Black Warrior Road

Bear Meat Cabin Road was part of the Great Tennessee Trail, an early Native American trail, in north Alabama it connected Ditto's Landing on the Tennessee River (Huntsville) to the falls of the Warrior River (Tuscaloosa) via Bear Meat Cabin (Blountsville), and Mud Town on the Cahaba River.

The original trail was named for a junction in Blount County on Towne Creek, the home of Chief Bear Meat, now within the city limits of Blountsville. A portion of the historic trail is accessible in Blountsville Historical Park. At Village Springs just north of Pinson the trail entered Jones Valley. A track blazed by John Jones and his brother-in-law Caleb Friley gave access to Roebuck, Elyton, Jonesboro, and McMath's Spring. The main route continued south to Mud Town, a name given by settlers to an earlier Indian village on the Cahaba, now within the bounds of the Altadena Country Club. Both routes proceeded west, joining and continuing toward Tuscaloosa.

The road, was surveyed, extended southward to Washington County, and improved as St Stephens Huntsville Road, or just Huntsville Road, a federal trade route, in 1818. Also called the Tennessee Pike or Hunstville Pike, it was recognized as a Federal Post Road in 1822, serving as the primary overland route for stage coaches between Cincinnati, Ohio and New Orleans, Louisiana. Different operators were chartered by the State of Alabama to operate coaches on specific sections of the road. Phillip Clack held the charter for what was called "Clack's Turnpike" in Marshall County.

From Hurricane Creek to the city of Tuscaloosa, a distance of about 16 miles, the road was improved as the Tuscaloosa Plank Road in the 1850s.

The route regained importance with the completion of the Tennessee River Bridge at Whitesburg in 1929. In the 1940s the section through north Alabama was made part of the Florida Short Route. It was paved by the middle of that decade and designated U. S. Highway 231 or the "Heart of Dixie Highway". The portion entering Jefferson County lies along the present route of Alabama State Highway 75.

A historical marker for Bear Meat Cabin Road was erected by the City of Arab at North Main Street and North Brindlee Mountain Parkway.