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Perry County, Alabama
Perry County Alabama Courthouse
Perry County courthouse in Marion
Map of Alabama highlighting Perry County
Location in the state of Alabama
Map of the U.S
Alabama's location in the U.S.
Founded December 13, 1819
Named for Oliver Hazard Perry
Seat Marion
Largest city Marion
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

724 sq mi (1,875 km²)
720 sq mi (1,865 km²)
4.2 sq mi (11 km²), 0.6
Population
 - (2020)
 - Density

8,511
Congressional district 7th
Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5
Website http://www.perrysheriff.com
Footnotes: *County Number 53 on Alabama Licence Plates

Perry County is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,511.[1] Its county seat is Marion.[2] The county was established in 1819 and is named in honor of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry of Rhode Island and the United States Navy.[3] Perry County is the only county in Alabama, and one of 40 in the United States, not to have access to any wired broadband connections.[4]

History[]

In 1935, a sharecropper called Joe Spinner Johnson was organizing sharecroppers into a union. His landlord called him away from his job, and gave him up to a gang of whites. They tied him up, beat him, and took him to Selma, where he was thrown in jail. Other prisoners heard him screaming and being beaten. A few days later, his mutilated body turned up near Greensboro.[5]

The Perry County town of Marion was the site of a 1965 killing of an unarmed Black man, Jimmie Lee Jackson, by a white state trooper, James Bonard Fowler, which sparked the Selma to Montgomery marches. In 2008, the county voted to establish a Barack Obama Day, a legal holiday, every second Monday of November.[6]

Geography[]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 724 square miles (1,880 km2), of which 720 square miles (1,900 km2) is land and 4.2 square miles (11 km2) (0.6%) is water.[7] The county boasts a diverse geography, with the southern half of the county being located in the Gulf Coastal Plain region, and the northern half of the county being located in the far southern extensions of the foothills of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians. This area is mainly forested, with some hills and valleys.[8]

Major highways[]

  • US 80 U.S. Highway 80
  • Alabama 5 State Route 5
  • Alabama 14 State Route 14
  • Alabama 61 State Route 61
  • Alabama 175 State Route 175
  • Alabama 183 State Route 183
  • Alabama 219 State Route 219
  • Alabama 289 State Route 289

Adjacent counties[]

National protected area[]

  • Talladega National Forest (part)

Demographics[]

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1820 3,646
1830 11,490 215.1%
1840 19,086 66.1%
1850 22,285 16.8%
1860 27,724 24.4%
1870 24,975 −9.9%
1880 30,741 23.1%
1890 29,332 −4.6%
1900 31,783 8.4%
1910 31,222 −1.8%
1920 25,373 −18.7%
1930 26,385 4.0%
1940 26,610 0.9%
1950 20,439 −23.2%
1960 17,358 −15.1%
1970 15,388 −11.3%
1980 15,012 −2.4%
1990 12,759 −15.0%
2000 11,861 −7.0%
2010 10,591 −10.7%
Est. 2021 8,355 [9] −29.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]
1790–1960[11] 1900–1990[12]
1990–2000[13] 2010–2020[1]

2020 census[]

Perry County racial composition[14]
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 2,345 27.55%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 5,914 69.49%
Native American 15 0.18%
Asian 10 0.12%
Pacific Islander 1 0.01%
Other/Mixed 137 1.61%
Hispanic or Latino 89 1.05%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 8,511 people, 3,070 households, and 1,476 families residing in the county.

2010 census[]

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 10,591 people living in the county. 68.7% were Black or African American, 30.3% White, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% Native American, 0.2% of some other race and 0.4% of two or more races. 1.1% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).

2000 census[]

As of the census[15] of 2000, there were 11,861 people, 4,333 households, and 3,046 families living in the county. The population density was 16 people per square mile (6/km2). There were 5,406 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 68.38% Black or African American, 30.86% White, 0.08% Native American, 0.03% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 0.54% from two or more races. Nearly 0.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,333 households, out of which 33.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.40% were married couples living together, 25.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. Nearly 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63, and the average family size was 3.23.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.80% under the age of 18, 11.10% from 18 to 24, 23.60% from 25 to 44, 20.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $20,200, and the median income for a family was $26,150. Males had a median income of $26,272 versus $16,839 for females. The per capita income for the county was $10,948. About 31.20% of families and 35.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.90% of those under age 18 and 25.80% of those age 65 or over.


