Alabama counties (clickable map)

The U.S. state of Alabama has sixty-seven counties. The oldest is Washington County (created June 4, 1800) and the youngest is Houston County (created February 9, 1903).

The land enclosed by the present state borders was joined to the United States of America piecemeal. Prior to permanent settlement by Europeans, there was an overlap between the areas claimed by Spain as Spanish Florida and by England as the Province of Carolina. However, the first permanent colony was established by the French on the banks of the Mobile River in 1702. A part of northern Alabama was granted to James Oglethorpe as part of Georgia in 1732 while France and England competed for alliances with native tribes. Great Britain took possession of France's territory in Alabama following the French and Indian War in 1763. They controlled the area south of the 32nd parallel while the rest of the present-day state remained Indian territory.^{citation needed}

Following the American Revolutionary War, West Florida south of the 31st parallel became a possession of Spain while the remainder was organized primarily as the Mississippi Territory, with narrow claims by Georgia and South Carolina persisting until 1804. The territorial assembly established some of the earliest county divisions which have survived to the present. The United States took control of the Mobile District of West Florida in 1813. In 1814 the Treaty of Fort Jackson opened the territory to American settlers. In 1817 the western part of the territory became the State of Mississippi and the remainder the Alabama Territory. The Alabama territorial legislature established several more county divisions. Alabama was admitted to the Union as the 22nd state in 1819. The Alabama state legislature formed additional counties from former Indian lands as the Indian Removal Act took effect and settlers populated different areas of Alabama. (See History of Alabama)^{citation needed}

In 1820, Alabama had 29 counties. By 1830 there were 36, with Indians still occupying land in northeast and far western Alabama. By 1840, 49 counties had been created; 52 by 1850; 65 by 1870; and the present 67 counties by 1903.^[1]

The Alabama Department of Revenue's Motor Vehicle Division issues standard automobile license plates bearing a one or two digit number identifying the county in which the vehicle is registered. This number is given in the fourth column in the table below. The prefixes proceed alphabetically, with the first three reserved for the state's historically most populous counties. Individual license plate numbers are assigned sequentially in each licensing office. The numbers are in the format XA1111A or XXA111A, depending on whether the prefix is one or two digits. Overflow registrations are accommodated by substituting a letter for one of the registration numbers. (XXZ999Z is followed by XXA0A0A)^[2]

According to 2006 U. S. Census estimates, the average population of Alabama's sixty-seven counties is 68,642, with Jefferson County as the most populous (656,700), and Greene County (9,374) the least. The average land area is 757 mi² (1,962 km²). The largest county is Baldwin (1,596 mi², 4,134 km²) and the smallest is Etowah (535 mi², 1,386 km²).^[3] The constitution of Alabama requires that each county in Alabama cover at least 450 square miles in area. Proposals to split some counties (such as Jefferson County) into smaller units have been defeated on the grounds that one of the units would have been too small.^{citation needed}

The Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) code, which is used by the United States government to uniquely identify counties, is provided with each entry. (In this system, St. Clair County is alphabetized ahead of Shelby County.) The FIPS code links in the table point to U. S. Census "quick facts" pages for each county.

