The informal "Republic" of Winston, or Free State of Winston, an area encompassing the present-day Winston, Cullman and Blount counties of Alabama, was one of several places in the Confederate States of America where disaffection during the American Civil War was strong. In Winston County, this opposition became violent and had long-lasting political consequences—deep enough to generate a legend after the war that the county had seceded from Alabama.
Background
Winston County is located in the hilly terrain of North Alabama. At the time of the Civil War Winston County also included the areas that later became Cullman and Blount counties. The area's shallow soil is highly unsuitable for plantation-style agriculture, and thus the county had never been home to many slaves. The 1860 US Census lists only 3,450 white residents in the county and 122 slaves. Winston's residents were mainly poor farmers.
Winston County's representative at the January 1861 Alabama Secession Convention was Charles Christopher Sheats, a 21-year-old schoolteacher. He refused to sign Alabama's Ordinance of Secession, even after it had been passed by a vote of 61 to 39. Sheats became so vocal in his opposition that he was eventually arrested. Upon his release, he became a leader of a pro-neutrality group. Later, as a vocal Southern Unionist, he spent much of the war in prison. A meeting was held at Looney's Tavern, where a series of resolutions were passed. These stated that the people of Winston County had no desire to take part in the war and intended to support neither side. One resolution declared that if a state could secede from the Union, then a county could secede from the state. Richard Payne, a pro-Confederate, laughed with delight. "Winston County secedes!" he shouted. "Hoorah for the 'Free State of Winston'!" From Payne's remark was born the legend of the "Republic of Winston." Other ares in the South at the time passed similar resolutions, including Searcy County, Arkansas, and Jones County, Mississippi. The so called "State of Scott" actually passed an official act of session from the state of Tennessee, with the result that it became a devastated guerrilla war battleground during the war. Many Winston County residents refused induction into the Confederate Army, and some spoke openly of organizing troops to support the Union. The worried state authorities moved to enforce obedience to the cause through conscription and loyalty oaths, which only made matters worse.
During the war
In April 1862, the Union Army invaded northern Alabama. Many of the pro-Union Winston county residents, as well as those from the similarly aligned Nickajack area on the Tennessee border, enlisted in the Union Army's new 1st Alabama Cavalry Regiment, commanded by an officer from New York, George E. Spencer. While the 1st Alabama Cavalry would play an important part in the war, it generally did so outside of Alabama. Winston County itself suffered from its own internal war. The Confederate Home Guards that had formed in the county were poorly disciplined, and its enlistees often used their uniforms as an excuse to settle old grudges. Men loyal to the Union responded by forming irregular militia bands of their own; by the end of the war, Winston County had been largely devastated by its own people.
Winston's unique history has become the basis of a small tourist industry, which includes an outdoor drama loosely based on the events. A passenger boat named the Free State Lady plies the waters of the county's Smith Lake. The "Dual Destiny" statue located in Winston county depicts a young soldier dressed half as a Union troop and half as Confederate soldier.
