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Calhoun County, Alabama

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Calhoun County is a county in the east central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,441.[1] Its county seat is Anniston.[2] It is named in honor of John C. Calhoun, a US Senator from South Carolina who was a staunch supporter of slavery.

Calhoun County
County
Calhoun County Courthouse in Anniston
Calhoun County Courthouse in Anniston
Official seal of Calhoun County
Seal
Map of Alabama highlighting Calhoun County
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Map of the United States highlighting Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°46′10″N 85°49′15″W / 33.769444444444°N 85.820833333333°W / 33.769444444444; -85.820833333333
Country United States
State Alabama
FoundedDecember 18, 1832
as Benton County
Named forJohn C. Calhoun
SeatAnniston
Largest cityOxford
Area
 • Total
612 sq mi (1,590 km2)
 • Land606 sq mi (1,570 km2)
 • Water6.4 sq mi (17 km2)  1.0%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
116,441
 • Estimate 
(2023)
116,429 Decrease
 • Density190/sq mi (73/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district3rd
Websitewww.calhouncounty.org
  • County Number 11 on Alabama License Plates

Calhoun County comprises the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

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Benton County was established on December 18, 1832, named for Thomas Hart Benton, a member of the United States Senate from Missouri. Its county seat was Jacksonville. Benton, an enslaver, was a political ally of John C. Calhoun, a U.S. senator from South Carolina, and also a slaveholder and planter. Through the 1820s-1840s, however, Benton's and Calhoun's political interests diverged. Calhoun was increasingly interested in using the threat of secession as a weapon to maintain and expand slavery throughout the United States. Benton, on the other hand, was slowly concluding that slavery was wrong and that the preservation of the union was paramount. On January 29, 1858,[3] Alabama supporters of slavery, objecting to Benton's change of heart, renamed Benton County as Calhoun County.

During the Reconstruction era and widespread violence by whites to suppress black and white Republican voting in the state during the campaign for the 1870 gubernatorial election, four blacks and one white were lynched.[4]

After years of controversy and a State Supreme Court ruling in June 1900, the county seat was moved to Anniston.

The county was hit by an F4 tornado during the 1994 Palm Sunday tornado outbreak on March 27, 1994. Twelve minutes after the National Weather Service of Birmingham issued a tornado warning for northern Calhoun, southeastern Etowah, and southern Cherokee counties, the tornado destroyed Piedmont's Goshen United Methodist Church.

Geography

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 612 square miles (1,590 km2), of which 606 square miles (1,570 km2) is land and 6.4 square miles (17 km2) (1.0%) is water.[5]

Adjacent counties

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National protected areas

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Transportation

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Major highways

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Rail

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Transit

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
184014,260—
185017,16320.4%
186021,53925.5%
187013,980−35.1%
188019,59140.1%
189033,83572.7%
190034,8743.1%
191039,11512.2%
192047,82222.3%
193055,61116.3%
194063,31913.9%
195079,53925.6%
196095,87820.5%
1970103,0927.5%
1980119,76116.2%
1990116,034−3.1%
2000112,249−3.3%
2010118,5725.6%
2020116,441−1.8%
2023 (est.)116,429[6]0.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9]
1990–2000[10] 2010–2020[1]

2020 Census

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Calhoun 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[11] Pop 2010[12] Pop 2020[13] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 87,598 87,285 79,519 78.04% 73.61% 68.29%
Black or African American alone (NH) 20,725 24,177 23,365 18.46% 20.39% 21.78%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 427 480 386 0.38% 0.40% 0.33%
Asian alone (NH) 625 830 1,164 0.56% 0.70% 1.00%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 74 94 112 0.07% 0.08% 0.10%
Other race alone (NH) 85 109 317 0.08% 0.09% 0.27%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) 862 1,704 4,568 0.86% 1.44% 3.92%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 1,753 3,893 5,010 1.56% 3.28% 4.30%
Total 112,249 118,572 116,441 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 116,441 people, 44,636 households, and 28,975 families residing in the county.

2010 census

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As of the census[14] of 2010, there were 118,572 people, 47,331 households, and 31,609 families residing in the county. The population density was 194 people per square mile (75 people/km2). There were 53,289 housing units at an average density of 87 units per square mile (34 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 74.9% White, 20.6% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.6% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. 3.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 47,331 households, out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.9% under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 27.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.2 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,407, and the median income for a family was $49,532. Males had a median income of $41,599 versus $29,756 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,574. About 15.2% of families and 19.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.8% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

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Calhoun County contains five public school districts. There are approximately 17,000 students in public K-12 schools in Calhoun County.[15] Public school districts are not conterminous with the county boundary.

