A grouping of dilapidated buildings at a rural crossroads in Conecuh County makes up the community of Brooklyn, Ala. The original wooden volunteer fire station, a general store, a Masonic Lodge and a few collapsing homes flank Conecuh County Road 6, east of the intersection of Brooklyn Road.

The community also has some well-maintained homes where people continue to live. Some of those residents may take umbrage to calling Brooklyn a “ghost town,” but it fits the definition – its once-thriving business section has been abandoned, it is unincorporated, the post office closed in 2011 and, as Merriam-Webster says, it is “nearly deserted … as a result of the exhaustion of some natural resource.” In this case, transportation advances such as highways and railroads led to a decrease in the reliance on the nearby Sepulga River to transport cotton.

Located almost in the center of the triangle between Evergreen, Brewton and Andalusia, Brooklyn was founded in 1820. For a time, its location on the Sepulga River, a “large subdrainage of the Conecuh River,” made it a prosperous town, according to historian and author Dale Cox. Brooklyn once had grist mills, stores and a school.

“Keel boats and at times even small steamboats carried cargo from the Alabama community down the Conecuh and Escambia rivers to Pensacola,” Cox said in a YouTube video about the ghost town. “Railroads and highways replaced waterways and the community all but faded away.”

According to the 1881 book “History of Conecuh” by Rev. Benjamin Franklin Riley, “The first settler of the village of Brooklyn was a man whose name was Cameron. He established a ferry service across Sepulga River” in 1820.

Edwin Robinson later bought out Cameron’s interest in the business, opened a store and named the community Brooklyn after his hometown in Connecticut. “A church was erected in 1821, under pastor Alexander Travis, a school opened wit a Mr. Scruggs as teacher, a grist mill and other businesses opened and Brooklyn became “the emporium of trade to Conecuh, and the river, which runs hard by, became the commercial outlet of the entire region of the country.”

A historical marker located at outside the old Masonic Hall on County Road 6 tells the story of Brooklyn: “Brooklyn was founded by Edwin Robinson in 1820 and named for his hometown in Connecticut. A U.S. Post Office opened in 1827 and Brooklyn became a thriving trading center due to farming of cotton and the ability to ship products on the Sepulga River to Pensacola, FL. Brooklyn remained a prosperous community due to farming and later the harvesting of timber for the next 100 years.”

Brooklyn today

Brooklyn still has a few useful buildings, including historic Brooklyn Baptist Church and a modern, utilitarian Volunteer Fire Department that replaced the original. The old Masonic Lodge and Old Brooklyn Country Store are closed but the historic buildings provide great photo ops.

The old combination store and post office burned in 2010.

Here’s more about the remaining structures:

Brooklyn Baptist Church: Built in 1861, this church is listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage. The church, one of the oldest in Conecuh County, was organized in 1821 in a log cabin that also served as the community’s school, according to Billy Millstead of RuralSWAlabama.org. “On September 4, 1860, the church purchased three acres of land for $15.00 and the present church was built on this property in 1861,” Millstead said. A cemetery adjoins the old church.

Brooklyn General Store: The old general store is part of the Brooklyn Historic District as designated by the State of Alabama in 1993. From time to time, it has reopened as a convenience store.

Bull Slough Bridge: Spanning the Sepulga River, the Bull Slough Bridge was built in 1924. The 252-foot-long bridge has a pony truss design. According to RuralSWALabama.org, it is a part of the Sepulga River Canoe Trail. “Located at this end of the bridge is a concrete canoe put-in ramp,” Milstead said.

Dean Masonic Lodge: This lodge is part of the Brooklyn Historic District but there was no construction date listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.