Monroe County ghost town began as military outpost 210 years ago

Last Thursday afternoon, I got the itch to do some riding around and eventually found myself at Claiborne. Like many times before, I pulled over at the intersection of U.S. Highway 84 and the Grain Elevator Road to read the historical marker there.

Placed there in 1970 by the Alabama Historical Association, that marker reads as follows: FORT CLAIBORNE. Creek Indian War 1813-1814. Built by General Ferdinand L. Claiborne as a base for his invasion of the Alibamo country with U.S. Regulars, Lower Tombigbee Militia and friendly Choctaws. Claiborne’s campaign culminated in the American victory over the Creeks at the Holy Ground.

Scores of people pass through Claiborne every day and probably give little thought to the sizeable city that once thrived there prior to the War Between the States. While the facts are debatable, I’ve heard people say that there were as many people living at Claiborne in its heyday as there are people living in Monroeville now. Oddly, this modern-day ghost town can trace its roots back to when it was a frontier military outpost.

One of the best sources of information about Fort Claiborne is the 2018 book, “Claiborne: A River Town,” by local historian Steve Stacey. According to Stacey’s research, Fort Claiborne was built in November 1813 near the southern end of the bluff at Claiborne, on the east side of the Alabama River. This fort was described as a “strong stockade, two hundred feet square, defended by three block-houses and a half-moon battery, which commanded the river.”

General Claiborne had been ordered to establish the fort to serve as a stockade and supply depot as the U.S. military continued its war against hostile Indians. The fort, built in just 10 days, cut Indians off from the river and their growing crops. The presence of the fort also made it more dangerous for the Indians to communicate with their allies in Pensacola, Fla.

The fort takes its name from General Claiborne, who died in Mississippi less than two years after the fort was built. Stacey’s research also reflects that Andrew Jackson spent a night at the fort in August 1814 as he journeyed down the river to the coast. Fifteen years later, Jackson would be elected as the seventh President of the United States.

Sources say that on Nov. 28, 1813, Col. Gilbert C. Russell and the 3^rd U.S. Infantry Regiment arrived at the fort with a cannon for the half-moon battery and swivel guns. Russell, who was a friend of famous explorer Meriwether Lewis, would later lend his namesake to Russell County, Alabama. One is left to wonder what became of the fort’s cannon and swivel guns, but they were likely removed when the fort was later abandoned by the army.

Over the years, I’ve had people tell me that the earthworks from the old fort are still visible if you know where to look. I’ve never been to see them for myself, but I’ve been told that they’re extremely hard to find without a guide. No doubt they are on private property, so don’t go hunting for them unless you want to catch a trespassing charge.

In the end, let me hear from you if have any additional details about Fort Claiborne’s history. I’m especially interested in descriptions of the fort as well as any ghost stories or local legends associated with the fort. Any drawings or maps of the old fort would also be of great interest.