Merrellton, also known as East and West Junction, Junction, and Merrelton, is an unincorporated community in Calhoun County, Alabama, United States.[1]

Merrellton, Alabama
Unincorporated community
Merrellton, Alabama Show map of Alabama Merrellton, Alabama Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 33°51′48″N 85°44′31″W
Country	United States
State	Alabama
County	Calhoun
Elevation	673 ft (205 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
GNIS feature ID	160086[1]

Merrellton is located on Alabama State Route 21, 16.6 mi (26.7 km) north of Anniston.

History

A post office was established in 1884 and was named Merrill, after the daughter of the postmistress, Adelia E. Frank. A school was established in the early 1900s.[2] The post office closed in 1923, and the school closed in 1927.[1][3]

In 1929, a tornado struck an African-American church which was used as a school, demolishing the building and killing five pupils.[4]

Merrellton was a historic junction for two now-abandoned railway lines, the East & West Railroad and the Southern Railway.[5] In 1996, the city of Jacksonville acquired from the Norfolk Southern Railway the track bed of the former Southern Railway which passed through Merrellton. The track bed was used to complete a portion of the Chief Ladiga Trail, Alabama's first rail trail.[6]

Notable people

• Herman Clarence Nixon, political scientist and member of the Southern Agrarians.[7]

References