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History of the Madison County Sheriff's Office
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The Office of the Madison County Sheriff was created eleven years before Alabama became a state. On December 13,1808, Mississippi Territory Governor Robert Williams created Madison County and appointe
... Mored Stephen Neal as the first Sheriff. Sheriff Neal served in his appointed capacity until Alabama became a state in 1819 and held it's first "Constitutional Convention" at what is now known as Constitution Hall Park in downtown Huntsville. Following the adoption of the Alabama Constitution, Sheriff Neal became Madison County's first elected Sheriff by defeating eighteen opponents, the most candidates to ever run for the office of Sheriff in a local election.
H.C. Blakemore, Chief of Police for the city of Huntsville, stepped down from that post, ran for Sheriff, and, as a result, became the first Sheriff to serve two consecutive terms in office. There have only been two Sheriffs to serve three consecutive terms, L.D. Wall, elected in the 1950's and Jerry Crabtree, elected in the 1960's.
Sheriffs Joe W. Patterson and Blake Dorning are the only Sheriffs to serve four consecutive terms in office.
Incidentally......a footnote to our history......there is no truth to a much talked rumor that outlaw Jesse James, his brother, Frank, and their gang once robbed the 1st National Bank (now Regions Bank) on the Madison County Courthouse Square. In fact, the closest the James gang got to Huntsville during their reign as the most famous robbery team of that time was when they robbed a United States Paymaster near Muscle Shoals in 1881 of some $5,000. Frank James, however, was housed in the Madison County Jail a few years later and tried in Federal District Court for his part in that robbery. He was found "not guilty."
The most senior current deputies, detention officers and employees have served under Sheriff's Joe Patterson 1978-1995, Joe Whisante 1995-2003, Blake Dorning 2003-2019, and Kevin Turner 2019-present. Hide
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