This week’s micro adventure takes us to the 1838 town of Eutaw, Alabama, Gateway to the Black Belt.
As I explore Eutaw, Alabama the Gateway to the Black Belt, we’ll discover a beautiful town square and antebellum homes. Simply a great example of a Southern City as it should be.
According the the National Historic Database:
In 1838, Greene County citizens voted to change the town seat from Erie to Eutaw. The City of Eutaw, Alabama was incorporated as a town by an act of the State Legislature on January 2, 1841. Greene County had been named for General Nathaniel Greene. The name, Eutaw, was chosen to commemorate the Battle of Eutaw Springs fought in South Carolina in 1781, the battle in which General Greene defeated the British. Since the county had been named for him, the people chose to name the town after his famous victory. The word, “Eutaw,” comes from the aborigines’ language, characterizing the South Carolina Indians as the “Highlanders” or “The Hill Dwellers.” The proposed town was surveyed and laid out by Robert G. Quarles in December 1838. In August 2000, Raymond Steele was elected as the first African American Mayor of Eutaw.