Government[]

Perry County Circuit Clerk

United States presidential election results for Perry County, Alabama[16]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 1,339 25.60% 3,860 73.80% 31 0.59%
2016 1,407 26.66% 3,824 72.45% 47 0.89%
2012 1,506 24.68% 4,568 74.87% 27 0.44%
2008 1,679 27.26% 4,457 72.37% 23 0.37%
2004 1,738 31.47% 3,767 68.21% 18 0.33%
2000 1,732 29.93% 4,020 69.47% 35 0.60%
1996 1,703 28.85% 4,053 68.66% 147 2.49%
1992 1,829 31.46% 3,712 63.86% 272 4.68%
1988 2,107 36.59% 3,574 62.07% 77 1.34%
1984 2,600 48.08% 2,731 50.50% 77 1.42%
1980 2,262 34.68% 4,208 64.52% 52 0.80%
1976 2,164 32.38% 4,486 67.13% 33 0.49%
1972 2,800 49.13% 2,718 47.69% 181 3.18%
1968 308 5.55% 2,457 44.25% 2,788 50.21%
1964 2,046 79.73% 0 0.00% 520 20.27%
1960 744 41.52% 973 54.30% 75 4.19%
1956 613 33.83% 974 53.75% 225 12.42%
1952 756 35.80% 1,352 64.02% 4 0.19%
1948 30 2.78% 0 0.00% 1,051 97.22%
1944 47 4.46% 1,004 95.35% 2 0.19%
1940 39 2.51% 1,509 97.17% 5 0.32%
1936 24 1.55% 1,527 98.45% 0 0.00%
1932 37 2.54% 1,382 95.05% 35 2.41%
1928 459 26.97% 1,242 72.97% 1 0.06%
1924 25 2.59% 928 96.17% 12 1.24%
1920 34 2.74% 1,195 96.14% 14 1.13%
1916 20 2.16% 895 96.44% 13 1.40%
1912 3 0.39% 731 93.84% 45 5.78%
1908 12 1.52% 776 97.98% 4 0.51%
1904 47 5.00% 799 85.00% 94 10.00%
1900 80 4.31% 1,748 94.18% 28 1.51%
1896 463 14.52% 2,682 84.10% 44 1.38%
1892 48 1.13% 3,452 81.26% 748 17.61%
1888 790 22.45% 2,729 77.55% 0 0.00%



Communities[]

Cities[]

  • Marion (county seat)
  • Uniontown

Unincorporated communities[]

  • Adler
  • Augustin
  • Folsom
  • Hamburg
  • Heiberger
  • Jericho
  • Levert
  • Morgan Springs
  • Oakmulgee
  • Osborn
  • Perryville
  • Radford
  • Sprott
  • Suttle
  • Vaiden
  • Vilula

Places of interest[]

Perry County is home to Perry Lakes Park, part of the Talladega National Forest, the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame located at Judson College, and Marion Military Institute.

See also[]

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Perry County, Alabama
  • Properties on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in Perry County, Alabama

References[]

  1. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/perrycountyalabama/PST045221. 
  2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 
  3. ^ Owen, Thomas McAdory; Owen, Marie Bankhead (1921). History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography. 2. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company. p. 1108. https://books.google.com/books?id=r0kUAAAAYAAJ&q=Oliver+Hazard+Perry+place+names&pg=PA1108. 
  4. ^ Analytics, Julia Tanberk Julia is the Manager of; Broadb, Data Science at; broadb, Now She writes about; Divide, Industry Issues Such as the Digital; Access, Internet; pricing; Behavior, Consumer; Visualizations, Enjoys Creating Unique Data et al.. "United States County Broadband Statistics for 2020 - BroadbandNow.com" (in en-US). https://broadbandnow.com/research/county-broadband-statistics. 
  5. ^ "Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror". Equal Justice Initiative. 2017. https://lynchinginamerica.eji.org/report/. Retrieved May 29, 2021. 
  6. ^ Bello, Marisol (January 26, 2009). "Renamed schools, streets mark early tributes to Obama". USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2009-01-25-renaming_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip. 
  7. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. http://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/counties_list_01.txt. 
  8. ^ "Perry County". http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1292. 
  9. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2021". https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-counties-total.html. 
  10. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html. 
  11. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu. 
  12. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/al190090.txt. 
  13. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf. 
  14. ^ "Explore Census Data". https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=0500000US01105&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2. 
  15. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov. 
  16. ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/. 

Further reading[]

  • English, Bertis D. Civil Wars, Civil Beings, and Civil Rights in Alabama's Black Belt: A History of Perry County (University Alabama Press, 2020).
  • Fraser, Rory F., Buddhi R. Gyawali, and John Schelhas. "Blacks in space: Land tenure and well-being in Perry County, Alabama." Small-Scale Forest Economics, Management and Policy 4 (2005): 21-33. online

External links[]

Coordinates: 32°38′09″N 87°17′31″W / 32.63583, -87.29194


This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Perry County, Alabama. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License.
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