George Singleton tells of ancient horns made from 'cypress knees'

Old cypress horn found in Monroe County.

(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 “Horn-making painstaking affair,” was originally published in the July 1, 1976 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

Since early man saw it necessary to communicate with others, he has sought ways of doing this.

During his travels across the continents, his methods have changed from time to time. Where he might use one method in the flat lowlands, he might change to another once he reached the hilly country.

Such is the case of the horn pictured with this article, which was made from a cypress knee found near here.

After many of the larger animals had disappeared from the area, and before the explorers such as DeSoto brought domestic animals to these shores, the early Indian used the materials at his disposal to fashion instruments of communication. The horn made from the cypress knee was one of such creations.

Much care was taken when choosing a cypress knee for a horn. The right amount of curve had to be present before the tone would be just right.

The came the long, tedious job of burning out the insides so the right amount of air could pass through and cause the desired sound.

Horn-making was a painstaking affair. Many of these horns were started, but few were ever turned into finished products.

When one was finally completed that produced the desired sound – a sound that  would carry well across the rolling hills – it was prized as a valuable means of signaling or communicating.

Passed along

These horns would be passed from generation to generation, from the head of one family to the head of another, until they were lost or destroyed from use.

It’s hard to visualize with our modern-day methods of communication that once the hills rang with the sounds of these weird horns. They knew each time one was blown, it was a signal of importance. That a message was carried on the winds, or happiness or sadness. Or telling that the enemy was approaching or a battle had been won.

The unusual sound had its place in primitive man’s life for a season. With its passing ended an era that man will related and refer to for time immortal.

(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 also helped organize the Monroe County Museum and Historical Society and was also a past president of that organization. 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.)