Monroe County, Alabama

Monroe County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,772.[1] Its county seat is Monroeville.[2] Its name is in honor of James Monroe, fifth President of the United States.[3] It is a dry county, in which the sale of alcoholic beverages is restricted or prohibited, but Frisco City and Monroeville are wet cities.

Monroe County
County
The Old Monroe County Courthouse in Monroeville
The Old Monroe County Courthouse in Monroeville
Map of Alabama highlighting Monroe County
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Map of the United States highlighting Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 31°34′15″N 87°22′11″W
Country United States
State Alabama
FoundedJune 29, 1815
Named forJames Monroe
SeatMonroeville
Largest cityMonroeville
Area
 • Total1,034 sq mi (2,680 km2)
 • Land1,026 sq mi (2,660 km2)
 • Water8.7 sq mi (23 km2)  0.8%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total19,772
 • Estimate 
(2022)
19,404 Decrease
 • Density19/sq mi (7.4/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district1st
Websitewww.monroecountyal.com
  • County Number 51 on Alabama Licence Plates

In 1997, the Alabama Legislature designated Monroeville and Monroe County as the "Literary Capital of Alabama". It is the birthplace of notable writer Harper Lee and served as the childhood home for Truman Capote, her lifelong friend and a fellow writer. Lee lived here most of her life. The enduring popularity of her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird (1960), as well as its film and stage adaptations, has attracted tourists to the city and area. Monroeville is also central to the 2019 film Just Mercy, based upon the 2014 eponymous book by Bryan Stevenson, recounting the wrongful conviction and sentencing to death of African American Walter McMillian.

History

For thousands of years the area was inhabited by indigenous peoples. In historic times, it was primarily the territory of the Muscogee or Creek peoples, who became known to European-American settlers as one of the Five Civilized Tribes of the Southeast.

The prominent Upper Creek chief Red Eagle (also known as William Weatherford), of the Wind Clan, settled here after the Creek War (1813-1814). At the time, the United States was also involved in the War of 1812 against Great Britain. Red Eagle established a successful cotton plantation. He was of Creek and European descent, and had adopted the system of chattel slavery to gain workers for his plantation and horse breeding. In the 1830s the United States forced the removal of most of the Creek people from Alabama to Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), in order to take over their territory.

The area was settled by European Americans, primarily of English and Scots-Irish descent. It was largely developed as cotton plantations in the antebellum years. Planters moving from the Upper South sometimes brought slave workers with them, or purchased more slaves from traders and markets after acquiring land. The population was made up of numerous slaves, who in some sections outnumbered the whites.

Following the American Civil War and Emancipation, in the period after the Reconstruction era and into the early 20th century, white Democrats regained control of the state legislature and worked to restore and maintain white supremacy. The legislature passed a new constitution in 1901 that disenfranchised most blacks and tens of thousands of poor whites, excluding them from the political system. The legislators also passed laws imposing racial segregation and other forms of Jim Crow, and centralized power in the legislature.

Late 19th century to present

White physical attacks against blacks were part of the oppressive social system. Racial terrorism was accomplished through lynchings of African Americans, mostly of men, which took place outside the justice system. They were often conducted as public displays on the courthouse square, spectacles attended by large white mobs in an enactment of their power. Monroe had a total of seventeen lynchings from 1877 to 1950, the second highest number of any county in Alabama.[4]

Old Monroe County Courthouse in Harper Lee's hometown of Monroeville, the model for the courthouse used in the movie

The county seat, Monroeville, is the home of two notable 20th-century authors, Truman Capote and Nelle Harper Lee, who were childhood neighbors. The novelist Mark Childress and journalist Cynthia Tucker are also Monroe County natives. In 1997 the Alabama Legislature designated Monroeville and Monroe County as the "Literary Capital of Alabama".

The county is near the Gulf Coast and is affected by storms from the Gulf. It has twice been declared a disaster area by the federal government due to extensive hurricane damage: in September 1979 due to Hurricane Frederic, and in September 2004 due to Hurricane Ivan.

Attorney Bryan Stevenson published his memoir, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption in 2014. He has worked since his early 20s in Montgomery, establishing the Equal Justice Initiative and serving as legal counsel for people on death row in Alabama prisons. He has succeeded in gaining freedom for more than 100 men who were wrongfully convicted. Among the cases he discusses is that of Walter McMillian of Monroeville, who was wrongfully convicted of murder in 1989. McMillian, an African American man, was sentenced to death by the trial judge, who overrode the lesser sentence reached by the jury. McMillian was kept on death row for 6 years, nearly 2 of which were prior to his trial, in an effort to make him confess. In 1993 the Alabama Appeals Court ruled that McMillian should be freed because of the lack of evidence, his alibi, the unreliability of witnesses, and mishandling of the trial.[5]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,034 square miles (2,680 km2), of which 1,026 square miles (2,660 km2) is land and 8.7 square miles (23 km2) (0.8%) is water.[6]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18208,838—
18308,782−0.6%
184010,68021.6%
185012,01312.5%
186015,66730.4%
187014,214−9.3%
188017,09120.2%
189018,99011.1%
190023,66624.6%
191027,15514.7%
192028,8846.4%
193030,0704.1%
194029,465−2.0%
195025,732−12.7%
196022,372−13.1%
197020,883−6.7%
198022,6518.5%
199023,9685.8%
200024,3241.5%
201023,068−5.2%
202019,772−14.3%
2022 (est.)19,404[7]−1.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
1790–1960[9] 1900–1990[10]
1990–2000[11] 2010–2020[1]

