The Lee County Historical Society invited members of the community to Pioneer Park in Loachapoka, Alabama, today to experience the culture and history of Lee County.
The Historical Society was formed in 1968 and has been hosting the Second Saturday at Pioneer Park for 15 years, as well as the Syrup Sopping Festival, now called Pioneer Day, which began in the 1970s.
The Old Trade Center, built circa 1845, houses the main museum of the Historical Society where exhibits detail the history of the Creek Indians, the construction of the railroad through Loachapoka, the effects of the Civil War in Lee County and the trades of the people who lived here.
Children gathered in the downstairs area of the museum for a class on finger knitting, while visitors could also learn about the different types on looms residents would use and the making of rag rugs.
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Herbalist Tia Gonzales gave a presentation on medicinal herbs while Charles C. Mitchell, president of the Lee County Historical Society, gave a tour of the gardens that morning.
“Everything you see out here is done by volunteers, not a single person is paid,” Mitchell said. “October 21, Pioneer Day, that’s the biggest day of the year and really the only time we have a chance to raise funds and keep the grounds open.”
Volunteers in Pioneer Park managed an array of different tasks, including cooking, hosting, teaching and maintenance of the grounds.
The ringing of a hammer on an anvil could be heard throughout the day, as men sweating from the forge in the Blacksmith Shop shaped railroad spikes into knives while groups of visitors looked on.
Several other buildings reconstructed in the style of the1800s were on site, including the Office and Drugstore of Dr. A.D. McLain (1902-1956), which acted as a post office, doctor’s office, pharmacy and soda fountain store; the Loachapoka Calaboose, a structure representative of the small local jails residents had over 100 years ago and the Tom Whatley Building, which housed an exhibit on the various types of farming equipment and machinery implemented by 19th Century residents.
“If you don’t know where you came from then you don’t know where you’re going,” Mitchell said. “We try to use the museum and the grounds to teach kids where their forefathers came from and what was involved in growing up 100 years ago in Lee County.”
Around noon a bell rung and groups of visitors formed a long line outside of the Cook House as they were handed plates of cooked vegetables and blackberry cobbler straight from the grounds’ gardens in exchange for voluntary donations.
The Second Saturday at Pioneer Park is free and open to the public on the second Saturday of every month.
For more information, visit leecountyhistoricalsociety.org.
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