Lou Vickery will be one of the featured speakers in the upcoming Alabama Trust for Historic Preservation Lyceum Bicentennial Ramble Series. The series is a set of weekend programs for preservation-minded people who want to know more about, and visit, historic preservation projects in Alabama.
The Fall Ramble will be held this Friday afternoon and Saturday, September 22 and 23. (For reservations and more information, call Alabama Trust for Historic Preservation at 205-652-3497.)
This Ramble will follow the history of Alabama in its earliest stages beginning with the Creek Indians. It will explore the Creek culture and the intertwining lives of the Creeks and the early European settlers. The Ramble begins at the Poarch Museum on Friday, then will continue on Saturday with the following schedule:
The first stop on Saturday is the grave of William Weatherford “Red Eagle” where Lou Vickery, author of a definitive work on the history of the Poarch Creek Tribe, will talk about Weatherford and his background as a product of the two cultures – Indian and European. He will have copies of his book available for those interested in exploring the Poarch Culture in depth.
Other plans include a stop at Fort Mims, site of the Indian Massacre that has been touted as the 9/11 of its day; a drive through the Tensaw Delta area visiting some early examples of architecture with historical significance, including the David Mims home, the earliest home in the area that also served as a stagecoach stop and post office; lunch at Stockton Presbyterian Church; Baldwin County Bicentennial Park to see historical structures that have been moved to this site and reproductions of Creek Indian dwellings; a brief stop at Live Oak Landing, a historically significant river landing that played a part in early Alabama history; the Stockton Museum with artifacts of the early settlement and development of the area; private homes in Stockton that were on the Stockton Pilgrimage earlier this year. This portion of the Ramble ends with a stop at the home of Georgine Connor, curator of the Stockton Museum and the mother of a member of the Alabama Historical Commission staff. The last stop is Stagecoach Restaurant for dinner.