2020
Monroe County, Alabama – Racial and Ethnic Composition
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
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 Pop 2000[12] Pop 2010[13] Pop 2020[14] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 13,962 12,621 10,334 57.40% 54.71% 52.27%
Black or African American alone (NH) 9,683 9,581 8,253 39.81% 41.53% 41.74%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 232 256 281 0.95% 1.11% 1.42%
Asian alone (NH) 69 67 88 0.28% 0.29% 0.45%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 1 4 0 0.00% 0.02% 0.00%
Some Other Race alone (NH) 13 8 44 0.05% 0.03% 0.22%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) 174 311 565 0.72% 1.35% 2.86%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 190 220 207 0.78% 0.95% 1.05%
Total 24,324 23,068 19,772 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 19,772 people, 8,166 households, and 5,124 families residing in the county.

2010

According to the 2010 United States census:

2000

As of the census[15] of 2000, there were 24,324 people, 9,383 households and 6,774 families residing in the county. The population density was 24 people per square mile (9.3 people/km2). There were 11,343 housing units at an average density of 11 units per square mile (4.2 units/km2). The ethnic makeup of the county was 57.75% White, 40.07% Black or African American, 0.97% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more ethnicities while 0.78% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any ethnicity.

There were 9,383 households, out of which 35.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.30% married couples living together, 16.10% with a female householder and no husband present and 27.80% non-families. Slightly more than a quarter (25.70%) of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.09.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.30% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 26.80% from 25 to 44, 22.50% from 45 to 64, and 13.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years old. For every 100 females, there were 90.80 males. For every 100 females, aged 18 and over, there were 86.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $29,093, and the median income for a family was $34,569. Males had a median income of $31,096 versus $18,767 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,862. About 18.20% of families and 21.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.00% of those under age 18 and 21.40% of those aged 65 or over.

Government

Since 2018, the elected sheriff of Monroe County has been Democrat Tom Boatwright.[16][17]

On November 2, 2020, Charles Andrews was sworn in as Monroeville's first elected African-American mayor.

United States presidential election results for Monroe County, Alabama[18]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 6,147 57.62% 4,455 41.76% 66 0.62%
2016 5,795 56.42% 4,332 42.18% 144 1.40%
2012 5,741 53.57% 4,914 45.85% 62 0.58%
2008 6,175 54.88% 5,025 44.66% 52 0.46%
2004 5,831 61.16% 3,666 38.45% 37 0.39%
2000 5,153 57.57% 3,741 41.79% 57 0.64%
1996 4,382 50.38% 3,815 43.86% 501 5.76%
1992 4,919 50.48% 3,872 39.73% 954 9.79%
1988 5,379 60.07% 3,509 39.19% 66 0.74%
1984 5,917 60.65% 3,725 38.18% 114 1.17%
1980 4,615 50.87% 4,262 46.98% 195 2.15%
1976 3,476 47.86% 3,669 50.52% 118 1.62%
1972 5,155 74.82% 1,636 23.74% 99 1.44%
1968 375 5.12% 1,673 22.84% 5,276 72.04%
1964 3,870 81.37% 0 0.00% 886 18.63%
1960 989 31.37% 2,130 67.55% 34 1.08%
1956 759 25.66% 2,069 69.95% 130 4.39%
1952 637 19.72% 2,587 80.07% 7 0.22%
1948 31 1.80% 0 0.00% 1,694 98.20%
1944 46 2.25% 1,991 97.55% 4 0.20%
1940 40 1.33% 2,953 98.17% 15 0.50%
1936 29 1.12% 2,558 98.54% 9 0.35%
1932 66 3.23% 1,972 96.52% 5 0.24%
1928 1,074 44.44% 1,343 55.56% 0 0.00%
1924 22 1.83% 1,155 96.09% 25 2.08%
1920 20 1.51% 1,295 97.52% 13 0.98%
1916 17 1.62% 1,029 98.09% 3 0.29%
1912 2 0.22% 878 97.12% 24 2.65%
1908 18 2.03% 856 96.61% 12 1.35%
1904 46 5.16% 836 93.72% 10 1.12%

Communities

City

Towns

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Ghost town

Places of interest

Monroe County is home to several attractions, such as the Alabama River Museum, the Monroe County Heritage Museum, and the Courthouse Museum which hosts the annual stage production of To Kill a Mockingbird. The county also contains Claude Kelly State Park.

See also

References
  1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 212.
  4. "Supplement: Lynchings by County/ Alabama: Lowndes", 3nd edition Archived October 23, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, from Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror, 2015 (3rd edition), Montgomery, Alabama: Equal Justice Initiative
  5. See the stories: "Walter McMillian", Bryan Stevenson website
  6. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  7. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  8. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  9. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  10. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  11. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  12. "P004 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Monroe County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  13. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Monroe County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  14. "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Monroe County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau.
  15. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  16. "New sheriff in town: Alabama has 20 of them, actually". January 18, 2019.
  17. "Sheriffs Directory - Alabama Sheriffs Association - Alabama". www.alabamasheriffs.com. Retrieved January 23, 2023.
  18. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". Retrieved November 21, 2016.

31°34′15″N 87°22′11″W

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