New Old Cahawba park director to make improvements while keeping park’s charm  

Dr. William Henry has been named the new site director for Old Cahawba Archaeological Park, and he is ready to take on the task of maintaining and improving the site of Alabama’s first state capital.

Henry was born in Los Angeles, but he grew up in Kentucky. He said his love of history and archaeology developed at a young age. Henry said he and his grandfather would watch history documentaries on TV, and he knew then that he wanted to be an archaeologist.

Henry grew up and followed that dream. Now at just 31 years old, Henry has a master’s degree from the American University of Rome in Sustainable Cultural Heritage and a Ph.D. from Sapienza University of Rome in Classical Archaeology.

While pursuing his degrees in Europe, Henry also worked as an archaeologist in Hungry, Greece, Italy and Romania. It was on a dig at an ancient Roman Villa in Romania that Henry met his soon-to-be wife, Jennifer Wright.

When their work in Europe was completed, the couple came back to the United States. Henry decided to move to Huntsville to be with Wright, who is from Huntsville and was an archaeologist and Cultural Resource Manager on Redstone Arsenal.

In North Alabama, Henry worked for All Phases Archaeology and for Tennessee Valley Archaeological Research. It was at an Alabama Archaeological Society meeting that Henry met Linda Derry, the former site director of Old Cahawba, who retired in April 2024 after 40 years.

Derry suggested Henry apply for her job, even though Henry said he hadn’t heard of Cahawba. “I took one step out of my truck; I took a look around, and said, ‘I’m going to be here for 35 years. I’ll spend my whole career here.’”

Henry has been at Cahawba for about three months, but during that time he has been faced with quite a few tasks. First was cleaning up after a severe storm damaged trees at the park. New power poles were installed, and he and Assistant Park Director Johnathan Matthews were present to make sure no artifacts or cultural material was found or disturbed. A new, more easily accessible shed was built for the bikes that are available for park visitors to use.

It just so happened that Henry came to Cahawba right in the middle of preparations for one of the biggest events at the park, the commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the visit of Revolutionary War hero the Marquis de Lafayette.

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Although this project was headed up by Derry, Henry assisted when needed. “It was Linda’s swansong; it was her brainchild,” Henry said. “All I did was help with logistics and make sure everything was set up and ready to go.”

Finding a balance between that which is already established and changes that may be made in the future is foremost on Henry’s mind. “Cahawba has a certain charm about it as it is,” Henry said. “And there is a way to overdo it. I’m trying to strike that balance.”

Henry said one event he wants to keep is the annual Haunted History Tours, which are held in October each year. He said he may make some minor changes to make it more child friendly and make it attract more people.

In July Henry said the Gross Out Camp will be held at Old Cahawba for kids. “It’s like a science camp,” he said. “The Cahaba River Society is coming in, and they’re doing some programming.”

Other events are in the works, but they must be approved by the Alabama Historic Commission. 

Henry and his fiancé need a place to live, and as fate would have it, they found a listing for the Henry house, officially the Tate-Henry house.

The research Henry has been able to do so far on the house points to the original being built in the 1890s by the Tate family. Additions may have been made in the 1920s. In the 1940s the home was bought by the Henry’s, the family behind Henry Brick, and additions were made then too.

Wright is exploring the idea of making the house into a bed and breakfast. Henry said some rooms could be a place for groups and nonprofits to hold meetings. Wright said she and Henry realize that the house is now a cultural and historic resource and should be preserved for everyone.

If you want to keep up with events at Old Cahawba Archaeological Park, like them on Facebook and check their website www.cahawba.com. A video interview with Henry and Wright is on www.blackbeltnewsnetwork.com.