Rose's Trail through Wilcox County was named after John Rose, early settler of Dallas County, Alabama

Crocheron Columns at Old Cahaba

For the past couple of weeks in this space, I’ve written about the old Rose’s Trail, which passed through Wilcox County more than 200 years ago. This historic trail ran from Old Cahaba to Fort Claiborne way back in the days before steamboats began to travel up and down the Alabama River. As the years went by, this old trail faded from popular memory, and only a few clues remain today as to its exact route through Wilcox County.

In the 1950s, amateur historian Samuel Pressly Dale of Oak Hill set out to uncover more information about Rose’s Trail, especially concerning its exact route through Wilcox County. Dale planned to erect a historical marker about the trail in Oak Hill, but he apparently never did so.

Last week, noted historian and Alabama history expert Steve Stacey provided information that said that Rose’s Trail entered what is now Wilcox County, from Dallas County, along the route of State Highway 89, a few miles from the intersection of modern-day State Highway 41. From there, the trail went to the Neenah community, which is located on Pursley Creek, almost due west of Oak Hill.

Stacey’s research reflects that the trail probably continued southwest from Neenah to where the Fatama community is located today. From here, it followed the road that eventually became State Highway 265, which connected Camden with communities in Monroe County, like Chestnut, Beatrice and Buena Vista. More than likely, the mail route from Burnt Corn (on the Monroe-Conecuh County line) followed the Rose Trail from Oak Hill, north to Cahaba.

Not long after last week’s paper hit the streets, I heard from Scott Mitchell, a native of Rosebud who now lives in Montgomery. Mitchell directed me the Sept. 13, 1925 edition of The Selma Times-Journal, which carried a feature called “Echoes of Alabama History” by Julia Frances Clark and R.D. Sturdivant, who were with the Cahaba Memorial Association. Much of this column was about early Dallas County history, including the origins of Rose’s Trail.

According to their research, Rose’s Trail took its name from John Rose, who was one of the earliest settlers of Dallas County. Born in North Carolina, he moved to Alabama in 1810, when Alabama was a “wild region, with few roads through the dark forests, where the Indians still roamed in savage freedom.” Eventually, he settled in Dallas County’s Pleasant Hill community.

From this place, Rose “made a path in a southwesterly direction to Claiborne, a town of some importance, lying on the Alabama River. This path lay through Rose’s Ford and was called Rose’s Trail.” Rose’s Ford was a “spot of wild beauty” located on Cedar Creek in Dallas County, according to Clark and Sturdivant.

In the end, let me hear from you if you have any additional information about Rose’s Trail, especially regarding its path through Wilcox County. With each passing week, someone has come forward with more details, so let’s hear from you if you have anything to contribute to the subject. Who knows, perhaps someone out there has Samuel Pressly Dale’s original notes on the trail and would be willing to share them with the reading audience.