'Riley's Crossing' in Monroe County named after South Carolina settlers

Turnbull Cemetery in Monroe County, Alabama. 

About four miles east of J.F. Shields High School in Beatrice on State Highway 21, travelers will see a green highway sign that reads “Riley’s Crossing” near the crossroads where Highway 21 veers off towards McWilliams and State Highway 47 continues on towards Midway. Turnbull Road makes up the other point of the compass at this intersection as it leads motorists down into the old Turnbull community.

Despite the road sign on Highway 21, most maps list the name of this crossroads community simply as “Riley,” a name that dates back to the establishment of a post office there in 1882. According to the book “Place Names in Alabama” by Virginia O. Foscue, the Riley community was “named for a family from South Carolina, who settled in this area.” Sources say that the Riley post office closed in 1911.

According to the 2010 book, “Riley’s Crossing” by Kathy McCoy, the name “Riley’s Crossing” traces its roots to an old mercantile store by the same name that was owned by one of the county’s most prominent citizens, Thomas Mercer Riley, who was the longtime president of the Bank of Beatrice. If you go to this place today, there is no sign of Riley’s old store, which more than likely also housed the community’s post office.

A few days ago, after several hours of luckless fishing at the state lake, I found myself passing through Riley’s Crossing with my 11-year-old son, James. We scouted around for a few minutes to see if any old landmarks or buildings remained from the community’s heyday, and we were not disappointed. As many travelers through this area will know, the most prominent building in present-day Riley’s Crossing is the Savannah Missionary Baptist Church, which traces its history back to the 1880s.

According to the church’s cornerstone, the church was organized in the 1880s when R.W. Russell was minister. The church has been rebuilt three times since then - first in 1907, again in 1937 and lastly in 1968. In 1983, the church was bricked and a new addition was added to the sanctuary.

Before heading home, James and I cut down Turnbull Road, and about a mile later, we pulled over at the old Turnbull Cemetery. We walked among the headstones for a few minutes, and, just eyeballing it, I’d say there are about 50 graves there. The oldest grave that we were able to find belonged to Lydia Kile, who died at the age of 17 in September 1846.

Not far from her grave, you will also find the grave of Thomas Mercer Riley, who died at the age of 95 in March 1935. During the Civil War, Riley served as captain of Co. C of the 5^th Alabama Infantry and was in command of that unit when it surrendered with Robert E. Lee at Appomattox in 1865. At the time of his death, Riley was one of the few surviving Confederate veterans in all of Alabama.

Sources say that the Turnbull Cemetery is in the flood zone of Turnbull Branch, which flows just west of the cemetery. Maps indicate that Flat Creek, Robinson Creek and Stringer Creek also flow through the Riley’s Crossing and Turnbull communities, and all of these freshwater sources would have been prime real estate for ancient Indians in this area. No doubt there are more than a few old village sites, and maybe Indian mounds, in this part of Monroe County.

In the end, I’d like to hear from anyone in the reading audience with more information about the history of Riley’s Crossing. I’m especially interested in hearing any old ghost stories or local legends from this community as well as any information about old Indian sites there. Many will agree that it’s important to document this information for future generations, so that it won’t become lost like so much of our local history.