Deaths of two boys led to the construction of first bridge over the Alabama River at Claiborne

Old river ferry at Claiborne, Alabama.

My 14-year-old son James and I spent some time over the weekend fishing from the east bank of the Alabama River just north of the U.S. Highway 84 Bridge at Claiborne. Armed with a couple of baitcasters rigged with plastic worms, we made no significant impact on the fish population despite our best efforts. As we stood there on the muddy bank beneath the shade of several large willow trees, our conversation was punctuated every so often by the sleepy bump-thump of vehicles passing over the bridge.

James asked if I knew when the bridge was built, and not knowing for sure, I said that I thought the current bridge was built in the 1980s, replacing the original steel-frame bridge that was built there in the 1930s. We talked about how people had to cross the river by ferry in the days before the first bridge was built. Exactly where this old ferry crossing was located in relation to the current bridge, I did not know.

I did remember that the original bridge was built in response to the public outcry over two children who were killed in a ferry accident in 1926. The best source that I know of regarding this tale is Steve Stacey’s 2018 book, “Claiborne: A River Town.” In this book, Stacey recounts the “distressing accident” that occurred at the Claiborne ferry on Sun., July 25.

On that fateful day, Mary E. Hale Tucker and her four children had been to visit relatives in Clarke County in an open-air car known as a tonneau. They crossed the river from west to east on the ferry, and as Tucker attempted to drive the car up the steep east embankment, something went wrong with the car’s brakes. The car rolled back down the hill and “catapulted entirely across the ferry boat and plunged into the deep water.”

Tucker and two of her children were saved, but two of her sons, ages five and three, “were carried to the bottom and drowned. The body of the younger child was recovered as soon as the car was drawn to the surface, but the other one was not found until the following morning, not withstanding an all-night search in which many sympathizing citizens of the community assisted.”

According to Stacey, public outrage over this incident created a political backlash so powerful that it was felt all the way up in Washington, D.C. Alabama Congressman John McDuffie, with the help of Senators Thomas Heflin and Oscar Underwood, secured funds to construct the first steel-frame bridge at Claiborne. This bridge, known as the Claiborne-Murphy Bridge, was officially dedicated on Sept. 9, 1932.

In the end, I’d like to hear from anyone in the reading audience with more information about the old Claiborne ferry. Where was the ferry crossing located in relation to the current bridge at Claiborne? When was it established and when did it officially close? If anyone knows, let me hear from you.