By Danny Crownover [The Vagabond]
To make room for the current Etowah County Courthouse on Forrest Avenue, the previous courthouse building on Broad Street was demolished.
The 1890 courthouse was voted to be torn down by county residents earlier in 1946. When the building was demolished, more than 100 articles were found inside its cornerstone, contributed by various citizens of the community.
Among the items were several Confederate bills, a bird’s-eye view of Gadsden contributed by the Gadsden Land & Improvement Company, various coins and business cards, and copies of the local newspapers, The Gadsden Leader and The Attalla Comet.
The cornerstone also contained Pope’s map of the city of Gadsden; a list of the members and officers of the Etowah Rifles; a business card belonging to Dr. George S. Vann with a tooth attached; a contract with Gwin, Hicks & Lane for construction of the courthouse; Civil War relics; and a printer’s imposing rule belonging to Charles E. Meeks.
Other items included a list of members of the Gadsden Board of Trade; a roll of members of the Knights of Honor by S.W. Riddle; a letter to prosperity by John C. Pugh; a photograph of President Grover Cleveland and Mrs. Cleveland by Joshua Turrentine; a prayer book from the Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter; and the constitution of the Farmers Alliance, along with a sample of jute bagging.
The cornerstone also contained a statement from the First National Bank, a copy of The Birmingham Age-Herald and a photograph of Mack Commins, an African American barber who died in 1945 at age 92.
The cornerstone was officially laid Oct. 25, 1890, with Grand Master W.E. Brown of the Alabama Grand Lodge of Masons conducting the ceremony. Hundreds of citizens from across the county attended.
A large parade preceded the ceremony, led by the Attalla Silver Cornet Brass Band. Members of the Etowah Rifles, the Board of Trade, the Farmers Alliance and many others followed.
Brown was assisted by James A. Bilbro, Benjamin F. Pope, J.P. McDuffie, W.T. Alexander, J.E. Whaley, M.L. Hicks, the architect, and R.O. Randall.
J.S. Stewart served as marshal of the day, with W.H. Denson, H. Herzberg, E.G. Lafollette, J.H. Disque and J.T. Brooks serving as mounted assistants.
Members of Gadsden Masonic Lodge No. 236 who took part in laying the cornerstone were J.C. Salck, P.H. Sims, H.J. Hallock, T.W. Gilmore, J.H. Letson, S.A. Lane, R.F. Tinsley, B.S. Sizemore, G.W. Vann, Charles Smith, John Flynn, H.L. Foster, W.L. Hendon, Edgar Welsh, J.S. Rogers, J.W. Jeffries, J.W. Randall, A.L. Woodliff, A.D. Simpson, W.S. Lovins, J.M. Bevans, J.T. Barret, G.E. Christopher, L. Zimmerman, M.E. Lane, A. Burns, J.A. Amberson, J.T. Bazemore, J.T. Barret, J.C. Salck, J.B. Richards and H. Mendel.
