Ruthven is a
ghost town in
Wilcox County,
Alabama. Ruthven is named in honor of Ruthven, a division of
Lincolnshire. It was formerly a lumber town in the early 20th century, and was incorporated in 1924. It was located about 3 1/2 miles southwest of
Pine Apple on Bear Creek along the Selma to Flomaton branch of the
Louisville & Nashville Railroad
The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States.
Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of ...
, what is now County Road 2. In 1930, it had 523 residents, making it the second largest town in Wilcox County after the county seat of
Camden
Camden may refer to:
People
* Camden (surname), a surname of English origin
* Camden Joy (born 1964), American writer
* Camden Toy (born 1957), American actor
Places Australia
* Camden, New South Wales
* Camden, Rosehill, a heritage res ...
. Shortly afterwards, the town either disincorporated or lost its charter and rapidly declined. Very little exists of the town today as most of its buildings were dismantled. A post office was also located at Ruthven for a time.
Nearby to Ruthven was the community of Schuster, which was once the location of the Wilcox Mineral Springs Resort.
Demographics
Ruthven appeared on the U.S. Census of 1930 as an incorporated community. It disincorporated or lost its charter at some point later in the decade.
Geography
Ruthven is located at and has an elevation of .
References
{{Wilcox County, Alabama
Ghost towns in Alabama