton, of a metal detector leaning against a tree in the middle of the woods. The caption beneath the tree read as follows: Where the Battle of Burnt Corn took place. Device shown in picture is a metal detector used in search for artifacts.]

(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 to Vincent William Singleton and Frances Cornelia Faile Singleton, 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 paratrooper 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. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks to warrant officer in May 1972. 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.)