Barbour County is located in the southeastern section of the state,
bounded on the east by the Chattahoochee River and the State of Georgia. The
county seat was established in Louisville in 1833, and moved to Clayton in
1834. Today Barbour County contains two courthouses - one in Clayton and one
in Eufaula.
Source: Owen, Thomas McAdory. History of Alabama and
Dictionary of Alabama Biography. Chicago: S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.,
1921.
THE EUFAULA TREE THAT OWNED ITSELF...
Creek Indians likely met under its cool summer branches. When Eufaula was
known as Irwinton, it was an outpost of sorts and early settlers passed by
it as they traveled north and over the wooden bridge that crossed Chewalla
Creek.
Later, it stood sentinel before the home of Confederate Capt. John A. Walker
and little girls made play houses under its canopy while little boys played
marbles. When Capt. Walker's house burned, the tree survived. During the
cyclone of 1919, the roots held firm.
(...) An iron fence was donated by Dr. J. L. Houston, along with a bronze
plaque that bore the inscription: "The Tree That Owns Itself, deeded by the
city of Eufaula to the Post Oak Tree, April 8, 1936, christened the Walker
Oak May 1, 1936, 'Only God Can Make a Tree'." The fence itself was historic
and according to The Tribune, it had "adorned flower gardens of long ago."
In 1961, the tree was still standing guard at the intersection of Highland
Avenue, Cotton Avenue and Eufaula Avenue. Tourists often stopped to take its
picture and read its inscription.
But on April 9, 1961, the long-standing tree met its match when a
tornado-like wind swept through Eufaula. NOTE: WE ARE
LOOKING FOR A PICTURE OF THIS TREE FOR OUR WEBSITE, IF ANYONE HAS ONE, COULD
YOU DONATE A SCAN TO US, WE'LL PROVIDE CREDIT TO YOU FOR THE SUBMITTAL.
Thanks.
Read the History of Barbour County online:
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