Editing Ashland, Alabama (section)

==History==
[[Clay County, Alabama|Clay County]] was formed by an act of the Alabama General Assembly on December 7, 1866. Less than a year later, Ashland was established as the county seat on land donated by Hollingsworth Watts for the construction of a courthouse. In 1871 Ashland was incorporated and named for 19th century statesman [[Henry Clay]]'s [[Kentucky]] [[Ashland, the Henry Clay estate|estate home]].<ref name="Ashland/Clay County, Alabama">{{Citation|title=Small Town Historic Markers |publisher=Alabama Tourism Department |url=http://www.alabama.travel/homecoming/ |accessdate=February 2, 2011 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110203101446/http://www.alabama.travel/homecoming/ |archivedate=3 February 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

During the early years, the town grew very rapidly. The town continued to grow with the opening of Alabama's first graphite mine in 1899.<ref name="Ashland/Clay County, Alabama"/> When World War I ended, the market for graphite dropped drastically, thus ending the town's growth phase.

The 1930s brought the [[Great Depression]] and [[boll weevil]] to Ashland that destroyed the cotton industry. Farmers were forced to abandon what had been the community's major industry. Timber, poultry, and cabinet making became the dominant industries by the beginning of the 21st century.<ref name="Ashland/Clay County, Alabama"/>