When taking on a research project, one never knows quite where it will lead. The road appears straightforward, but unexpected twists and turns may lie ahead. Certainly this proved to be the case with the Oakleigh outbuilding known simply as “the cook’s house.”
Operated exclusively with donated materials and volunteer workers, the Mobile Middle Bay Lighthouse Centennial Commission, chaired Capt. Hal Pierce, keeps the lighthouse painted and repaired. "Each of Alabama's significant historic structures needs a resource group as dedicated as this one," says Kimberly Harden, preservation architect with the Alabama Historical Commission. (Courtesy Alabama Historical Commission) Hurricanes, Civil War battles, and time have taken their toll on Alabama's three Gulf Coast lighthouses, but the structures and their quaint, some times tragic histories-live on, primarily because of the affection many Gulf Coast residents have for these beacons of light, and the time and money they are willing to commit to their preservation.
I am frequently asked how I became interested in cemeteries. It is a story that began for me as a young child. Every year on the first Sunday in May, I traveled with my family to Bethabara Cemetery in Fayette County for Decoration Day. And every year I watched my mother and aunts place flowers at our ancestors’ graves. We would walk between rows of headstones, and I would hear my grandfather repeat the same stories about who was who and how that person fit into our family tree. Then we would stand beside the freshly decorated graves and proudly have our picture taken. Those faded photographs not only depict the evolution of the cemetery but also remind me how quickly time passes. My grandfather died in 2008 and now lies buried at Bethabara, and Decoration Day is more meaningful to me than ever before. I walk the rows with my own children, repeating the stories my grandfather entrusted to me many years ago, perpetuating my love for old cemeteries that began when I was a child.
As Alabama celebrates two hundred years of statehood, we pause and reflect on the history, people, and culture that make this state such a wonderful place to live. While most of the attention during the celebration is placed on major social, technological, and historical events and places, we must also consider the early development and pioneer spirit of our state as well as the enduring diversity and tranquil beauty of the natural landscape.
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April 2024
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