Quiet, old Janes Mill community lies on the east side of Burnt Corn Creek in Conecuh County, Alabama

Old school and church building in 'downtown' Janes Mill.

Conecuh County’s Janes Mill community is located southwest of Evergreen, between Castleberry and Burnt Corn Creek, just north of the Escambia County line.

I was out riding around in this part of the county the other day and eventually found myself on Janes Mill Road, a dirt road that will take you right through the heart of this quiet country community. It was already on up in the day, and only a light breeze stirred the hot summer air. The only thing stirring was a whip-thin black snake that wasted no time crossing the road in front of my truck.

Not far down Janes Mill Road, I pulled over for a closer look at an old wood-frame structure sitting in the forks of a shady intersection. Someone long ago had tacked a green sign reading “Janes Mill” to the trunk of a large post oak beside the building. Friends have told me that this old building was once used as a community school and others say they remember attending church services there many years ago.

I eventually climbed back in my truck and continued down Janes Mill Road to the New Hopewell Baptist Church. According to the sign out front, James Aubrey Wilson is the church’s pastor, and they have services twice a week on Sundays and Wednesday. I pulled into the churchyard, parked in the shade beside a pair of flagpoles and stepped out into the humid air.

The flagpoles in front of the church were topped by American and Christian flags, and a pair of plaques can be found at the base of each pole. One plaque says that the American flagpole was dedicated in memory of Dubert and Lucille Pettis. The pole bearing the Christian flag was dedicated in memory of Hanis and Voncile Emmons.

From there, I walked behind the church and spent what seemed like a long time exploring the graveyard there. Just eyeballing it, I’d say this well-maintained cemetery contains about 250 graves. During my walk through the cemetery, the oldest grave that I saw belonged to Emily Hammond, who passed away at the age of 38 in January 1867, less than two years after the end of the War Between the States.

To no surprise, you will also find a number of graves belonging to members of the Janes family, who lent the community their namesake. The oldest Janes grave that I found belonged to an unnamed infant who died at less than a month old during the Great Depression year of 1934. Another grave belonged to young Palmer Janes, who died at the age of 17 after having served as a private in the field artillery in World War II.

From there, I eased down to the wooden bridge over Burnt Corn Creek and found another shady spot to pull over. No one seemed to be around for miles, so I walked out onto the bridge and observed the high, swift creek for a few minutes. Somewhere out of sight to the north, Brushy Creek flows into Burnt Corn Creek adding its waters to the flow before the creek enters Escambia County a few miles to the south.

As they often do, my thoughts turned to the ancient Indians who once lived in this area. How far was I from the site of the Battle of Burn Corn Creek? How many old villages once lined the banks of this old creek? Are there any Indian mounds, arrowheads or other relics and artifacts to be found nearby?

Eventually, I climbed back in my truck and pointed it back towards Evergreen. As I drove back into town, my thoughts continued to go back to the Janes Mill community, a place that its residents no doubt are proud to call home. From a historical standpoint, my feeling is there is much more to this community than what meets the eye.

In the end, let me hear from you if you know any more about the history of the Janes Mill community. I’m especially interested in hearing any old ghost stories, local legends or Indian lore from this part of the county. If you have any information to share along these lines, please let me know so that it can be documented for future generations to come.