(DAPHNE, Ala.) - Travel a few blocks east of Olde Towne Daphne, and you'll find it... weather worn headstones honoring the memories of soldiers and sailors, parents and little children.
They all shared a piece of the Daphne experience.
Read the markers in the city's oldest cemetery and you'll learn a lot about this eastern shore community.
Daphne became a town in 1927.
But the oldest recorded date in the old Daphne Church Cemetery goes back 80 years before.
You might say that a lot of Daphne's history was buried in the old cemetery.
But not all of it.
In fact, a lot of it still remains.
And you'll find a lot of it in the old Methodist Church and Museum.
And, like the cemetery, the old Methodist Church is a trip back though time.
And Ken Balme ought to know.
"Well, the building was a community church built in 1858," he said.
Balme is president of the group that watches over the old church, and everything old that is inside.
It almost didn't happen.
When the Methodist congregation left the church for a new building, plans were made to tear the landmark down.
"Then a group of concerned citizens back in 1990 picked it up and created a little company and managed to save it," said Balme.
The church was turned into a museum of local history and culture.
And like many local museums, the residents are responsible for almost everything that is inside.
"You'll see pots," he said, "you'll see household items, you'll see historical letters from the civil war."
The church was almost lost a few decades earlier after Hurricane Fredrick.
But thanks to those who loved it, it wasn't the end.
The church survived, itself a museum piece, a place where Union soldiers spent a night after promising not to destroy it.
You can still see the church balcony that was reserved for slaves.
It all serves as a reminder of the way we were, and how far we've come.
The Old Methodist Church Museum is located on Dryer Ave. in Daphne and is open Friday through Sunday from 1:00 until 4:00 pm. Admission is free.
