Updated November 25, 2022
Background
In the early sixteenth century, explorers visited the territory which is now the Southeast United States. They found that the Creek, Cherokee, Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw Indians.
After the defeat of the Creek Indians, much of Alabama was opened up to settlement. Thousands from Tennessee, Georgia, North and South Carolina came in search of fertile land to grow cotton. When Mississippi became a state, Congress created the Alabama Territory in 1817. St. Stephens became the capital of the Alabama Territory and approved a legislature of Alabama delegates already elected to the old Mississippi territorial legislature. William Wyatt Bibb was named as the Territorial Governor, and was also elected as the first governor when Alabama became a state on December 14, 1819. Governor Bibb helped establish the government, pass laws, and administer justice.
Overview
For information on specific counties:
Fayette County, Alabama
Various records relating to Gilliams that settled in Fayette County, AL
Lamar County, Alabama
Various records relating to Gilliams that settled in Lamar County, AL
Sources