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By Fred Guarino
The Lowndes Signal
Carolyn Smith Parker has written a remarkable book on the history of Lowndes County and its people entitled “Harbingers of North Lowndes.”
She will be signing the book this Friday at the Hayneville/Lowndes Public Library from 1-4 p.m. with a portion of the book sales Friday going to help support the library.
The book contains historical information such as deeds, wills and recorded documents on existing homes, many lost homes and early settlers of north Lowndes County.
Anyone interested in the history of Lowndes County and its families is invited to attend the book signing to speak to the author and purchase the book for $25. And refreshments will be served.
Parker said her family moved to Lowndes County in 1939, so she has lived in the county all her life.
She said she was in the last class to graduate from Lowndesboro School, a grammar school located where Lowndes Academy sits today. She graduated high school in Hayneville and went on to business school.
She married, raised four daughters and currently assists as a volunteer with estate sales.
She makes her home in St. Clair, just down from Lowndesboro, with her husband Robert, who she said has been a wonderful husband and supported her in writing the book “from 3 to 5 in the morning to 7 at night.”
Parker said she was inspired to write her book because she had always heard there were 30 to 40 lost homes in Lowndesboro. And in researching the people… who they were, where they came from, who they married and if they left, the list grew to include about 230 families.
But she said, “By this time, the book had to be done if it was going to be written.” She said quite a few of her friends insisted that she write the book because “there was too much information there to just lay on my desk at home and nobody know about it.”
The book includes early settlers, lost homes, surviving homes, businesses and lost businesses, including a map of the business district, which at one time contained 30 businesses, Confederate and Union soldiers of the Civil War, Oakview Cemetery, which is on the cover of the book and in the photo of Parker accompanying this article, many other photos and maps.
Parker said of the stories in her book, she likes the one about a man named Samuel Snow who came to Lowndes County in the 1820’s and all his relatives.
She said, “They stayed together. And if you ever read their letters (a copy of which she is donating to the Hayneville Library) they married in the same families… they didn’t go outside of the families very often to get married.”
She said they did the same in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia… wherever they came from.
She said of Snow, “He was sort of one of my favorites. I don’t know why I fell in love with him so, but he he just kept me motivated. Anyone that could come to land that was not civilized and thank and praise God, we should be really thankful today.”
Parker writes, “We learn of Snow’s first residence after leaving the Fork near what is now Lowndesboro from letters to his uncle Benjamin (Britton) in South Carolina.”
She quotes his letters with original spellings and lack of punctuation including this one dated Dec. 23, 1823, “This will inform you that I have moved down to my own place & have a few huts bilt I have the body of dwelling House up and all hewing down the sides I hope to have ir so that we can go in it the course of a fortnight I am more and more pleased with this part of the County.”
And she quotes Snow from a letter dated June 14, 1824 in which he describes the land as the best in the state, he goes on to say it, “Is good land good water good range & as great prospect for Health as any.”
Parker said she will donate a portion of the sales of her book at her book signing to the Hayneville Library. She said she wished she could donate more, but still has to pay for the books, which she funded herself.
Parker said, “I don’t expect to make any money off of it… The Hayneville Library has been really nice to me in researching there, and I would love to help them any way that I can.”
She said has already started more research for another book.
Carolyn Smith Parker shows off her new book “Harbingers of North Lowndes” at Oakview Cemetery in Lowndesboro, which graces its cover.