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It was like a treasure map. I found it in the files of my recently deceased father, Harry Theophilus Toulmin. It sketched what he thought was the location of Washington Court House, a lost mystery town in Washington County, southern Alabama, and the death place of our most famous ancestor, Judge Harry Toulmin (1766-1823), my father’s namesake. The judge was my great-great-great-great-grandfather. As an explorer, family historian, and as my father’s son, I had to go down South and find that town.

There are many mysteries associated with the town of Washington Court House. It no longer exists and does not appear on current maps. It is not clear when or why or by whom it was founded and made the county seat for Washington County (about 50 miles north of Mobile). No-one knows how many people or houses were located there, or when or why the town disappeared. It does not appear in the classic work Dead Towns of Alabama, and it is omitted in most histories of Alabama and even of Washington County. Yet for a brief shining moment it was one of the most important towns in south Alabama.

I began my quest, as my father did, with Judge Toulmin’s ten-page will, written in 1823, in which he gave to his wife Martha Johnson Toulmin “two quarter of Sections near Washington Court House on which I have resided more than a year, with my new double log house…and cotton field of about 15 acres…”

Next I did more research on Judge Toulmin, about whom I had heard all my life, and was pleased to find that he was one of the great figures of early Alabama history. He was appointed by President Thomas Jefferson in 1804 to be the Territorial Judge of the Alabama portion of the Mississippi Territory, known as the Tombigbee District. As such, for fifteen years he was almost the only civil governmental presence for hundreds of miles in what was then one of the wildest and most remote parts of the United States. A writer at the time said that “the present inhabitants, with few exceptions, are illiterate, wild and savage, of depraved morals…, litigious, disunited… and distrustful…”

Judge Toulmin’s accomplishments, faced with these difficulties, were remarkable. He was the only judge in an area covering almost all of what is now southern Alabama, an area of over 15,000 square miles. He rode over 1600 miles per year on horseback through the wilderness to administer justice. His “courtroom” was usually a large tree. At Blakeley, in what is now north Baldwin County, he would sit eight feet above the ground on the branch of a huge live oak, and literally hand down justice from on high.

Remarkably, Judge Toulmin actually prevented war with Spain on several occasions. Spain controlled Mobile and Florida, but was weak, and numerous American “filibusterers” wanted to kick out the Spaniards by force. Acting on orders from President Jefferson, Judge Toulmin was able to prevent numerous minor incidents from escalating into war, and even arrested persons planning to invade Spanish territory.

Toulmin issued the arrest warrant for Vice President Aaron Burr, who was allegedly scheming to establish his own empire west of the Mississippi, with himself as Emperor. After Burr’s arrest, Toulmin and his daughter kept Burr busy playing chess in Toulmin’s log cabin for several days, until a military escort could be assembled to take the dangerous man to Richmond, Virginia for trial.

To find the judge and his mystery town, I first went to the area described on my father’s sketch map, and interviewed local residents. Hunters were especially useful, since they often cover ground that is rarely visited. I found a local hunter who said that his uncles, now deceased, told him often about “Court House hill” and even where the courthouse itself was located, near where my father estimated its location.

To be scientifically certain of the location of Washington Court House, I knew that real archaeological experts would be needed. I approached the Center for Archaeological Studies at the University of South Alabama (USA). Archaeologists Bonnie Gums and George Shorter, Jr. were immediately intrigued by the possibilities. Said George, “From our extensive excavations at nearby Old St. Stephens, we know a lot about the distinguished Judge Toulmin, who for a time was a resident there. But we never knew where he died, and we would love to locate his grave.”

After obtaining permission from the land owners, we drove up to the possible site, with four vehicles and a team of USA staff and volunteers. I had my fingers crossed. Would thirty years of family and historical research pay off?

Bonnie Gums supervised the detailed archaeological work. She said, “This site has little or no evidence on the surface of habitation. There are no ruins, no structures, nothing except bare, hilly rural land that has recently been logged over. In a preliminary survey like this, first we want to establish that there was habitation. So we look for fragments on the ground. Most importantly, we dig test holes, each about 10 inches wide and down to undisturbed subsoil, to see what we find.”

In this instance, it was clear that a good site had been found. Said Bonnie, “We are pretty convinced that this is the right site. The burned glass, burned pottery fragments, and other items from some of the 30 test holes are from the right period, and George Shorter was able to use the sketch map and his probe to locate possible foundations for various structures. And there are a lot of sherds and nails on the surface of the ground. A lot more work still needs to be done to establish exactly where the various structures were and their functions. There may have been a court house building--perhaps a log cabin on a limestone foundation, along with a separate jail, and various residential cabins. “

Bonnie continued, “In a site like this we are very unlikely to find anything of commercial value. I have been doing this for over 20 years and never found any ‘hidden treasure.’ What we do hope to find are items of historical and archaeological value that will help us preserve the history of Alabama.”

The real treasure for me and the rest of the Toulmin family would be finding the grave of Judge Harry Toulmin. Said Toulmin descendant Robert DeNeefe, “We know where all the Toulmins are buried, except the most famous one –- Judge Harry. We know he was buried near the courthouse building at Washington Court House. The legend is that he was buried between the graves of two criminals he had recently hung! He was quite a character. It would be great to find him again.”

Lew Toulmin is a member of the Sons and Daughters of the Colonial and Antebellum Bench and Bar. He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.

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