Chewacla, Alabama

Chewacla, /tʃuˈwɑːklə/ choo-ahk-lə also known as Yongesborough /jɔːŋɡʊsbɔːrɔː/ yawn-guus-baw-raw, is an unincorporated community in the northeast corner of Lee County, Alabama, United States.

Chewacla, Alabama
Unincorporated community
Chewacla is located in Alabama
Chewacla
Chewacla
Chewacla is located in the United States
Chewacla
Chewacla
Coordinates: 32°37′12″N 85°20′14″W
CountryUnited States
StateAlabama
CountyLee
Elevation
771 ft (235 m)
Time zoneUTC-6 (CST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-6 (EDT)
GNIS feature ID156176[1]

History

The name Chewacla is derived from the Hitchiti word sawackla, with sawi meaning "racoon" and ukli meaning "town".[2] Chewacla was located on the Central of Georgia Railway. It was once home to the Chewacla Lime Works, which operated a quarry.[3] A specific type of marble, known as Chewacla marble, was mined in this quarry. Chewacla marble was described as "a highly crystalline dolomite, for most part a beautiful pearly white stone".[4] Gneiss was also mined in the quarry and used to make millstones.[5]

Chewacla was the location of one of the first Rosenwald schools in Alabama.[6]

A post office operated under the name Yongesborough from 1859 to 1886 and under the name Chewacla from 1886 to 1907.[7]

Below are photographs taken in Chewacla as part of the Historic American Buildings Survey:

  • Convict quarters, Chewacla Lime Works
    Convict quarters, Chewacla Lime Works
  • Old commissary building, Chewacla Lime Works
    Old commissary building, Chewacla Lime Works
  • Old mule stable, Chewacla Lime Works
    Old mule stable, Chewacla Lime Works
  • Remains of old lime kilns
    Remains of old lime kilns
  • Old lime pit
    Old lime pit

References
  1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Chewacla, Alabama
  2. Read, William A. (1984). Indian Place Names in Alabama. Tuscaloosa: The University of Alabama Press. p. 15. ISBN 0-8173-0231-X.
  3. List of Quarries in Alabama & Quarry Links, Photographs and Articles
  4. Lexicon of Geologic Names of the United States: A-L. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1938. p. 423.
  5. Charles D. Hockensmith (May 12, 2009). The Millstone Industry: A Summary of Research on Quarries and Producers in the United States, Europe and Elsewhere. McFarland. p. 78. ISBN 978-0-7864-5380-1.
  6. Ellen Weiss; Robert Robinson Taylor (2012). Robert R. Taylor and Tuskegee: An African American Architect Designs for Booker T. Washington. NewSouth Books. p. 257. ISBN 978-1-58838-248-1.
  7. "Lee County". Jim Forte Postal History. Retrieved January 1, 2015.


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