Old store is a silent reminder of Watsons Crossing's forgotten heyday

Old store at Watsons Crossing in Wilcox County, Alabama.

I was out riding around in the southeastern part of the county on Friday, traveling north on State Highway 21 between McWilliams and Oak Hill, when on a whim I turned west onto County Road 16. Thanks to my trusty National Geographic map, I knew that this road would take me almost all the way to the Fatama community and State Highway 265. As best that I could recall, I’d never been down this road before, so I put away my map and eased ahead to see what there was to see.

Not much farther ahead, I had to slow down almost to a dead stop. Not because the blacktop was giving way to dirt road, but to keep from hitting a large doe that had stepped out of the woodline. She eyed me for a moment, as if to ask what I was doing in her neck of the woods, before she bolted across the opposite ditch on her way to pressing matters elsewhere.

As I continued west, the road narrowed down to little more than a rough, one-lane track through the dense woods. Inevitably, as I rounded a slight curve, I came face to face with a wide-bodied dump truck that was headed in the opposite direction. Being in the more maneuverable of the two vehicles, I put my truck in reverse and backed up to a slightly wider spot that allowed the dump truck to barely squeeze past me.

About four miles from State Highway 21, I came to a wide intersection and pulled over for a few minutes to look at what appeared to be an old store building that was nearly covered in thick, green brush. As I stood there, I was reminded that this was the old Watsons Crossing community. At other times in its history, this community was also known as Watsonville and Burl.

Later, friends would tell me that “Burl, Alabama” had once been painted over the doorway of this old store. Others said that the old store also once contained the community’s post office. When I looked it up, I discovered that the post office at Burl first opened in 1914 and remained in operation until 1958.

I eventually climbed back in my truck and followed County Road 16 the rest of the way to County Road 51, near the Fatama community. As I covered this six-mile stretch of road, I could not help but wonder about the people who once lived in the old Watsons Crossing community. Where did they go to school? Where did they go to church? Where did they bury their dead?

In the end, I’d like to hear from anyone in the reading audience with more information about the Watsons Crossing community. I’m especially interested in hearing any old ghost stories, tall tales or local legends from this area. Also, let me know if you know of any old Indian mounds or village sites in this area. Let’s make an effort to document the history of this community while we still have the chance.