05 April 2015

Local: Washington St. Communities - Sandhill & Texas Alley

The area in and around Washington St., just south of the Square, has a long, rich history. It has traditionally been an African-American community, but like so many other aspects of our society, that is starting to change as things blend and merge, and that's a good thing, in my estimation.

- Sandhill - 

The Sandhill community is that high hill in the Washington St. area off South West Street. Apparently, the soil was very sandy, more so than most other areas, and that's where the name came from.

- Texas Alley - 

Also known as Rear Washington, the name Texas Alley came about when Texas C. Weaver built a new house in 1919 on Rear Washington, and the name changed to Texas Alley. This is in the same general area as Sandhill but is to the south in the areas of Avery and Hill streets.

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I really like this general area and have always had an affinity for it, as well as the rest of Washington Street down towards Porterdale. Unfortunately, there isn't just much info at all in the book, the History of Newton Co., but I am in the process of doing some more research on this area and plan on doing an expanded write-up in the next few weeks.

Coming down the pike - I've been working on a write-up complete with pictures of the Covington Mills community. That will be coming soon as well.

Okay for now, thanks & take care.

`M