Editing Vernon, Alabama (section)

== History ==
The city of Vernon was originally known as Swayne Courthouse; it was named for the head of the Freedman's Bureau, [[Wager Swayne|General Wager Swayne]], who served in the Chattahoochee District of the state. Many of the records of this time were lost, when the courthouse burned in 1866.<ref>{{cite web |last1=FamilySearch |title=Lamar County Genealogy |url=https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Lamar_County,_Alabama_Genealogy |website=FamilySearch |publisher=FamilySearch |access-date=June 9, 2020}}</ref> The name of the town was changed in 1868 to Vernon after Edmund Vernon.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Alabama Department of Archives |title=Alabama Counties: Lamar County |url=https://archives.alabama.gov/counties/lamar.html#:~:text=In%201866%2C%20the%20community%20known,an%20immigrant%20from%20Vernon%2C%20England. |website=Alabama Department of Archives and History |access-date=June 9, 2020}}</ref>

Both before and after the Civil war, the economy of Vernon was based on timber, agriculture, and milling. After the Civil War, the plantations were sold off to timber interests, which eliminated many jobs. Since the end of Reconstruction, Vernon has experienced waves of manufacturing with textile factories being introduced in the early 20th century. All of these textile factories no longer exist.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=Claire M. |title=Vernon |url=http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-2503 |website=Encyclopedia of Alabama |publisher=Encyclopedia of Alabama |access-date=June 9, 2020}}</ref> Some manufacturers remain, such as [https://www.marathonequipment.com/contact Marathon], an international manufacturer of trash compactors.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Marathon |title=Marathon |url=https://www.marathonequipment.com/contact |access-date=June 9, 2020}}</ref>