The Lamison community in Wilcox County, Alabama was named after area's first railroad depot agent

Lamison Baptist Church in Wilcox County, Ala.

Wilcox County’s Lamison community is located in the northwest corner of the county, just south of the Marengo County line. If you ever travel north up State Highway 5 from Pine Hill, you’ll find Lamison about seven miles north of Anne Manie. You’ll know it when you get there thanks to the distinctive, green highway signs that let travelers know that they have entered one of the most historic communities in all of Wilcox County.

According to the book, “Place Names in Alabama” by Virginia O. Foscue, Lamison was first established as a settlement with a post office in 1888 because of its location on the old Mobile & Birmingham Railroad. Records reflect that the community was named after the location’s first railroad depot agent. Despite my best efforts, I was unable to discover his full name.

The earliest reference to Lamison that I could find in old newspapers was in the July 18, 1888 edition of The Wilcox Progressive Era. That paper featured the Mobile & Birmingham Railroad schedule, which showed that daily trains arrived in Lamison at 9 a.m. every day except for Sundays. The next stop down the line toward Mobile was at Arlington, where trains could be expected to pull into the depot at 9:20 a.m.

I found myself traveling through Lamison on Friday, which many of you will remember was dark and stormy. Heavy rain began to fall and thunder boomed as I crossed into Lamison on State Highway 5. To wait out the worst of the weather, I pulled into the driveway of the Lamison Baptist Church, hoping that the downpour would eventually slack off.

When the rain slackened, I got out of my truck and took a closer look at this fine-looking, brick church. Of note on the church grounds is an old water well that’s covered with an old-fashioned, tin-topped wooden enclosure. While the well doesn’t presently have a bucket, you will find an old pulley that’s only in need of a good rope with which to draw up the cool waters from below.

On the other side of the church, you’ll find an old church bell that’s mounted on a distinctive wooden platform beside a flagpole topped with an American flag. A well-kept length of side walk leads up to the base of the platform and if you look closely, you’ll see a metal ring that can be pulled to sound the bell. While standing there, I could not help but wonder how many people over the years have rung this bell to call worshipers to and from services at this stately, old church.

Back in my truck, I pulled out my trusty National Geographic map of the area and saw that Lamison is sandwiched between Graham Creek and Mud Creek. These large creeks flow into each other just south of Lamison, and where they conjoin would have been prime real estate for ancient Indians centuries ago. One is left to wonder if there are any old village sites or mounds in and around this area today.

In the end, please let me hear from you if you have any additional information about Lamison’s early history. I’m especially interested in hearing any old ghost stories, local legends or Indian lore from this part of the county. If you know of anything along these lines, please let me know.