Fort Dale was a stockade fort built in present-day

Butler County, Alabama Butler County is a county located in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,051. Its county seat is Greenville. Its name is in honor of Captain William Butler, who was born in Vir ...

Alabama Territory The Territory of Alabama (sometimes Alabama Territory) was an organized incorporated territory of the United States. The Alabama Territory was carved from the Mississippi Territory on August 15, 1817 and lasted until December 14, 1819, when it ...

settlers. The fort was constructed in response to Creek Indian attacks on settlers in the surrounding area.

Background

After the

Creek War The Creek War (1813–1814), also known as the Red Stick War and the Creek Civil War, was a regional war between opposing Indigenous American Creek factions, European empires and the United States, taking place largely in modern-day Alabama ...

, a number of hostile Creeks (known as

Red Sticks Red Sticks (also Redsticks, Batons Rouges, or Red Clubs), the name deriving from the red-painted war clubs of some Native American Creeks—refers to an early 19th-century traditionalist faction of these people in the American Southeast. Made u ...

) remained in the area surrounding present-day Butler County. The Red Sticks were indignant over the large number of settlers who began traveling down the Federal Road and soon began attacking them. Settlers in the area began building protective stockades such as the one built by Thomas Gary near present-day Greenville. Gary had built a

blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...

and charged residents a fee to stay in it. On March 13, 1818, members of the Ogly and Stroud families were killed by Red Stick warriors under the command of Uchee Tom in what became known as the Ogly-Stroud Massacre. After the massacre, settlers petitioned territorial governor

William Wyatt Bibb William Wyatt Bibb (October 2, 1781 – July 10, 1820) was a United States Senator from Georgia, the first governor of the Alabama Territory, and the first Governor of the U.S. state of Alabama. Bibb was a member of the Democratic-Republi ...

over the fees Gary was charging. In response, Bibb dispatched Captain Samuel Dale and a number of troops from Fort Claiborne to strengthen

Fort Bibb Fort Bibb was a stockade fort built in present-day Butler County, Alabama during the First Seminole War. History After the Ogly Massacre, many of the settlers in the surrounding area began to build protective stockades around their homes. Fort B ...

and construct a new fort on the Federal Road.

History

Fort

While under construction, the builders decided to name the fort in honor of Dale. The fort was built on the Federal Road and encompassed a settler's cabin. The fort's defenses consisted of a wooden stockade and two blockhouses. Lieutenant Colonel Gilbert C. Russell described the blockhouses as being built at diagonal angles. Seven days after the Ogly-Stroud Massacre, Captain William Butler, William Gardender, James Saffold, Daniel Shaw, and John Hinson left Fort Bibb towards Fort Dale with a message for Dale. En route, the party was attacked and killed by Reds Sticks under the command of Savannah Jack. This incident became known as the Butler Massacre and added to the settlers' fear. In response, additional troops were sent from Fort Claiborne to reinforce Fort Dale. Soldiers and allied Choctaw warriors were also sent from

Fort Crawford Fort Crawford was an outpost of the United States Army located in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, during the 19th century. The army's occupation of Prairie du Chien spanned the existence of two fortifications, both of them named Fort Crawford. The ...

to assist in the pursuit of the Red Sticks. Fort Dale was garrisoned from April to June 1818, but some sources indicate it was garrisoned until the end of 1818. Members of the Choctaw tribe served with the 8th U.S. Infantry at Fort Dale during the summer of 1818. Captain W. F. Ware commanded a detachment of cavalry and a Captain Motley commanded infantry at Fort Dale in September 1818. Lieutenant Samuel Riddle of the U.S. Army was also stationed at Fort Dale in the fall of 1818. An inn and

stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...

stop was built near the site of Fort Dale and was known as "The Palings" (so named due to the palisade of Fort Dale). English merchant

Adam Hodgson Adam Hodgson (1788–1862) was an English merchant in Liverpool, known also as a writer and abolitionist. Life He was the son of Thomas Hodgson, a Liverpool merchant, and his wife Elizabeth Lightbody (1758–1795). His father Thomas (1737–1 ...

stayed at "The Palings" on his North American tour, describing it as a "flourishing plantation". Fort Dale map

Community

Once the fort was no longer needed for protection, a community grew up around the fort site. The community was originally known as Poplar Spring but later known as Fort Dale. Fort Dale served as the county seat for Butler County from 1819 to 1822. A post office first began operating at Fort Dale in October 1818, with John Herbert serving as the first postmaster. Fort Dale was also a stop on a postal road from Greenville to Hayneville. Fort Dale also had the first school and church in Butler County and served as one of the first voting sites. Naturalist

William Bartram William Bartram (April 20, 1739 – July 22, 1823) was an American botanist, ornithologist, natural historian and explorer. Bartram was the author of an acclaimed book, now known by the shortened title '' Bartram's Travels'', which chronicled ...

passed by the site of Fort Dale on his four-year journey through the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

Present site

Nothing remains of Fort Dale today. The Fort Dale Cemetery lies along

Alabama State Route 185 State Route 185 (SR 185) is a state highway that serves as a north–south connection between Greenville and Fort Deposit. SR 185 intersects US 31 at both its southern and northern termini. Route description SR 185 begins at its intersection ...

and is near the site of Fort Dale. The cemetery was documented in the 1935

Historic American Buildings Survey Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...

and the earliest marked burial in Butler County is located in the cemetery. The cemetery is also listed on the

Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage The Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage, commonly referred to as the Alabama Register, is an official listing of buildings, sites, structures, objects, and districts deemed worthy of preservation in the U.S. state of Alabama. These propertie ...

References

Sources

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External links

Fort Dale Historical Marker
* {{Find a Grave cemetery, 22846, Fort Dale Cemetery Pre-statehood history of Alabama Buildings and structures in Butler County, Alabama

Dale Dale or dales may refer to: Locations * Dale (landform), an open valley * Dale (place name element) Geography ;Australia * The Dales (Christmas Island), in the Indian Ocean ;Canada * Dale, Ontario ;Ethiopia *Dale (woreda), district ;Norway *D ...