Madison County Records Center

10/03/2019

On October 2, 1781, Alabama's first governor, William Wyatt Bibb was born. In 1817, President James Monroe appointed Bibb governor of the Alabama territory. He was then elected governor of the newly minted state of Alabama in 1819 and helped to establish Cahawba as the first capitol. Read more about Bibb's personal and political life here - http://bit.ly/2nN5vZ0

Gov. Bibb's administrative files are part of our collection and are now available online. View them here - http://bit.ly/2nZG2eG

09/04/2019

Cotton season start with early gin reports . . . Sept 1939.

08/23/2019

08/03/2019

On August 2, 1819, the constitutional convention concluded its work. Having been in session less than a month, all forty-four delegates signed their name to the new constitution and the clerk prepared a copy of the document to be submitted to the U.S. Congress. John Williams Walker, president of the convention, made final remarks on this accomplishment and their . Walker said:

“We have given to the State of Alabama a Constitution… [which] gives us a clear and indisputable title to admission into the great family of the Union. If it has some faults, it has, at the same time, many excellencies… Let us hope that it will also be approved by the people of Alabama; and that under its auspicious influence they and their posterity may long be free, prosperous, and happy.”

www.wethepeoplealabama.org

08/01/2019

On 's , the 44 delegates to the 1819 constitutional convention wanted to ensure that Alabama’s citizens exercised control over politics. The new constitution’s declaration of rights stated that political power was “inherent in the people” and that citizens possessed an “unalienable and indefeasible right to alter, abolish, or reform their form of government.” Fearing a strong executive branch, the delegates gave the governor, who would be chosen by popular vote every two years, only minor appointive powers. Furthermore, the legislature could override a gubernatorial veto by merely a majority vote.

Finally, the 1819 constitution included an effort at direct participation in the government through the amendment process. After the legislature had a two-thirds vote in favor of an amendment to the constitution, it had to be put on a ballot for the general public and receive a majority vote before it could proceed. This gave the voters of Alabama a direct role in the ratification process, something still unique for its time.

07/14/2019

The 1819 convention in Huntsville elected a committee of fifteen delegates to draft the state’s first constitution. Clement Comer Clay, a Madison County delegate, was appointed chairman of the Committee of Fifteen. After six days of deliberation, Clay submitted the first draft of the document to the convention on July 13, 1819.

The editors of the "Halcyon and Tombeckbe Public Advertiser," a St. Stephen’s newspaper, commented on this document by pointing out that the committee was composed primarily of “professional men” and wrote, “There are many objections raised by plain men, who though they make no figure in the [convention], are men of good sound sense and republican principles.” Over the next two weeks the convention debated the provisions presented in this constitutional draft.

Born in Halifax County, Virginia, Clay moved to Huntsville in 1811. He fought in the Creek War of 1813-14 under Andrew Jackson and served in the Alabama Territorial Legislature. His position as chairman to the Committee of Fifteen gave him a key place in Alabama’s but would not be his last involvement in Alabama politics. After the convention, Clay became the first chief justice of the state supreme court, a legislator, congressman, governor, and U.S. senator.

07/06/2019

200 years ago today, on July 5, 1819, Alabama’s constitutional convention met for the first time in Huntsville. Forty-four delegates convened in a cabinetmaker’s shop to debate political issues and write Alabama’s first constitution. On the first day, however, the primary focus was to elect a president of the convention. John Williams Walker, a judge from Madison County, was unanimously elected to serve as the president.

In his acceptance of the position, Walker thanked the delegates and promised that he would “endeavor to deserve a continuance of your favor by an honest and anxious effort to execute the trust reposed in me, with fidelity, with diligence, and with impartiality… I earnestly wish that the spirit of concord and conciliation may be cherished on all sides.. that we may look only to the true and permanent interest, the future character, dignity, and prosperity of the state of Alabama.”

While this first day did not include any debates, committees, or writing, it marks the beginning of the formation of a state government. This convention would meet over the next few weeks to write Alabama’s founding document, the 1819 constitution, which was the most important step in their .

These images are just a few of the 44 convention delegates.

To see all six of Alabama’s constitutions, including the 1819 constitution, head to the Huntsville Museum of Art to see the “We the People: Alabama’s Defining Documents” exhibit, where they are all on view until August 11.

07/05/2019

On July 4, 1819, delegates to Alabama’s constitutional convention celebrated the 43rd anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in Huntsville. The delegates and various Huntsville citizens gathered at the Inn to eat a “plentiful dinner,” enjoy each other’s company, and celebrate their nation’s history with several toasts to the “noble and glorious birth of liberty.” While most of the toasts focused on the Revolution, Presidents (from Washington to Monroe), and the United States in general, there were a few toasts that focused on the importance of the upcoming convention.

In one toast, a delegate raised his glass to the “Alabama Convention—May wisdom guide their deliberations and secure to us the best interest of a free and independent state.”

The celebrations ended “in good order, at an early hour, and the day passed off with much hilarity, and without any disturbance or accident.” The next day marked the beginning of the convention when the delegates would gather to discuss the future of the state and its first constitution, but July 4th was about a commemoration of the nation and its past.

06/30/2019

Take this survey powered by surveymonkey.com. Create your own surveys for free.

06/25/2019

Tomorrow is the big day! 's six constitutions will travel by motorcade to Huntsville for display in our special bicentennial exhibition "We the People: Alabama's Defining Documents" at the Huntsville Museum of Art. We will be live tweeting their journey beginning at 5:30 am on Twitter . We will also go live on Facebook for their arrival at approximately 11:00 am CST.

Follow along as the constitution of 1819 returns to the city where it was created 200 years ago this summer. http://bit.ly/2XtUThl