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Bibb County, Alabama

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Bibb County is a county in the central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. The county is included in the ARC's definition of Appalachia. As of the 24th decennial 2020 census, its population was 22,293.[1] The county seat is Centreville.[2] The county is named in honor of William W. Bibb (1781–1820), the Governor of Alabama Territory (1817–1819) and the first Governor of Alabama (1819–1820, when he died). He is also the namesake for Bibb County, Georgia, where he began his political career. It is a "prohibition" or dry county; however, a few towns have become "wet" by allowing the sale of alcoholic beverages: Woodstock (December 2017), West Blocton (August 2012), Centreville (June 2010), and Brent (May 2010).[3] The Bibb County Courthouse is located in the county seat of Centreville.

Bibb County
County
Bibb County Courthouse and Confederate monument in Centreville
Bibb County Courthouse and Confederate monument in Centreville
Map of Alabama highlighting Bibb County
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Map of the United States highlighting Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°59′52″N 87°07′35″W / 32.99778°N 87.12639°W / 32.99778; -87.12639
Country United States
State Alabama
FoundedFebruary 7, 1818
Named forWilliam W. Bibb
SeatCentreville
Largest cityBrent
Area
 • Total
626 sq mi (1,620 km2)
 • Land623 sq mi (1,610 km2)
 • Water3.6 sq mi (9 km2)  0.6%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
22,293
 • Estimate 
(2023)
21,868 Decrease
 • Density36/sq mi (14/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district6th
Websitewww.bibbal.com
  • County Number 07 on Alabama License Plates

History

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Cahawba County was established ("erected") on February 7, 1818, named for the Cahawba River (now more commonly known as Cahaba River). This name came from the Choctaw language word meaning "water above." On December 4, 1820, it was renamed as Bibb County.[4]

In the wake of the American Civil War, the state legislature passed laws to create a new constitution that raised barriers to voter registration and effectively excluded Freedmen from the political process. Many residents resisted the objectives of Union occupation both during and after Reconstruction because they wanted to restore the Antebellum social and political norms. During this time of transition, Bibb, Dallas, and Pickens counties held the third-highest number of lynchings in the state.[5] On June 18, 1919, Jim McMillan was lynched by a White mob. On November 7, 2000, Bibb County voted against a proposed amendment to Alabama's constitution to abolish the prohibition of interracial marriages.[6]

Geography

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 626 square miles (1,620 km2), of which 623 square miles (1,610 km2) is land and 3.6 square miles (9.3 km2) (0.6%) is water.[7]

Adjacent counties

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National protected areas

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Endemic species

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Several species of plants are endemic to Bibb County, Alabama; that is, they grow in this county and nowhere else in the world.

Transportation

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Major highways

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Rail

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18203,676—
18306,30671.5%
18408,28431.4%
18509,96920.3%
186011,89419.3%
18707,469−37.2%
18809,48727.0%
189013,82445.7%
190018,49833.8%
191022,79123.2%
192023,1441.5%
193020,780−10.2%
194020,155−3.0%
195017,987−10.8%
196014,357−20.2%
197013,812−3.8%
198015,72313.8%
199016,5765.4%
200020,82625.6%
201022,91510.0%
202022,293−2.7%
2023 (est.)21,868[17]−1.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[18]
1790–1960[19] 1900–1990[20]
1990–2000[21] 2010–2020[1]

2020 Census

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Bibb County, Alabama – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 2000[22] Pop 2010[23] Pop 2020[24] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 15,870 17,191 16,442 76.20% 75.02% 73.75%
Black or African American alone (NH) 4,584 5,024 4,390 22.01% 21.92% 19.69%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 46 64 39 0.22% 0.28% 0.17%
Asian alone (NH) 17 22 26 0.08% 0.10% 0.12%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 2 7 9 0.01% 0.03% 0.04%
Other race alone (NH) 0 20 47 0.00% 0.09% 0.21%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) 97 181 600 0.47% 0.79% 2.69%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 210 406 740 1.01% 1.77% 3.32%
Total 20,826 22,915 22,293 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 22,293 people, 6,891 households, and 4,789 families residing in the county.

2010 census

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As of the census[25] of 2010, there were 22,915 people, 7,953 households, and 5,748 families residing in the county. The population density was 37 people per square mile (14 people/km2). There were 8,981 housing units at an average density of 14.3 units per square mile (5.5 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 75.8% White, 22.0% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Of the population, 1.8% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 7,953 households, out of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.7% were non-families. Of all households, 24.5% were made up of individuals, and 9.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.09.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.7% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 26.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 127.5 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $41,770, and the median income for a family was $51,956. Males had a median income of $40,219 versus $28,085 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,918. About 9.4% of families and 12.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.4% of those under age 18 and 11.3% of those age 65 or over.