Sortable table

County	FIPS Code [4]	County seat [5]	License # [2]	Created [5]	Origin [5]	Etymolgy [1]	Population [3]	Area [3]	Map
Autauga County	001	Prattville	4	1818	Formed from Montgomery County	Autauga Creek	&0000000000049730.00000049,730	&0000000000000596.000000596 mi² (1,544 km²)
Baldwin County	003	Bay Minette	5	1809	Formed from Washington County and West Florida	Abraham Baldwin (1754 – 1807), U.S. legislator from Georgia	&0000000000169162.000000169,162	&0000000000001596.0000001,596 sq mi (&0000000000004134.0000004,134 km²)
Barbour County	005	Clayton	6	1832	Formed from Pike County	James Barbour (1775 – 1842), Governor of Virginia and U.S. Senator	&0000000000028171.00000028,171	&0000000000000885.000000885 sq mi (&0000000000002292.0000002,292 km²)
Bibb County	007	Centreville	7	1818	Formed from Montgomery County (as Cahawba County)	William Wyatt Bibb (1781 - 1820), Governor of Alabama	&0000000000021482.00000021,482	&0000000000000623.000000623 sq mi (&0000000000001614.0000001,614 km²)
Blount County	009	Oneonta	8	1818	Formed from Montgomery County and Indian territories	Willie Blount (1768 – 1835), Governor of Tennessee.	&0000000000056436.00000056,436	&0000000000000646.000000646 sq mi (&0000000000001673.0000001,673 km²)
Bullock County	011	Union Springs	9	1866	Formed from Barbour, Macon, Montgomery, and Pike Counties	Edward Bullock, colonel in the Confederate States Army	&0000000000010906.00000010,906	&0000000000000625.000000625 sq mi (&0000000000001619.0000001,619 km²)
Butler County	013	Greenville	10	1819	Formed from Conecuh and Monroe Counties	William Butler, captain in Creek War	&0000000000020520.00000020,520	&0000000000000777.000000777 sq mi (&0000000000002012.0000002,012 km²)
Calhoun County	015	Anniston	11	1832	Formed from St. Clair County (as Benton County)	John C. Calhoun (1782 – 1850), 7th U.S. Vice President	&0000000000112903.000000112,903	&0000000000000608.000000608 sq mi (&0000000000001575.0000001,575 km²)
Chambers County	017	LaFayette	12	1832	Formed from Montgomery County	Henry H. Chambers (1790 - 1826), U.S. Senator	&0000000000035176.00000035,176	&0000000000000597.000000597 sq mi (&0000000000001546.0000001,546 km²)
Cherokee County	019	Centre	13	1836	Formed from Cherokee territory	Cherokee people	&0000000000024863.00000024,863	&0000000000000553.000000553 sq mi (&0000000000001432.0000001,432 km²)
Chilton County	021	Clanton	14	1868	Formed from Autauga, Bibb, Perry, and Shelby Counties (as Baker County)	William Parish Chilton (1810 – 1871), Alabama Supreme Court Justice and Confederate congressman	&0000000000041953.00000041,953	&0000000000000694.000000694 sq mi (&0000000000001797.0000001,797 km²)
Choctaw County	023	Butler	15	1847	Formed from Sumter and Washington Counties	Choctaw people	&0000000000014656.00000014,656	&0000000000000914.000000914 sq mi (&0000000000002367.0000002,367 km²)
Clarke County	025	Grove Hill	16	1812	Formed from Washington County	John Clarke, general in the Creek War from Georgia	&0000000000027248.00000027,248	&0000000000001238.0000001,238 sq mi (&0000000000003206.0000003,206 km²)
Clay County	027	Ashland	17	1866	Formed from Randolph and Talladega Counties	Henry Clay (1777 - 1852), U.S. legislator from Kentucky	&0000000000013829.00000013,829	&0000000000000605.000000605 sq mi (&0000000000001567.0000001,567 km²)
Cleburne County	029	Heflin	18	1866	Formed from Calhoun, Randolph , and Talladega Counties	Patrick Cleburne (1828 - 1864), major general in Confederate States Army	&0000000000014700.00000014,700	&0000000000000560.000000560 sq mi (&0000000000001450.0000001,450 km²)
Coffee County	031	Elba	19	1841	Formed from Dale County	John Coffee (1772 – 1833), military leader in War of 1812 and Creek War	&0000000000046027.00000046,027	&0000000000000679.000000679 sq mi (&0000000000001759.0000001,759 km²)
Colbert County	033	Tuscumbia	20	1867	Formed from Franklin County	George Colbert and Levi Colbert, Chickasaw chiefs	&0000000000054766.00000054,766	&0000000000000595.000000595 sq mi (&0000000000001541.0000001,541 km²)
