Midway community was once hub for ancient Indian trails in Alabama

Last Thursday after lunch, I got the itch to get out and do some riding around, so I hopped in my truck and pointed it north up State Highway 83. I really had no destination in mind as I passed the Bigfoot statue on Liberty Hill Drive or when I tooted my horn at Tony Kyles, who was out raking pine straw in his yard at Booker Flats. Only after I passed the school at Lyeffion did I set my sights on the old Midway community way up in the northwest corner of the county.

For those of you unfamiliar with the old Midway community, it sits about 24 miles from downtown Evergreen, at the intersection of State Highway 83 and State Highway 47, right on the border with Monroe County. If you go there today, you’ll find an historical marker that tells visitors that Midway was one of the first settlements established in Conecuh County along the post road that later became the Old Federal Road. Long serving as a hub for Indian trails branching out to the north, northeast and northwest, the Midway town site once included a saw mill and cotton gin.

My first stop last Thursday was the stately old Midway Baptist Church, which was established in 1890. I parked, got out and headed for the cemetery. Those of you who have been there before will know that just as you pass through the entrance to the cemetery, there is a stone marker embedded in the ground that reads, “Peace to all who enter here, God’s grace to those who depart.”

Just eyeballing it, this cemetery looks to contain about 200 graves, and the oldest marked grave that I saw belonged to Allie Skinner Brooks. She was born in 1859, later married John S. Brooks, and passed away around the age of 27 in 1887. I also noted a number of other prominent family names, including Anthony, Chavers, Skinner and Wiggins, among others.

I took special note of all the Staceys buried there, and I was reminded that my old third-great-grandfather, Thomas S. Stacey, was born at Midway in May of 1837 to Amos and Betsy Stacey. Twenty-seven years later, after surviving battle after bloody battle with the 36^th Alabama, he was wounded severely at Nashville and was discharged from the Rebel army. Despite his wounds, he lived to the ripe, old age of 87, and was buried way down in the woods at Manistee.

The Peacock side of my family also has deep roots at Midway. It was in Midway in 1880 that my other third-great-grandfather, Lewis Lavon Peacock, was living as a 36-year-old illiterate sharecropper, farming 15 acres, with a total of 10 young children to feed. He too was a Confederate veteran, having served as a corporal with the 59^th Alabama, and was present with the last remnants of Lee’s broken, starving army when they laid down their rifles at Appomattox on April 9, 1865.

With all this in mind, I eventually got back in my truck and left the church behind and rode up to the historical marker at the intersection. Aside from the occasional passing log truck, I seemed to be the only person around for many miles. Those of you who know this area will know that the old Enoch George Stacey home and the old Herman “Wild” Stacey Store are the two most prominent landmarks at this intersection.

I’d been to this spot many times before and have always been interested by the fact that this was where a number of old Indian trails once crossed. I’ve also heard many times over the years that there is a sizeable cave not far from this intersection and that if you go there today you can still see the soot on the roof of the cave left behind by a millennium’s worth of ancient Indian camp fires.

Another friend has also told me that he’s seen old historical maps that indicate that there are also old Indian mounds located at Midway. If this is true, I don’t find it hard to believe, especially when you take into account that it was once a major crossroads for Indian trails. It’s not too farfetched to theorize that this may have been a major meeting place or ceremonial site in ancient times.

In the end, as I pointed my truck back towards Evergreen, my thoughts returned to this old cave at Midway. I have always wanted to go to this cave in person, to see it just once with my own eyes. If anyone in the reading audience has any more information about this old cave or would be willing to guide me to it, please let me know because I would be sincerely appreciative.