The county contains two public higher education institutions. Gadsden State Community College operates a campus located in Anniston, and Jacksonville State University, founded in 1883 and with an enrollment of over 9,000 students, is located in Jacksonville.

Districts

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School districts include:[16]

Politics

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The last Democrat to win a majority in the county was Jimmy Carter in 1976. In 2016 and 2020, Republican Donald Trump won more than two-thirds of the county's vote.

United States presidential election results for Calhoun County, Alabama[17]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 34,841 71.75% 13,170 27.12% 547 1.13%
2020 35,101 68.85% 15,216 29.85% 666 1.31%
2016 32,865 68.66% 13,242 27.67% 1,757 3.67%
2012 30,278 65.30% 15,511 33.45% 575 1.24%
2008 32,348 65.69% 16,334 33.17% 560 1.14%
2004 29,814 65.89% 15,083 33.33% 352 0.78%
2000 22,306 57.33% 15,781 40.56% 822 2.11%
1996 18,088 49.00% 15,725 42.60% 3,098 8.39%
1992 20,623 48.18% 16,453 38.44% 5,724 13.37%
1988 19,806 58.31% 12,451 36.66% 1,711 5.04%
1984 23,291 61.16% 12,752 33.49% 2,039 5.35%
1980 17,475 49.17% 17,017 47.88% 1,049 2.95%
1976 11,763 35.97% 20,466 62.59% 471 1.44%
1972 20,364 76.93% 5,832 22.03% 275 1.04%
1968 3,061 11.43% 4,146 15.48% 19,568 73.08%
1964 10,635 63.13% 0 0.00% 6,210 36.87%
1960 4,821 33.17% 9,590 65.97% 125 0.86%
1956 4,473 32.18% 9,069 65.24% 358 2.58%
1952 3,064 27.37% 8,023 71.68% 106 0.95%
1948 856 20.47% 0 0.00% 3,325 79.53%
1944 694 13.80% 4,308 85.65% 28 0.56%
1940 645 12.72% 4,408 86.93% 18 0.35%
1936 581 11.71% 4,322 87.12% 58 1.17%
1932 684 13.39% 4,392 86.00% 31 0.61%
1928 2,537 54.50% 2,117 45.48% 1 0.02%
1924 766 27.17% 1,907 67.65% 146 5.18%
1920 1,139 24.76% 3,423 74.40% 39 0.85%
1916 442 16.21% 2,231 81.81% 54 1.98%
1912 238 10.07% 1,666 70.47% 460 19.46%
1908 570 26.87% 1,438 67.80% 113 5.33%
1904 287 14.85% 1,556 80.50% 90 4.66%
1900 567 21.13% 1,835 68.37% 282 10.51%
1896 1,222 28.45% 2,788 64.90% 286 6.66%
1892 218 4.29% 3,249 63.91% 1,617 31.81%
1888 938 25.85% 2,680 73.87% 10 0.28%

Calhoun is part of Alabama's 3rd congressional district, which is held by Republican Mike D. Rogers.

Communities

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Cities

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Towns

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Census-designated places

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Unincorporated communities

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Ghost towns

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Places of interest

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Calhoun County is home to Jacksonville State University, the Anniston Museum of Natural History, the Berman Museum of World History, and the Coldwater Covered Bridge. It also contains a portion of the Talladega National Forest.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ^ Acts of the Sixth Biennial Session of the General Assembly of Alabama held in the City of Montgomery, Commencing on the Second Monday in November, 1857. Montgomery, Alabama: N. B. Cloud, State Printer. November 1857. p. 318. Retrieved November 23, 2021. No. 306. - AN ACT - To change the name of Benton county to Calhoun.
  4. ^ Shapiro, Herbert (1988). White Violence and Black Response: From Reconstruction to Montgomery. U of Massachusetts P. p. 12. ISBN 9780870235788.
  5. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  6. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
  7. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  8. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  9. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  10. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  11. ^ "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Calhoun County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  12. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Calhoun County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  13. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Calhoun County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  14. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
  15. ^ "Search for Public School Districts - Calhoun County, AL". National Center for Education Statistics. Institute of Education Sciences. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
  16. ^ "2020 Census - School District Reference Map: Calhoun County, AL" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 27, 2022. Text list.
  17. ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". Retrieved November 15, 2016.

33°46′10″N 85°49′15″W / 33.76944°N 85.82083°W / 33.76944; -85.82083

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