Crawford is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Russell County,

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Crawford is located at the junction of

U.S. Route 80 U.S. Route 80 or U.S. Highway 80 (US 80) is a major east–west United States Numbered Highway in the Southern United States, much of which was once part of the early auto trail known as the Dixie Overland Highway. As the "0" in the ...

and Alabama State Route 169, west of Ladonia. It was the second county seat of Russell County from 1839 to 1868 before it removed to Seale. Crawford had a record population of 3,276 in the 2021 Census. The CCD of Crawford is 84.3 square miles and has 38.9 people per square mile.

History

Early Years

Crawford was a thriving town through the 1840s and 1860s that held many stores, churches, and the popular Masonic Lodge. The town had many routes that connected several parts of neighboring location such as a stagecoach route that connected

Clayton, Alabama Clayton is a town in and the county seat of Barbour County, Alabama, United States. The population was 3,008 at the 2010 census, up from 1,475 in 2000. History Clayton has been the county seat since 1834, two years after the creation of Barbo ...

as well as

Salem, Alabama Salem is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community east-centrally located in Lee County, Alabama, Lee County, Alabama, United States. It lies along U.S. Routes U.S. Route 280, 280 and U.S. Route 431 in Alabama, 431 between Opelika, Alaba ...

. Crawford was also the home of Russell County's first courthouse. Crawford's Tuckabatcha Masonic Lodge was constructed in 1848. Throughout the years, the lodge has undergone several renovations and still stands near its original location. The Russell County Commission, Crawford citizens, and volunteers have contributed to its upkeep over the years.

The Civil War

The small town of Crawford had a key point in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. Benjamin Baker, a Crawford citizen, was one of the signers of the

Ordinance of Secession An Ordinance of Secession was the name given to multiple resolutions drafted and ratified in 1860 and 1861, at or near the beginning of the American Civil War, by which each seceding slave-holding Southern state or territory formally Secession in ...

and was a key leader in the war. Crawford was one of the very few southern cities in the war that did not get burned down. The 10th Missouri Regiment led by Major General James Wilson, marched their way through to Crawford just before Easter of 1865. Thanks to the cries of a woman from the Crawford Jail, all buildings with the exception of the jail were saved. The woman, who was imprisoned due to her voiced support of the Union, was imprisoned and held at the Girard Jail until being later transported to Crawford. She begged Major General Wilson to spare her town due to the citizen's support of her. Even one of Wilson's men plead for the Masonci Lodge to be spared. Wilson's men spared the town of Crawford and moved forward to Girard for what is widely believed to be the last land battle of the Civil War.

Gallery

File:Historic American Buildings Survey W. N. Manning, Photographer, May 14, 1935 FRONT AND SIDE VIEW N.E. - Tuckabatcha Masonic Lodge No. 863, U.S. Highway 80 and County Road 79, HABS ALA,57-CRAWF,1-1.tif, The Tuckabatcha Masonic Lodge No. 863 in Crawford. This photo was taken in 1935 as part of the

Historic American Buildings Survey The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

Demographics

Crawford was listed as an incorporated town on the 1860 U.S. Census when it was the Russell County Seat. It last appeared on the 1880 U.S. Census and has not appeared since. The median age in Crawford is 43.1, which is 20% higher than the Russell County average and 10% higher than the Alabama average. The community consists of about 53% female and 47% male. About 8% of Crawford is below the poverty line. The per capita income for Crawford is $31,510, and the median household income is $69,091.

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Russell County, Alabama Unincorporated communities in Alabama