Chulafinnee Alabama
Chulafinnee is an unincorporated community in Cleburne County.
Chulafinnee was named after the nearby Chulafinnee Creek, which was derived from Creek words chuli meaning “pine” and fina meaning “footlog”. Chulafinnee was founded in 1835 when gold was found in the nearby creeks. The population was smaller than that of nearby Arbacoochee (which was also formed after gold was found nearby), but considered by locals to be a more permanent town due to the greater number of brick buildings. Local lore held that the King brothers, (who later founded King Ranch), were prospectors in the area. Remains of some of the mines are located on the Frank Spain Scout Reservation, where participating Scouts are able to learn about the history of the area.
The American geologist Eugene Allen Smith explored the old mines and examined minerals around Chulafinnee in the late 1800s.
Chulafinnee was originally one of several Indian villages of the Upper Creek Nation. The Indian word, Chulafinnee, means “Pine Log Crossing.” Chulafinnee is now a ghost town with a gold producing past. It is located in the southwest corner of Cleburne County along Carr & Chulafinnee Creeks.
This was a gold mining town about 12 miles south of Heflin, Alabama. Chulafinnee is near a creek of the same name, about four miles from the creek junction with the Tallapoos River and along present US Highway 431.
The mine was destroyed by one of the King brothers that were prospectors in the area. These brothers were part of the family that later founded the famous King Ranch in Texas.
The town was still listed on the state maps as late as 1878.