Ashland, Alabama: Founder Roots, Courthouse Legacy, and Business Icons
From Hollingsworth Watts' courthouse land donation to hometown manufacturers like Wellborn—how Ashland helped shape Clay County.
Where Ashland began: a county seat anchored by a courthouse
Ashland is the county seat of Clay County in east-central Alabama—often remembered as the "City of Friends." The town's origin story is tied to the creation of Clay County in December 1866 and the subsequent selection of a central county seat.
Ashland, AL, is also the hometown of Alabama's 52nd Governor, Bob Riley, who served two terms from 2003 to 2011.
The Clay County Courthouse: Ashland's signature landmark
In many Alabama courthouse towns, the courthouse isn't just a building—it's the town's identity. Ashland's Clay County Courthouse was completed in 1906 in a Classical Revival style and was later added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The courthouse also houses the Hugo Black Museum, honoring U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black.
Ashland through the decades: growth, change, and resilience
Ashland's story mirrors the broader story of rural Alabama, marked by periods of growth, economic downturns, and reinvention. Local accounts describe rapid early growth, later boosted by industrial activity—including references to the opening of a graphite mine in the late 1800s—followed by downturns as markets shifted after World War I. By the 1930s, the Great Depression and the boll weevil crisis hit cotton communities hard, pushing the region to adapt and diversify.
Over time, Clay County's strengths increasingly included timber/wood products, as well as manufacturing—especially cabinetry—helping the area build a reputation for producing products used far beyond Alabama.
Business icons: the names and companies that helped shape Ashland
1) J.W. Sentell — "keep-the-county-moving" commerce
Johnie Wesley "J.W." Sentell is frequently cited in regional records as an Ashland-area business leader connected to essential local services. He was associated with enterprises such as Sentell Oil Company, Ashland Motor Company, and Sentell Lumber Company—the kinds of businesses that helped keep rural communities fueled, mobile, and building.
2) Wellborn Cabinet — an Ashland-founded manufacturing success story
One of Ashland's most recognized modern business names is Wellborn Cabinet. The company's history states that it was founded in 1961 in Ashland by Paul and Doug Wellborn, and it has since grown from a small facility into a major cabinet manufacturer. In Clay County's economic development materials, Wellborn Cabinets is listed among the county's major manufacturing employers.
3) The wider Clay County manufacturing network
Ashland also benefits from a broader network of regional manufacturers and skilled trades across Clay County. Economic development listings highlight several notable employers and makers, including Koch Foods, John-Co Truss Company, Integrity Cabinets, and other woodcraft and production companies—evidence of a deep local workforce in building, woodworking, and manufacturing.
Why Ashland's history still matters
Ashland's story is a quintessential courthouse-town tale: a county seat established through a formative land donation, a landmark courthouse that still symbolizes civic life, and business leaders—past and present—who have built the services and industries that keep a community strong. To understand Clay County, you start in Ashland.
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