A Compilation of stories from
the people of Elgin, Alabama and the nearby communities of Whitehead,
Toonersville, Thornoton Town, Michell Town, Kingtown, Springfield,
and Pleasant Valley - all unincorporated towns in Lauderdale
County, Alabama. Old photographs, letters, handwritten diaries,
early newspaper articles, published works and oral histories
were collected by the Elgin Book Committee made up of Wanda Hurn,
Shirley Pugh, Beverly Henderson, Willane Abernathy, Martha Barnett,
and Gene Putman.
Through several years they labored
together to make sense of the vast and diverse sources they uncovered,
and in the end produced a remarkably comprehensive view into
life in the lower Tennessee River valley near Muscle Shoals,
Alabama. Beginning with their Indian predecessors, they painstakingly
traced the evolution of the region through the Civil War, the
Great Depression, two World Wars, the construction of dams to
tame the river, and the changes brought about by indoor plumbing,
electricity, the automobile, and other modern developments.
This book is a great treasure
chest filled with the everyday lives of the sturdy and consistent
population that made up the Old South. It belongs in every library
in the nation. Conceived as a fundraising project, all proceeds
from the sale of the book will be equally divided between Elgin
Senior Center and Elgin Volunteer Fire Department. |