Archaeological Survey of the Old Federal Road in Alabama

Fletcher Hale’s interpretation of the Old Federal Road in Monroe and Conecuh counties is verysimilar to the route shown on land survey plats and historical maps, which is not the case with severalother counties (Figure 5-9). His accuracy in Monroe and Conecuh counties is attributable to his positionas Monroe County Topographic Draftsman in the 1930s and 1940s. In addition to his Old Federal Roadmap series, Hale recreated a survey of the Monroe-Conecuh county line originally conducted in 1891 byT. A. Rumbley (Monroe County Surveyor) and J. Straughn (Conecuh County Surveyor) (Figure 5-10).Hale used Rumbley and Straughn’s field data to draw new maps that included features noted during the1891 survey, as well as features observed during his own mapping. The 1891 survey precisely locates theOld Federal Road prior to modern paving and straightening.Figure 5-9. Fletcher Hale’s map of the Old Federal Road around Burn Corn Springs in Township 7 North,Range 9 East (courtesy of the Alabama Department of Archives and History).106