Clarkesville (also spelled Clarksville) is a ghost town in Clarke County, Alabama, United States. It was the county seat of Clarke County until 1831.[1]

Clarkesville
Clarkesville is located in Alabama
Clarkesville
Clarkesville
Location within the state of Alabama
Coordinates: 31°43′41″N 87°52′39″W / 31.72819°N 87.87741°W / 31.72819; -87.87741
CountryUnited States
StateAlabama
CountyClarke
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)

History

edit

The Alabama legislature appointed a group of county commissioners on 13 December 1819 to select a site for Clarke County's "seat of justice." The legislature made the provision that the site had to be within 3 miles (4.8 km) of the center of county.[1] The commissioners founded Clarkesville as a result. It remained the county seat until 1831, when growing dissatisfaction within the county caused the relocation of the seat to Macon, later renamed Grove Hill. The town had vanished from maps by the late 19th century. A small modern community, roughly a mile from the old site, presently calls itself Clarksville.[1]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Harris, W. Stuart. Dead towns of Alabama, pages 72-73. Tuscaloosa : University of Alabama Press, 1977. ISBN 0-585-26563-1