Rural flight

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From 1920 to 1970, the population of the rural county declined considerably. Many African Americans joined the Great Migration to northern and western cities, to escape the violence and racial oppression of Jim Crow.[26]

Education

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Bibb County contains one public school district. There are approximately 3,100 students in public K-12 schools in Bibb County.[27]

Districts

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School districts include:[28]

Government and infrastructure

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United States presidential election results for Bibb County, Alabama[29]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 7,525 78.43% 1,986 20.70% 84 0.88%
2016 6,738 76.40% 1,874 21.25% 207 2.35%
2012 6,132 72.83% 2,202 26.15% 86 1.02%
2008 6,262 72.44% 2,299 26.60% 83 0.96%
2004 5,472 72.00% 2,089 27.49% 39 0.51%
2000 4,273 60.17% 2,710 38.16% 118 1.66%
1996 3,037 48.20% 2,775 44.04% 489 7.76%
1992 3,124 46.49% 2,900 43.15% 696 10.36%
1988 2,885 56.06% 2,244 43.61% 17 0.33%
1984 3,487 61.32% 2,167 38.10% 33 0.58%
1980 2,491 44.30% 3,097 55.08% 35 0.62%
1976 1,591 35.56% 2,850 63.70% 33 0.74%
1972 3,332 78.44% 837 19.70% 79 1.86%
1968 263 5.63% 652 13.95% 3,758 80.42%
1964 2,623 83.94% 0 0.00% 502 16.06%
1960 1,052 38.23% 1,697 61.66% 3 0.11%
1956 1,004 38.88% 1,471 56.97% 107 4.14%
1952 784 28.31% 1,971 71.18% 14 0.51%
1948 123 9.16% 0 0.00% 1,220 90.84%
1944 244 15.78% 1,287 83.25% 15 0.97%
1940 173 8.60% 1,821 90.51% 18 0.89%
1936 190 9.20% 1,868 90.42% 8 0.39%
1932 145 8.00% 1,636 90.29% 31 1.71%
1928 1,003 45.61% 1,188 54.02% 8 0.36%
1924 251 18.27% 875 63.68% 248 18.05%
1920 364 16.95% 1,643 76.49% 141 6.56%
1916 217 13.67% 1,247 78.58% 123 7.75%
1912 40 3.51% 820 71.87% 281 24.63%
1908 139 15.14% 670 72.98% 109 11.87%
1904 155 11.87% 1,085 83.08% 66 5.05%

Bibb County has a five-member County Commission, elected from single-member districts. Members take turns in serving as chairman of the commission, rotating the position every nine and a half months.[30]

Alabama Department of Corrections operates the Bibb Correctional Facility in Brent.[31]

Bibb County is reliably Republican at the presidential level. The last Democrat to win the county in a presidential election was Jimmy Carter, who won it by a majority in 1980 despite narrowly losing the state of Alabama to Ronald Reagan.

Communities

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Cities

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Towns

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Unincorporated communities

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Ghost towns

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Places of interest

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Bibb County is home to the Talladega National Forest supervised by the United States Forestry Service (of the U.S. Department of Agriculture), and a section of the Cahaba River which draws visitors to view the unique "Cahaba Lily" (known by its scientific Latinized name Hymenocallis coronaria).

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 3, 2015. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ "Wet and Dry Counties of Alabama". Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. State of Alabama. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
  4. ^ "Alabama Counties: Bibb County". Alabama Department of Archives and History. Montgomery, AL. December 13, 2011. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
  5. ^ "Supplement: Lynchings by County/ Alabama: Bibb", 2nd edition Archived April 10, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, from Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror, 2015, Equal Justice Institute, Montgomery, Alabama
  6. ^ ""Alabama Secretary of State: State and local proposed constitutional amendments"" (PDF).
  7. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  8. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 343.
  9. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 728.
  10. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1322.
  11. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1348.
  12. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1395.
  13. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1523.
  14. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1603.
  15. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1651.
  16. ^ Weakely, Alan S. (2022). Flora of the Southeastern United States. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. p. 1693.
  17. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  18. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  19. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  20. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  21. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  22. ^ "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Bibb County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  23. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Bibb County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  24. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Bibb County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  25. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
  26. ^ Lee, Johnathan (February 17, 2015). "Great Migration Shortened Lives of Blacks Who Fled Jim Crow South". NBC News. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  27. ^ "Search for Public School Districts - Bibb County, AL". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  28. ^ "2020 Census - School District Reference Map: Bibb County, AL" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 4, 2022. Text list.
  29. ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  30. ^ "County Commission". Bibb County, Alabama website.
  31. ^ ""Bibb Correctional Facility". Alabama Department of Corrections. Archived from the original on July 4, 2006. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
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