The Crowell-Whitaker HouseRussell County, Alabama | Built c. 1840s
Dogtrot style homes like this one were common across the South in the 1800s and were easy to put up and expand over time as a family grew. This particular example was built on the Alabama frontier at Fort Mitchell, as the United States moved further into Creek Nation territory.
What was Fort Mitchell?
During the autumn of 1812 and winter of 1813, General John Floyd, a commander in the Georgia Militia, established a settlement known as Fort Mitchell in Creek territory along a trail that would soon become the Federal Road. Located less than one mile west of the Chattahoochee River, this site represented an important crossroads for the Creek Nation. The fort, formally established in late 1813, was strategically positioned along a horse path that allowed white settlers to cross Creek land while traveling from Georgia to the Mississippi Territory. The original troops stationed at Fort Mitchell were charged with keeping open that section of the Federal Road running through Creek lands and served as a base during both the Creek War (1813-1814) and the War of 1812.
Colonel John Crowell (1780-1846)
Crowell served domestically in the War of 1812 at the rank of colonel. In 1815, he moved to the Mississippi Territory as a federal Indian agent to the Creek Indians. Following this appointment, he was an Indian agent and legislator during the territorial period of Alabama and its first years as a state, serving as the agent to the Creek Nation until their removal in 1836. He was also the first delegate to the U.S. Congress from the Alabama Territory and the first U.S. representative from Alabama after it achieved statehood in 1819.
In 1821, Colonel John Crowell arrived at Fort Mitchell with his brothers Thomas and Henry to establish an Indian agency, marking a new chapter in the fort’s history. By 1825, Thomas Crowell was operating a tavern on the grounds, which reportedly hosted the Marquis de Lafayette that spring. July of the same year saw the arrival of the U.S. Army’s Fourth Infantry Regiment, which constructed a new fort that autumn. The existing buildings, including the tavern, were converted to officers’ quarters.
The fort’s strategic location near the Chattahoochee River, which formed the border between Alabama and Georgia, made it an ideal site for settling disputes between citizens of the two states, often through duels. From 1825 to 1840, the Fourth Infantry occupied Fort Mitchell primarily to manage tensions between settlers and the local Creeks, effectively preventing squatters from illegally claiming Creek land.
In the winter of 1833, the fort welcomed a notable visitor—Francis Scott Key, author of the “Star Spangled Banner” lyrics. Sent by President Andrew Jackson to investigate land disputes between the Creeks and squatters, Key reportedly found fault with his fellow Americans. During the Second Creek War in 1836, the fort hosted military leaders Generals Thomas Jesup and Winfield Scott. That same year, when the Creeks were forcibly removed to present-day Kansas and Oklahoma, Fort Mitchell served as an assembly point for the tragic journey that became known as the Trail of Tears.
A Gift for His Niece, Emma Crowell Whitaker
Between 1837-1840, Colonel John Crowell had this cabin built at Fort Mitchell. John never married or had children of his own, so when his niece, Emma Crowell (1820-1906), married James Whitaker on April 23, 1840, he gave the house to her as a wedding gift. Emma was the daughter of Captain Henry Crowell, the colonel’s brother.
Emma Crowell Whitaker (1820-1906)
Emma Crowell Whitaker (1820-1906), the niece of Col. John Crowell and a long-time resident of this home in Russell County, Alabama. Emma was born in Washington County, Georgia, near Sandersville. In 1821 her family moved to Crawford Co., Georgia, and settled on the Indian reserve on Flint River, where her father held the office of sub-agent to the Creek Nation. Shortly after, they relocated to Alabama where her father and uncle served as agents to the Creek Nation at Fort Mitchell.
In 1840, she married James Whitaker at Fort Mitchell and the family moved into this dogtrot house near the Chatahoochee River.
The Emma and James Whitaker Family
Emma and James Whitaker raised a family here for 20 years, until February 15, 1860, when James died from Diphtheria. Just a few days later, Emma’s first son, Crowell Whitaker, died from the same disease. In 1863, she lost her adult daughter Sarah to measles, and then in 1865, her thirteen-year-old daughter ‘Jimmie’ died at this home of ‘congestion of the brain.’
In 1885, her adult daughter, Martha Elizabeth, passed away suddenly at her home in Leon County, Florida. Martha left behind 4 young children, so Emma Crowell relocated from her home here in Russell County, Alabama to Florida so she could help raise her grandchildren. She passed away in Florida in 1906 where she was buried.
What is a Dogtrot Home?
Have you ever seen a dogtrot home like this one? This style of house is known as a dogtrot, with a large central breezeway that creates shaded living space for the family and their dogs who would lay there to cool down, hence the name dogtrot, or dog run.
This double-pen, dogtrot cabin with an open fireplace at each end provided cooking, eating, and sleeping space for the family. Wood was gathered for making fires and water was carried from streams nearby, and an herb garden near the cooking area provided seasoning for food and good health.
This house was originally located at Fort Mitchell where Colonel John Crowell was an agent, but was moved to its present location four miles away. It is listed on the Alabama Register of Historic Places.
