Weatherford’s Ferry played important role in Lafayette’s 1825 visit to Claiborne, Alabama

Last weekend’s “Farewell to Lafayette” event at Claiborne had a little something for everyone, especially for folks who wanted to learn more about the famous French general’s visit to Monroe County in April 1825. More than a few historians – amateur and professional alike – were on hand for the event, including Lawrence Krumenaker, the author of “Nine Days Traveling: Lafayette’s 1825 Alabama Tour, Today’s Historical Road Trip.”

Krumenaker’s book details the stops that the Marquis de Lafayette made in Alabama during his famous tour of the state and provides readers with information on how to follow his route using modern-day roadways. His book also includes nine pages that detail Lafayette’s visit to Claiborne and describes Lafayette-related sites that still exist today. Those already well-versed in local history might be surprised by the additional details that Krumenaker’s book provides about Lafayette’s visit to Monroe County.

Lafayette arrived in Claiborne via the Alabama River on April 6, 1825, and before reading “Nine Days Traveling,” I’d always pictured him stepping off the boat at a landing somewhere in the vicinity of the modern-day U.S. Highway 84 bridge. According to Krumenaker, Lafayette actually got off the boat about two miles downriver from Claiborne at John Weatherford’s Ferry. This ferry landing was apparently located near the mouth of Gailliard Creek, which is about 1,000 feet downstream of the grain elevator.

While the site isn’t open to the public, Krumenaker describes “unnatural depressions in the soil, likely from long-gone buildings built above flood levels, and the clear signs of a woods road leading away from the landing.” This old road goes from the river almost all the way to the grain elevator in a curve that parallels the river, Krumenaker wrote. More than likely, Lafayette traveled this road in a carriage, a distance of about two miles to where he was formally received at Claiborne.

Krumenaker notes that what we now call the Grain Elevator Road is part of the old road that Lafayette took to Claiborne. He also indicates that part of the Mt. Zion Church’s driveway may generally follow the path of the old road to Claiborne.

As a sidenote, it should be mentioned that John Weatherford was the brother of the famous Indian leader, William Weatherford, known as “Red Eagle.” John Weatherford would have been around 41 or 42 years old when Lafayette arrived in Claiborne, and one is left to wonder if Lafayette got to meet the ferry’s namesake. John Weatherford died in 1831, six years after Lafayette’s visit.

Sources say that John Weatherford is buried with his mother on what was once David Tate’s brickyard plantation in northern Baldwin County. When Andrew Jackson became president in March 1829, the new president awarded John Weatherford 640 acres of land. I presume that the ferry that bore his name was located on this 640-acre site.

In the end, if you are interested in local history and especially Lafayette’s visit to Claiborne, I highly recommend that you read Krumenaker’s book. I’ve only briefly touched on the wealth of information that you’ll find between its covers. No local history library is complete without a copy of this book.