Conecuh County	035	Evergreen	21	1818	Formed from Monroe County	Conecuh River	&0000000000013403.00000013,403	&0000000000000851.000000851 sq mi (&0000000000002204.0000002,204 km²)
Coosa County	037	Rockford	22	1832	Formed from Montgomery County	Coosa River	&0000000000011044.00000011,044	&0000000000000652.000000652 sq mi (&0000000000001689.0000001,689 km²)
Covington County	039	Andalusia	23	1821	Formed from Henry County	Leonard Covington (1768 – 1813), brigadier general in War of 1812 and U.S. Congressman	&0000000000037234.00000037,234	&0000000000001034.0000001,034 sq mi (&0000000000002678.0000002,678 km²)
Crenshaw County	041	Luverne	24	1866	Formed from Butler, Coffee, Covington, Lowndes, and Pike Counties	Anderson Crenshaw, settler of Butler County	&0000000000013719.00000013,719	&0000000000000610.000000610 sq mi (&0000000000001580.0000001,580 km²)
Cullman County	043	Cullman	25	1877	Formed from Blount, Morgan, and Winston Counties	Colonel John G. Kullmann, founder of county seat	&0000000000080187.00000080,187	&0000000000000738.000000738 sq mi (&0000000000001911.0000001,911 km²)
Dale County	045	Ozark	26	1824	Formed from Covington and Henry Counties	Samuel Dale (1772 – 1841), brigadier general and state legislator	&0000000000048392.00000048,392	&0000000000000561.000000561 sq mi (&0000000000001453.0000001,453 km²)
Dallas County	047	Selma	27	1818	Formed from Monroe and Montgomery Counties	Alexander James Dallas (1759 – 1817) , U.S. Secretary of Treasury	&0000000000043945.00000043,945	&0000000000000981.000000981 sq mi (&0000000000002541.0000002,541 km²)
DeKalb County	049	Fort Payne	28	1836	Formed from Cherokee territory	Johann de Kalb (1721 – 1780), major general in American Revolutionary War	&0000000000069014.00000069,014	&0000000000000778.000000778 sq mi (&0000000000002015.0000002,015 km²)
Elmore County	051	Wetumpka	29	1866	Formed from Autauga, Coosa, Montgomery, and Tallapoosa Counties	John Archer Elmore, Revolutionary War veteran	&0000000000075688.00000075,688	&0000000000000621.000000621 sq mi (&0000000000001608.0000001,608 km²)
Escambia County	053	Brewton	30	1868	Formed from Baldwin and Conecuh Counties	Escambia Creek	&0000000000037849.00000037,849	&0000000000000947.000000947 sq mi (&0000000000002453.0000002,453 km²)
Etowah County	055	Gadsden	31	1866	Formed from Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, DeKalb, Marshall, and St. Clair Counties (as Baine County)	Etowah Indian Mounds	&0000000000103362.000000103,362	&0000000000000535.000000535 sq mi (&0000000000001386.0000001,386 km²)
Fayette County	057	Fayette	32	1824	Formed from Marion, Pickens, Tuscaloosa, and Walker Counties	Marquis de La Fayette (1757 – 1834), Revolutionary War commander	&0000000000018005.00000018,005	&0000000000000628.000000628 sq mi (&0000000000001627.0000001,627 km²)
Franklin County	059	Russellville	33	1818	Formed from Cherokee territory	Benjamin Franklin (1706 – 1790), politician, diplomat, inventor, and publisher	&0000000000030847.00000030,847	&0000000000000636.000000636 sq mi (&0000000000001647.0000001,647 km²)
Geneva County	061	Geneva	34	1868	Formed from Coffee, Dale, and Henry Counties	county seat, named after Geneva, New York	&0000000000025868.00000025,868	&0000000000000576.000000576 sq mi (&0000000000001492.0000001,492 km²)
Greene County	063	Eutaw	35	1819	Formed from Marengo and Tuscaloosa Counties	Nathanael Greene (1742 – 1786), Revolutionary War general	&0000000000009374.0000009,374	&0000000000000646.000000646 sq mi (&0000000000001673.0000001,673 km²)
Hale County	065	Greensboro	36	1867	Formed from Greene, Marengo, Perry, and Tuscaloosa Counties	Stephen F. Hale, lieutenant colonel in Confederate States Army	&0000000000018236.00000018,236	&0000000000000644.000000644 sq mi (&0000000000001668.0000001,668 km²)
