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Showing posts from May, 2018

Jesse Wilson and the founding of the town we call Montevallo

Lucretia Wilson Cunningham,  niece of Jesse Wilson, and wife of planter Joseph H. Cunningham. Her parents were Benjamin and Hannah ( Harless) Wilson of Montevallo. Benjamin was Jesse's brother and my great great great great grandfather. He remained in Montevallo as did several of his descendants down to myself.  Note: My cousin, a direct descendant of Jesse Wilson, is sending me a photography of his son William Wilson ( mentioned in the article below..he moved to Coosa County, and William's wife Ann Harkins, daughter of Andrew Harkins.  I will put them here as soon as I get them! )  Traditionally, in the South, when we speak of the founder of a town, we cite the name of the first male settler, as if he is the only one who made the effort and thus gets all the credit. We know that the place now called Montevallo was the home for hundreds of years of Native American people, as the fresh water springs, the rocky creek, and the fertile fields were ideal for settlement. But