From the Lee County Historical Folks! Where else can you relax under a canopy of oaks and enjoy a sweet potato biscuit while listening to the stirring voice of Ernestine Hill Robinson and the Plantation Heirs singing spirituals and songs of deliverance? For more than 40 years the Lee County Historical Society has brought out the best of southern culture with an annual fair celebrating Lee County’s unique place in history. Visitors can expect to see and participate in a variety of old-time demonstrations such as weaving and cloth-making, pottery, metal arts, basketry, soap making, spinning, open-hearth cooking, quilting, flint knapping (making arrow head and spear points). And, in addition to The Plantation Heirs, entertainment throughout the day will include musicians playing period instruments such as hammered and mountain dulcimers, banjos and guitars.
Visitors to the gardens will have the opportunity to squeeze sugarcane and lemons from an old-fashion mill, make sorghum syrup, shell and mill corn the old-fashioned way, make apple cider from Alabama apples, dig sweet potatoes and peanuts, pick cotton, sample hibiscus tea and learn about herbs and medicinal plants from Master Gardeners.
In addition to our famous sweet potato biscuits the Lee County Historical Society volunteers will be cooking up camp stew, beans, collards, and BBQ and have refreshments available for purchase.
Pioneer Park, an 1850s era village, is situated on six-and-a-half acres in the center of Loachapoka, AL. The Park offers more than nine structures and several gardens for the public to explore. The 140-year-old Trade Center is the oldest commercial structure in Lee County. The Ruth Purdy Speake Cabin (circa 1840s) gives visitors a glimpse into frontier living and a one-room school house. The Taylor Whatley Building showcases the agricultural history of the area with various farming and blacksmithing tools and implements. The Blacksmith Shop brings to life the artistry of metal work. Doctor McLain’s Office not only contains an exhibit of the Doctor’s office and equipment from the early 1900s but also houses pharmacy from that era, antique soda fountain and the old Salem post office. The Loachapoka Gin Office, once the Town Hall, highlights the history of cotton production in Lee County. The Loachapoka Jail is open for visitors and is a favorite picture-taking location.
Admission to the Lee County Historical Fair is free for LCHS members and $3 for non-members. Children 12 and under are free when accompanied by an adult.
From the Archives — originally published on the Opelika Daily News on October 16, 2013. View the original page.
