The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-09-19

clear presentation of the facts was made to them
 Return to the days of old. Green academy at Huntsville was the first or eanized institution of learning in Ala bama having been incorporated in the Mississippi territorial legislature In the year 1872. Washington academy, in Washington county, Alabama. had been chartered in 1911, but did not fully or ganize and get into operation until some time afterward. As brilliant writer says: From these simple prim- tive sources these small Castiian foun- tains originated the streams of knowl- edge which now, with more than the fertilinzing influence of the Nile, and with richer deposits than the golden sands of the Pactolus, irrigate our soil"
 The largest and prettiest school houses along the Tennessee road from Huntsville to Tuscaloosa, previous to the civil war, was in Elyton. an done that stood upon a ridge amid a lovely grove of native forest trees, near Jonesboro. It typified the culture and progress of the citizens who dwelt in that Area dian valley, and made it blossom as the rose. Between Elyton and Jonesboro. more than so years ago. was the pioneer village of Carrolton. and at one time 1t was of considerable
 
 reputation of beinA the best in that region. The good and generous MT John Smith, a pioneer of 1916, fur nfshed most of the money to build it. The location of Carrolton was very de- sirable, but ,Elyton had the advantage I of being at the cross roads and Jones' boro in the heart of welthier dis trict. and thus the life of Carrolton was brief. When last I gazed upon its ruins all that remained was the com fortabl h ome of Mrs. Uabers, grove of sycamore trees bending over the creek near by mill. and the school house reminded me of the ballad Ben Bolt" and the pathos of one line: "The master sleeps under ground"
 In Trussville. a model community in | the midst of fine agricultural section, fine sch ool was maintained from the | year of its founding, 1918, and teachers | of high degree of scholarship em- ployed. The noted men who have gone | forth from that village attest to the | excellence of their early educational | training.
 | And now back to more prosaic | themes. The first wheat raised in Blount was in the year 1877, by MT. Guthory, l near the head of Turkey creek tnow in I Jefferson). As the grist mills were only adapted to the grinding of corn and had no flour bolters. 1t was useless to | plant crop of much size. In 1927 | Mr. David Hanby, one of the best loved and most progressive citizens | of Alabama, built a large mill on l Turkey creek, purposely for wheat l provided with the finest millstones for l grinding and first-class bolters, and | received a large patronage for 30 miles | around He annually sent many thous- | ands of pounds of flour to Selma, Tus- | caloosa and other points. In 1S4i | James Hendricks, wealthy man fol those days, and native of South Caro- lima, built large Touring mill within a few miles of Blountsville, and a mil 1 was built about the same time neal Sumit for the benefit of the farmers oi
 Browns valley About 85 years ago perhaps longer, erected a mill some | four miles south of Blountsville, ant the quality of the flour was fine hs shipped much of it to Mobile by way of Tuscaloosa and the Warrior river
 The mill has been in continuous oper
 alton ever since, and is owned by hi descendants. and annually yields handsome income. The late Mir. Ma rion May, who owned the familiar
 Roebuck place north of Elyton, wal one of the most progressive and sue
 cessful farmers in the valley and hal
 raised as much as 80 bushels 10 th'
 acre. His general average was alWay l high, and his farm, Ike ms useiui hle
 a model for others; and his like would
 be hard to find among the human rac'
 these days.
 The products of these mills wer'
 divided into four parts: the flour. thu
 seconds, the shorts and the bran. Th'
 seconds were made into sweet cake
 and batter cakes and served witt
 oney or maple syrup, as plenty of tn
 latter was manufactured by nearl.
 every family. the woods being full o
 maple trses. Tho shosts wese ver;