| Summary: | In the early 1830s, William Barnard, a mixed-race Creek Indian, built a log cabin on 640 acres of land in what is now western Lee County. Barnard was an influential leader of the Creeks in western Georgia and served under U.S. militia general John Floyd in the First Creek War. Though he fought on the side of the United States in that conflict, Barnard was forced off of his Georgia property by the terms of subsequent treaties. The land upon which the cabin was built was granted to Barnard for his service in the First Creek War, for which he was also was granted the rank of major. Just before his death in 1833, Barnard recorded the first deed at the new Chambers County Courthouse, stipulating the division of his home, property and slaves between his twelve children upon his death. Barnard's son John, the executor of the deed, was likely defrauded of his inheritance by the court, and moved to the Indian Territory with the rest of the family.
The property then passed through a succession of white owners and fell into disrepair. The cabin was donated by its last owner, Newell Floyd, to the Lee County Historical Society, of which Floyd is a member. The cabin was moved from its original site to Pioneer Park in Loachapoka, and is currently undergoing restoration. The home was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in 1996. Located near the original site is a cemetery containing the remains of the Kinnebrew family and the site of Fort Henderson, a militia fort built to protect against Creek attacks.
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