Once known as Pine Ankle and sparsely populated with
farms, Anniston, Alabama, has seen a multitude of changes over the
course of its history. Founded on land that was originally home to
Native Americans, the town was created by Samuel Noble and General
Daniel Tyler as a model city for their Woodstock Iron Company in 1872,
and not opened to the public until 1883. Rapid growth in the late
nineteenth century brought not only new industries to the area but also
Anniston's designation as seat of Calhoun County and an expansion of the
entire downtown area.
The vintage photographs within these pages reveal what life was like in
Anniston in days gone by, highlighting key figures in the town's
development as well as the everyday people who have lived and worked in
the community for generations. Readers will
discover the new industries that sprang up after the Oxford Iron Furnace
was burned by Union forces in 1865, and the effects of the population
boom of the late nineteenth century. Anniston's homes, schools, and
churches are featured in this pictorial retrospective, as well as the
town's role as an important military site, with Camp Shipp, Fort
McClellan, Pelham Range, and the Anniston Ordinance Depot all located
within the town's vicinity over the past century.