Mobile Local Guide

History

Silhouette of a hawk flying into the sunset in Alabama

The history of Mobile can be traced back to 1579 when Spaniards first explored the region. The French arrived in the area in 1702 and built a fort at the mouth of the Mobile River. The fort was originally named Louis De La Mobile, however in 1720 it was renamed Fort Conde. Yet again in 1763 when the British ruled, the area was renamed “Fort Charlotte” after the then-current Queen of England.

From 1702 until 1720, the town of Mobile served as the French Capitol of Louisiana. Originally, Mobile was settled on twenty-seven miles bluff near the mouth of the Mobile River. However, residents soon realized that during the rainy season, devastating floods occurred all too often. In 1711, the town moved to the geographic location that it exists in today.

In 1720, the capitol of Louisiana was moved to Mobile. In the years that followed Mobile was designated as a pioneering frontier town. In 1763, as tenant of the Treaty of Paris, possession and leadership of Mobile was given to the British. The change of ownership and leadership threw the residents of the frontier town into sheer panic and chaos.

Disorder erupted shortly after the British took over the town as they immediately imposed race codes on the free-spirited residents. The French Creole Sector of the town had a very liberal attitude in matters of race and ancestry. With the new strict race codes, the Creole residents were forced to move away from their Local to migrate to other towns, which were foreign to them.

The town of Mobile was captured once again by the Spanish during the Revolutionary War. The Spanish held onto the town until 1814, when American armies, led by General Wilkinson, captured it. By all accounts, Mobile was a small, quiet frontier town until the changes in ownership began to take place and unsettle the residents. With the ownership by the Americans, the town once again was able to relax into the frontier-town frame-of-mind.

The Church of Christ, the first Episcopal Church in Mobile, was built in 1835 in the center of the town. The church still stands today on its very own “Church Street.”

By 1850, commerce had exploded with the cotton boom. The newfound economic boom made the port of Mobile a prime location for becoming the major seaport in the country until the early 1900’s. This port handled over 500,000 bales of cotton each year. It became one of the busiest ports in the United States, acting as an artery to all industry and trade coming from the South.

Mobile had grown larger by the time the Civil War was declared and so, the city became a target for both Northern and Southern acquisition. Confederate soldiers faced their toughest fight for control of Mobile right up until August of 1864. Admiral David Farragut, Commander of the Union Naval Forces formed a blockade around the city. The siege continued for nine months until the Confederates, hungry, sick and weak, lost Mobile.

Around this time, Mobile’s most famous landmark: the Ketchum House, was seized. The house was originally constructed to house William Ketchum and his family prior to the Civil War. Soon after construction, ERS Canby, a General for the Union Army, confiscated the house. The home was then used as his headquarters for the durations of the Civil War.

In 1865 an ammunitions depot exploded, killing over 300 people. This disaster lives in infamy and is called “the Great Mobile Magazine Explosion.” Also in 1865 the African Community, after recently being freed from slavery, petitioned the Court of Alabama for the fair treatment of all people, including African Americans. This movement for government intervention was brought about when a white man pushed a black woman from the sidewalk into the street. When it came time for the trial, the black woman was not allowed to testify in defense of herself because of her skin color and the law that banned it from the stands. Thus, the white perpetrator was freed of his crime.

During the days of international slave trade, slave ships would often come into Mobile from their departure ports abroad. From Mobile, slave caravans were dispatched to plantations across the South. The “Clotilde” was the last slave ship to sail to America. When the war ended, the ship’s captain abandoned the ship with all of the passengers on board. The slaves then escaped onto the shores of the Mobile River where they formed their own town, which they named “Africatown.” It was here in Africatown that the would-be slaves were able to keep their African culture alive.

A new modern era was introduced in 1890, when the first Alabama railroad was built to travel through Mobile. Mobile was growing to become and industrial and economic stronghold in the South, drawing residents from other communities to take advantage of the strategic location and widespread growth.

During the early years following the Civil War, the general attitude of the white people of Mobile regarding the abolishment of slavery was very negative.

In 1906, the Kitchen House was given yet another use. It was used as the Cathedral Rectory for the Archbishop of Mobile, and is still used for this purpose today. In 1927 the first air-conditioned movie theater was built. The architectural team of brothers A.D. and Julian Saenger came from New Orleans to build it. In 1960, Mobile was dealt a staggering blow. It was decided that the Brookley Air Base would close. It would take many years for Mobile to recover.

In 1928, the Alabama State Docks opened. This Turned Mobile into a national and international trade port. This helped to further the economy of Mobile, and established it as one of the largest ports in the country.

When the war ended in the second half of the 19th Century, Mobile Harbor was enlarged making shipbuilding possible. The city’s economy kicked into full swing as capable workers from surrounding towns moved to Mobile to work in the Shipyards.

Less than one century later, when World War II was declared in the early part of the 20th Century the Mobile shipyard was commissioned to produce one ship a week. The rapid ship production was made possible due in part to the community support for the War, that inspired nationalism and pride. At this time women were first allowed into the workforce and even worked on the shipbuilding.

One of the greatest factors contributing to Mobile’s rapid growth following the War was the building of the Brookley Air Force Base. With the new Air Force Base, the square mileage of Mobile was effectively tripled as an influx of workers migrated to the town to work on the base.