Henry County	067	Abbeville	37	1819	Formed from Conecuh County	Patrick Henry (1736 – 1799), Revolutionary War patriot and Governor of Virginia	&0000000000016706.00000016,706	&0000000000000562.000000562 sq mi (&0000000000001456.0000001,456 km²)
Houston County	069	Dothan	38	1903	Formed from Dale, Geneva, and Henry Counties	George S. Houston (1811 – 1879), Governor of Alabama and U.S. Congressman	&0000000000095660.00000095,660	&0000000000000580.000000580 sq mi (&0000000000001502.0000001,502 km²)
Jackson County	071	Scottsboro	39	1819	Formed from Cherokee territory	Andrew Jackson (1767 – 1845), U.S. President	&0000000000053745.00000053,745	&0000000000001079.0000001,079 sq mi (&0000000000002795.0000002,795 km²)
Jefferson County	073	Birmingham	1	1819	Formed from Blount County	Thomas Jefferson (1743 – 1826), U.S. President	&0000000000656700.000000656,700	&0000000000001113.0000001,113 sq mi (&0000000000002883.0000002,883 km²)
Lamar County	075	Vernon	40	1867	Formed from Fayette and Marion Counties (as Jones County)	Lucius Q. C. Lamar (1825 – 1893), U.S. Supreme Court justice	&0000000000014548.00000014,548	&0000000000000605.000000605 sq mi (&0000000000001567.0000001,567 km²)
Lauderdale County	077	Florence	41	1818	Formed from Cherokee and Chickasaw territories	James Lauderdale, Colonel in War of 1812	&0000000000087891.00000087,891	&0000000000000669.000000669 sq mi (&0000000000001733.0000001,733 km²)
Lawrence County	079	Moulton	42	1818	Formed from Cherokee territory	James Lawrence, naval officer in War of 1812	&0000000000034312.00000034,312	&0000000000000693.000000693 sq mi (&0000000000001795.0000001,795 km²)
Lee County	081	Opelika	43	1866	Formed from Chambers, Macon, Russell, and Tallapoosa Counties	Robert E. Lee, Commander of the Confederate States Army	&0000000000125781.000000125,781	&0000000000000609.000000609 sq mi (&0000000000001577.0000001,577 km²)
Limestone County	083	Athens	44	1818	Formed from Elk and Madison Counties	Limestone Creek	&0000000000072446.00000072,446	&0000000000000568.000000568 sq mi (&0000000000001471.0000001,471 km²)
Lowndes County	085	Hayneville	45	1830	Formed from Butler, Dallas, and Montgomery Counties	William Lowndes, U.S. Congressman from South Carolina	&0000000000012759.00000012,759	&0000000000000718.000000718 sq mi (&0000000000001860.0000001,860 km²)
Macon County	087	Tuskegee	46	1832	Formed from Montgomery County	Nathaniel Macon, U.S. legislator from North Carolina	&0000000000022594.00000022,594	&0000000000000611.000000611 sq mi (&0000000000001582.0000001,582 km²)
Madison County	089	Huntsville	47	1808	Formed from Cherokee and Chickasaw territories	James Madison, U.S. President	&0000000000304307.000000304,307	&0000000000000805.000000805 sq mi (&0000000000002085.0000002,085 km²)
Marengo County	091	Linden	48	1818	Formed from Choctaw territory	Battle of Marengo	&0000000000021842.00000021,842	&0000000000000977.000000977 sq mi (&0000000000002530.0000002,530 km²)
Marion County	093	Hamilton	49	1818	Formed from Tuscaloosa County	Francis Marion, military leader in American Revolutionary War	&0000000000030165.00000030,165	&0000000000000741.000000741 sq mi (&0000000000001919.0000001,919 km²)
Marshall County	095	Guntersville	50	1836	Formed from Blount and Jackson Counties and Cherokee territory	John Marshall, Chief Justice of the United States	&0000000000087185.00000087,185	&0000000000000567.000000567 sq mi (&0000000000001469.0000001,469 km²)
Mobile County	097	Mobile	2	1812	Formed from Mobile District of West Florida after annexation into Mississippi Territory	Mobile and Mobile Bay	&0000000000404157.000000404,157	&0000000000001233.0000001,233 sq mi (&0000000000003193.0000003,193 km²)
Monroe County	099	Monroeville	51	1815	Formed from Creek territory	James Monroe, U.S. President	&0000000000023342.00000023,342	&0000000000001026.0000001,026 sq mi (&0000000000002657.0000002,657 km²)
Montgomery County	101	Montgomery	3	1816	Formed from Monroe County	Lemuel Montgomery, Major in Creek War	&0000000000223571.000000223,571	&0000000000000790.000000790 sq mi (&0000000000002046.0000002,046 km²)
