New London, also known as London, Kelly's Creek, or Kellys Creek, is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in St. Clair County,

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, United States.

History

John O'Kelly was the white trader to the Upper Creek town of Coosa. His half-blood son, John O'Kelly (also known as Toe Kelly), became chief of Coosa in the 1790s. O'Kelly was invited to

Pensacola Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only city in Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Pensacola metropolitan area, which ha ...

in 1794 to a council with the Spanish, and he signed the

Treaty of Fort Jackson The Treaty of Fort Jackson (also known as the Treaty with the Creeks, 1814) was signed on August 9, 1814 at Fort Jackson near Wetumpka, Alabama following the defeat of the Red Stick (Upper Creek) resistance by United States allied forces at ...

as chief of Coosa in 1814. Under the treaty, O'Kelly claimed land where Kelly Creek joins the

Coosa River The Coosa River is a tributary of the Alabama River in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The river is about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, ac ...

. He then established a branch of the town Coosa along Kelly Creek. The town was then known as Kelly's Town until the

Indian Removal Act The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was signed into law on May 28, 1830, by United States president Andrew Jackson. The law, as described by Congress, provided "for an exchange of lands with the Indians residing in any of the states or territories, ...

. The community was originally called Kelly's Creek for the creek named for O'Kelly. After the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, it became known as New London. By the 1880s, it was known primarily as London. A post office was established under the name Kellys Creek in 1841 and was in operation until 1908.

Notable person

* John Abercrombie, member of the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

from 1913 to 1917 and president of the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

from 1902 to 1911.

References

Unincorporated communities in St. Clair County, Alabama Unincorporated communities in Alabama {{StClairCountyAL-geo-stub