[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 145 (Wednesday, September 18, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E919]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING THE 125TH FOUNDERS' DAY CELEBRATION FOR THE TOWN OF HOBSON 
                             CITY, ALABAMA

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MIKE ROGERS

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 18, 2024

  Mr. ROGERS of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I ask for the House's attention 
today to recognize Hobson City's 125th Founders' Day Celebration.
  The Town of Hobson City was first known as Mooree Quarters, a Black 
settlement dating back to 1868 in a section of Oxford, Alabama.
  In 1890, a Black man ran for Justice of the Peace in Oxford and the 
white mayoral candidate vowed if the Black man won, he would go to the 
State Capitol and have the boundary lines redrawn excluding Mooree 
Quarters. The Black man won the election, and in 1896 Mooree Quarters 
Settlement was removed from the Oxford Town limits.
  According to the 1899 Alabama Constitution, to be eligible to vote, a 
resident had to have lived in the county of his residence for 12 
months, be a male at least 21 years old, able to read and understand 
the Constitution, have a steady job for 12 months, own at least 40 
acres of land and pay taxes among other requirements. Some Black 
property owners were allowed to vote in city and county elections. 
Twenty men responsible for the incorporation of the town qualified to 
vote under those terms.
  For almost three years, Mooree Quarters settlement sat alone in the 
county. Taking matters into their own hands, a committee of citizens 
took their concerns to attorney Ross Black in Anniston, Alabama. Black 
attorneys were not allowed to practice law in Alabama during this time. 
The attorney advised them to incorporate the territory into their own 
municipality. On July 20, 1899, approximately 125 Blacks living in 
Mooree Quarters filed a petition with Calhoun County Probate Judge E.F. 
Cook to become a separate and distinct municipality. After proper legal 
proceedings, the town became incorporated on August 16, 1899, making it 
the first city in Alabama established exclusively for and by Black 
people. S.L. Davis was elected the first Mayor of Hobson City. Hobson 
City was named for Richard P. Hobson, a white Naval hero in the Spanish 
American War and a representative of the Alabama Legislature. Today 
Hobson City is under the leadership of Mayor Alberta McCrory.
  This year's honorees include Dr. David Satcher, 16th Surgeon General 
of the United States and Alabama State Representative, Dr. Barbara 
Bigsby Boyd.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in recognizing Hobson City's 125th 
Founder's Day Celebration.

                          ____________________