Bethel School

The community’s first four settlers homesteaded land near this site in 1832. The little log schoolhouse, just 18 feet square, was built in 1874 on land given by L. F. Hembree, which is now the site of Bethel Cemetery. With no heat, a dirt floor, and split-long benches, the school played a major role in the development of Winston County. Its first teacher, Isham P. Gibson, later became tax assessor and probate judge, and a later teacher, John J. Curtis, also became probate judge. One of the first students, Rev. Geo. W. Gibson, became the community’s first historian and the county’s first farm demonstration agent. From its earliest days, the little schoolhouse also served as a church.

Alabama · United States