Old Sparta community was once a hustling, bustling early Alabama town

Sparta Hill United Methodist Church

I got the itch the other day to get out and do some riding around and eventually found myself on County Road 25, which is also known as the Old Sparta Road. About midway down this road, I pulled over at the Jay Villa Lane crossroads and was reminded that I was close to the old hustling, bustling town of Sparta, which served as the county seat from 1820 to 1866. Almost nothing remains from this ghost town’s old heyday except for a few old churches and cemeteries.

According to the 1989 book, “Place Names in Alabama” by Virginia O. Foscue, Sparta was founded in 1818 and was named by Thomas Watts, an attorney, for his former home in Sparta, Ga. A post office was established at Sparta in 1820, but eventually closed years later. During the Civil War, the Conecuh County Courthouse at Sparta was burned by Union troops, and the county seat was moved to Evergreen, where it remains today.

I eventually made my way onto the Jay Villa Road and pulled over at the Sparta Hill United Methodist Church. According to the church’s cornerstone, it was organized in 1875 and was rebuilt in 1980. The oldest members of the church when it was rebuilt were Gillie Gross, Gertrude Thomas and Zetella Roche.

A few minutes later, I found myself in the church’s small graveyard, which looks to contain about 30 graves. The oldest marked grave that I saw belonged to Charles E. Johnson, who died on Feb. 2, 1942. I also spotted several graves of veterans, including the graves of two World War II veterans and one Korean War veteran.

Before leaving, I walked over for a closer look at the old, cast-iron church bell, which is mounted in a brick display near the road. According to the inscription on the bell’s crown, it was manufactured by the C.S. Bell Co. in Hillsboro, Ohio. Sources say that this 32-inch bell was made sometime after 1894.

From there, I drove up the Jay Villa Road to the New Hope Missionary Baptist Church. According to that church’s cornerstone, it was founded in the 1800s and rebuilt in 1972 when the Rev. James Jackson was the pastor. Other church officers in 1972 included C. Gross, F.L. Stallworth, W. Gross, C. Williams, J.H. Williams, W. McQueen, F. Gross, B.L. Stallworth, J.L. Stallworth, C. Harrison and A.J. Deese.

This church’s yard also features an old, cast-iron church bell that is mounted in a brick display near the road. As things go, this 32-inch bell was also manufactured by the C.S. Bell Co. sometime after 1894. This particular bell appears to be in better condition than the one down the road at Sparta Hill UMC, but otherwise the two bells are seemingly identical.

From there, as I have many times before, I walked across the church’s driveway and into the shade of a few roadside trees, which for years has sheltered the almost forgotten Warren Cemetery. This small cemetery contains some of the county’s oldest marked graves, including those of Hinchey Warren and Gilchrist R. Boulware. Most of these graves are in terrible condition, having suffered at the hands of the elements and ignorant vandals.

Here you will also find the grave of John Quincy Adams Warren, who died at the age of 30 on April 4, 1856. According to the book, “Ghosts and Goosebumps: Ghost Stories, Tall Tales and Superstitions from Alabama” by Jack and Olivia Solomon, John Quincy Adams Warren drowned in a barrel of whiskey. But that is a story for another day.

A few minutes later, I climbed back in my truck and pointed it back towards Evergreen. On the way back to town, I could not help but think of all the people who once called Sparta home some 200 years ago when it was Conecuh County’s center of government and commerce. No doubt, those people would have had a hard time imagining what the county would be like two centuries later, which makes one wonder what things will be like here 200 years from now.

In the end, only time will tell, and the reality is that no one reading this in 2020 will be around to see it. Anyone in the reading audience wanting to learn more about Sparta would do well to read “Sparta, Alabama: 1821-1866” by Pat Poole and “History of Conecuh County, Alabama” by B.F. Riley. Also, before I close out, I’d like to hear from anyone in the reading audience with any ghost stories, Indian lore or other local legends associated with Old Sparta. If you have anything to share along those lines, please let me hear from you.