Memories of Madison County

History, Mystery, and a Tall Tale or Two

Welcome to the website. This site is a work in progress, so please have patience as I continue to upload my stories and links. I'd love to hear from you all. If you have any stories or pictures that you would like to see added, you can send them straight to my email account: Amberami1257@gmail.com.

My name is Amber Chattée Saunders and I was born and bred in the outskirts of Huntsville, AL, in a little town called "Toney." I was fortunate enough to have all but two great-grandparents and all of my grandparents for a good number of years in life. You might say that I was raised with old folks. My father and mother have always been interested in the history of Madison County: Black Cat, Toney, Dan, Lickskillet, Bobo, Hazel Green, and Madison Cross Roads, little towns which all brush up against each other, forming small parts of larger communities. I loved history from a very early age. I used to smuggle my father's Old Huntsville Magazines out of his room, and it was a childhood dream of mine to write for Old Huntsville Magazine. It sparked something in me: a desire to write, and a love for local history.

When I was 20, my dream came true when I had the opportunity to write for Mr. Tom Carney of Old Huntsville. In my mind, he was Huntsville's answer to Mark Twain. He appeared gruff and smoked awful-smelling cigars, but underneath that devil-may-care attitude, beat the heart of a very sweet man, who was passionate about his community, his people, and his writing. He was kind and patient with me, and allowed me to apprentice under him. He let me write ghost stories, and helped me to immortalize my great-grandmother's brother, who was executed in the Trenton, New Jersey electric chair. I owe Mr. Carney a great debt. I only wish that I had appreciated him more when he was here. This site is dedicated to his memory.