Kowaliga, Alabama

The name of the community was derived from a Native American name. The community has roots that date back to the Muscogee tribe. There is a local legend about a lone Muscogee man named Kowaliga that lived on the shore of Kowaliga creek, after being rejected for love by a woman. It is theorized by some researchers that John Jackson Benson's mother was a slave and James Benson may have been his illegitimate father. When his enslaver James Benson died, and the Benson estate divided among his relatives. John Jackson Benson was sent to Talladega to continue to work as a slave for an heir. Many of the Southern plantations were seized during the war after the passage of the Confiscation Act of 1861. At the end of the American Civil War in 1865, John Jackson Benson was freed, given a mule, and went to Florida to find his sister and bring her back to Alabama. Benson had been separated from his sister in childhood and they were eventually reunited in Florida. He had the goal of purchasing the Benson Plantation but he needed money, so John Jackson Benson moved to Shelby County to work in the coal mines, which could be a fast way to make money at the time. == History ==

in 1911 The purpose of the formation of the community was the creation of economic self-sufficiency for local African Americans, which was notable particularly in the late-19th-century and early 20th-century. John Jackson Benson had earned US $100 from working in the coal mines and purchased a portion of the land from the former plantation, and worked that land. By 1890, he owned 160 acres of land, and by 1898 had acquired 3,000 acres of land. Around forty Black and White families lived together on Benson's land. The goal in the school creation was for rural students to eventually find industrial work with their new experiences, or alternatively create an educational foundation for these students in order to continue their education at other institutions afterwards. The first school building was named Patron's Hall, and it was funded by 70 Black farm workers. None of the Purcell designs for Kowaliga were built, after there was a lynching in the village. The Kowaliga Academic and Industrial Institute campus consisted of wooden structures and one of the buildings burned down in 1909, Emily Howland also supported the rebuilding and Howland Hall was named for her. Isabel Barrows wrote about a visit to the school for the laying of the cornerstone. After 1909, Booker T. Washington stepped down from the board of trustees of the school, In 1912, Rev. J.A. Myers served as "president" of the school. Other school buildings by 1912 included an industrial training building for boys, a domestic training building for girls, and two dormitories (one for boys and one for girls). Benson vowed to take the title company to court over the power issue. During the lawsuit deceased William E. Benson was represented by his father. == Community closure ==

The community closed due to many factors, but specifically the impacts from the creation of Martin Dam built by the Alabama Power Company that submerged the town of Kowaliga (and Kowaliga Creek) to form Lake Martin in 1926. John Jackson Benson had died a few months before the completion of the dam. Other factors that effected the closure included the end of World War I which affected the financial health of the Dixie Industrial Company, and a drop in cotton prices which impacted the industrial farming community. In those days many people moved from the area of Lake Martin, fearing diseases like malaria. As of 2021, the land that was once part of this community is owned by the Russell Lands, a housing development company. Not much still exists of the structures, only some quartz rock and a former concrete foundation, located near the rebuilt bell tower. == Legacy ==

The Kowaliga school educated hundreds of Black children in its many years of operations. In August 1952, Williams vacationed at Lake Martin while he wrote songs including "Kaw-Linga", this song was originally spelled as "Kowaliga" but it was changed by Fred Rose in order to focus on the song's storyline. In 1953, "Kowaliga Day" was proclaimed by Alexander City Mayor Joe Robinson, because of the successful song. While there are early publications about this place and photographs, much of the history was lost. A renewed interest in research developed since the 2000s. In 2005, Alabama Heritage Magazine published a story on the community. Amateur historians Erica Buddington and Thomas C. Coley, Jr. have focused their research on Kowaliga / Benson. ==See also==