Early Settlers Tour

Join historian Rickey Butch Walker for an engaging tour exploring the early history of northwest Alabama, with a special focus on the Native American tribes of the Tennessee River Valley and the first white settlers who interacted with them.

Butch is a respected expert in Native American history, with over 17 publications to his credit. He is a highly sought-after speaker known for his depth of knowledge and compelling storytelling. Notably, he authored the only current publication in print about Chief Doublehead.

This tour will highlight the Cherokee, Chickasaw, and Creek tribes who inhabited the region prior to white settlement.

Key topics include:

• Tribal leadership and cultural life
  
• Intermarriage between Native Americans and early settlers
• Treaties between Native tribes and the U.S. government
  
• The Indian Removal period
• Major historic events and sites
• Ancient Indian and animal paths
• Native towns and significant tribal leaders
• Landscape changes caused by river impoundments

Tour Stops include:

• The western boundary of Chief Doublehead’s Reservation at the mouth of Cypress Creek
• Tuscumbia Landing – a key site for trade and removal-era events
• Coffee Cemetery
• The historical marker for Doublehead’s Trace and the Military Road (if accessible)
• Tate Springs, including the Ophelia Doublehead marker
• North River Road or Fish Trap Road (depending on access)
• Lock Six boat launch area
• Gabriel Butler Cemetery
• The homesite of Chief Doublehead

This immersive tour features visits to actual historic locations, giving participants a rare opportunity to walk the land, engage in meaningful discussion, and ask questions about the Native peoples and early settlers who helped shape the rich history of Florence and the broader Tennessee River Valley.

Seating capacity is 13 guests. A second tour in the afternoon will open up if a minimum of 10 guests book.

Tickets are $40 per person. Payment can be taken over the phone, or in our visitor center, 48 hours prior to the scheduled tour.

Reservations are required. Please call for booking and more information: 256-740-4141

Tour departs from Florence-Lauderdale Visitor Center, 200 Jim Spain Drive, Florence, AL
Please arrive no later than 9:15AM