Everyone knows that small Southern towns are breeding grounds for characters and stories, and Brewton is no exception. In one of the town’s four colorful murals, three men balance on pine logs as they float them down the creek to a sawmill. If you look closely at the mural, in the background, an unlikely monkey perches on a log some distance away.
Why a monkey? Well, there are several good stories behind the monkey connection, according to Connie Baggett, a Brewton native and former reporter who now works as the city’s director of program management. One resident, Dan Thomas, was at a hunting camp north of town some 30 years ago when he swore he saw a monkey in the woods. By the time he returned to work, word of the sighting had spread – and the town was plastered with posters of monkeys to tease him.
And then there was the late Earl Miller, whose father bought him a pet monkey when he was a teenager. When the monkey died, Earl, “not wanting to miss a shenanigan,” Baggett says, shaved it, painted it green, wrapped it in aluminum foil and put it in the middle of a field, then set the field on fire. Imagine the fire department’s surprise when they found a strange being – an alien? – in the blaze.
“Earl was watching this with unrestrained glee in his front yard,” she says. The police chief finally realized the true identity of the “alien” and who had masterminded the prank.
Brewton exemplifies “small-town America at its best,” Baggett says proudly. And so, when the muralist Wes Hardin was painting the logging mural, she asked him to include a tiny monkey in the painting to forever link the monkey stories to the town’s identity.
Good-natured fun continues to this day in Brewton. Two weeks after T.R. Miller High School’s homecoming week, remnants of toilet paper still blow in the hot September breeze. “Everybody wants to come home and renew old acquaintances,” Baggett says. “If you’re a student or it’s your reunion, they’re going to roll your yard. The mayor and the police chief were hit this year. Pranks and hijinks abound.”
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Speaking of characters, some of Brewton’s most famous natives include musicians like William Lee Golden from the Oak Ridge Boys, Hank Locklin of Grand Ole Opry fame and blues-tinged rocker Grayson Capps, as well as athletes like quarterback Walter Lewis. Famed naturalist E.O. Wilson lived in Brewton as a teenager, and he’s honored in the town with the equestrian- and bicycle-friendly E.O. Wilson Nature Adventure park.
Two bridges leading into the city of Brewton – one over Burnt Corn Creek and one over Murder Creek, both of which flow into the Conecuh River – are lined with planters spilling over with red begonias. All over town, hanging baskets and flower beds bring life and color, and actually helps bring business to the city, Baggett says. And the effort is being rewarded. Recently, the flowers earned Brewton a national award in its population category from America in Bloom.
The creeks surrounding Brewton, the ones that made it such a boomtown before the railroad was built through the middle of town, are “a double-edged sword,” Baggett says, because of the flooding they cause during hard rains. In 1929, an epic flood caused water to rise to the second floor of downtown buildings.
In the 1980s, FEMA flattened the buildings that existed along Burnt Corn Creek to create the lovely Jennings Park, which now boasts walking trails, disc golf, a skate park and many butterflies thanks to pollinator-friendly gardens. This popular gathering spot is home to the annual Blueberry Festival, held in June, as well as other events throughout the year.
Another downtown icon, the former Ritz Theater marquee, was saved when the historic circa-1931 theater was demolished. It now serves as a three-dimensional “Welcome to Brewton” sign.
The charming downtown area has a handful of restaurants, like the popular Camp 31 Barbecue and Drexell & Honeybee’s, a pay-what-you-can lunch spot, and shops like Antigone’s women’s clothing – with more to come, Baggett says with a knowing smile.
Soon, an influx of an estimated 300 employees will work in downtown Brewton when Provalus opens its new support operations center. Provalus provides training in technology, business and support positions, with the goal of filling positions in rural communities that would otherwise be outsourced overseas.
Brewton’s charm extends along Belleville and Evergreen avenues, where many of the city’s wealthy timber barons built beautiful homes in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The area will host the upcoming Porch Fest, where the porches of historic homes become music stages, on Nov. 2.
Located off another of the town’s main thoroughfares, Douglas Avenue, is the former Dogwood Hills golf course, which now features mountain bike trails, a playground and splash pad and an arcade. The former middle school has been converted into a community center, where retired engineer Marcus Hall offers STEM tutoring sessions in after school.
Brewton also offers a dog park, canoe and kayak rentals, a recycling program, a thriving YMCA and many other amenities, as well as “a low cost of living, safety and good schools,” Baggett notes.
And soon, the town will be able to boast of new amenities for visitors.
Holley House, a new bed-and-breakfast and event venue, is under construction. Just down the street, Flannel and Floral is housed in an old brick warehouse where Shannon Brantley builds custom cabinets and other furniture. He and his wife, artist Megan Brantley, plan to open a maker’s market in the front of the building featuring local artwork.
“I’m into hand tools and the old way of doing things,” Shannon Brantley says. He looks forward to holding workshops to teach people how to use hand tools and work the lathe, helping to ensure that woodworking isn’t a dying art.
“It’s really, really hard not to fall in love with Brewton, I’m telling you,” Baggett says. “The city is right on the cusp of something spectacular.”
Mayor Yank Lovelace, who has deep roots in Brewton, is serving his second term. He prides himself on communication with the citizens of Brewton – he attends a different church every Sunday, he says, so he can be accessible and listen to people’s concerns and ideas – and he sees “good momentum.”
Small changes, like having local artists paint 50-gallon trash barrels to encourage people to use them, are adding up, he says. “You know it looks different and better, but you really don’t know what’s happened. It’s not any one thing, it’s the whole atmosphere, the total quality of life. We’re all in this together.”
Through beautification efforts, events and incentives for new business to come to town, Brewton is experiencing a renaissance. The city has a Facebook page called Brewton Reborn that celebrates the strides it’s making. “We want our town to be beautiful and fun,” says Baggett. “We want our kids to say one day, ‘I’d like to live there.’”
This story was edited to correct the names of two musicians from Brewton. The author apologizes for the error.