Morgan County	103	Decatur	52	1818	Formed from Cherokee territory (as Cotaco County)	Daniel Morgan, U.S. Congressman	&0000000000115237.000000115,237	&0000000000000582.000000582 sq mi (&0000000000001507.0000001,507 km²)
Perry County	105	Marion	53	1819	Formed from Cahawba, Dallas, Marengo, and Tuscaloosa Counties	Oliver Hazard Perry, naval officer in War of 1812	&0000000000011186.00000011,186	&0000000000000719.000000719 sq mi (&0000000000001862.0000001,862 km²)
Pickens County	107	Carrollton	54	1820	Formed from Tuscaloosa County	Andrew Pickens or Israel Pickens	&0000000000020133.00000020,133	&0000000000000881.000000881 sq mi (&0000000000002282.0000002,282 km²)
Pike County	109	Troy	55	1821	Formed from Henry and Montgomery Counties	Zebulon Pike, explorer and officer in War of 1812	&0000000000029620.00000029,620	&0000000000000671.000000671 sq mi (&0000000000001738.0000001,738 km²)
Randolph County	111	Wedowee	56	1832	Formed from St. Clair and Shelby Counties	John Randolph, U.S. Senator from Virginia	&0000000000022673.00000022,673	&0000000000000581.000000581 sq mi (&0000000000001505.0000001,505 km²)
Russell County	113	Phenix City	57	1832	Formed from Montgomery and Pike Counties	Gilbert Russell, officer in Creek War	&0000000000050085.00000050,085	&0000000000000641.000000641 sq mi (&0000000000001660.0000001,660 km²)
St. Clair County	115	Ashville and Pell City	59	1818	Formed from Shelby County	Arthur St. Clair, President of Continental Congress	&0000000000075232.00000075,232	&0000000000000634.000000634 sq mi (&0000000000001642.0000001,642 km²)
Shelby County	117	Columbiana	58	1818	Formed from Montgomery County	Isaac Shelby, Governor of Kentucky	&0000000000178182.000000178,182	&0000000000000795.000000795 sq mi (&0000000000002059.0000002,059 km²)
Sumter County	119	Livingston	60	1832	Formed from Choctaw territory	Thomas Sumter, U.S. legislator	&0000000000013606.00000013,606	&0000000000000905.000000905 sq mi (&0000000000002344.0000002,344 km²)
Talladega County	121	Talladega	61	1832	Formed from St. Clair and Shelby Counties	Talatigi, Creek Indian name for the county seat, meaning "border town"	&0000000000080271.00000080,271	&0000000000000740.000000740 sq mi (&0000000000001917.0000001,917 km²)
Tallapoosa County	123	Dadeville	62	1832	Formed from Montgomery and Shelby Counties	Tallapoosa River	&0000000000041010.00000041,010	&0000000000000718.000000718 sq mi (&0000000000001860.0000001,860 km²)
Tuscaloosa County	125	Tuscaloosa	63	1818	Formed from Montgomery County and Choctaw territory	Tuscaloosa River and county seat	&0000000000171159.000000171,159	&0000000000001324.0000001,324 sq mi (&0000000000003429.0000003,429 km²)
Walker County	127	Jasper	64	1823	Formed from Blount, Jefferson, and Tuscaloosa Counties	John Williams Walker, U.S. Senator from Alabama	&0000000000070034.00000070,034	&0000000000000794.000000794 sq mi (&0000000000002056.0000002,056 km²)
Washington County	129	Chatom	65	1800	Formed from Adams and Pickering Counties of Mississippi Territory	George Washington, U.S. President	&0000000000017651.00000017,651	&0000000000001081.0000001,081 sq mi (&0000000000002800.0000002,800 km²)
Wilcox County	131	Camden	66	1819	Formed from Dallas and Monroe Counties	Joseph Wilcox, lieutenant in Creek War	&0000000000012911.00000012,911	&0000000000000889.000000889 sq mi (&0000000000002302.0000002,302 km²)
Winston County	133	Double Springs	67	1850	Formed from Walker County (as Hancock County)	John A. Winston, Governor of Alabama	&0000000000024634.00000024,634	&0000000000000614.000000614 sq mi (&0000000000001590.0000001,590 km²)

Former counties and county names

• Baine County (for David W. Baine), changed to Etowah County in 1868
• Baker County (for Alfred Baker, a local landowner), changed to Chilton County in 1874
• Benton County, first named in 1832 for Thomas Hart Benton, who served as aide-de-camp to Andrew Jackson during the Creek War and, since 1820, a U. S. Senator from Missouri, where he settled. In 1849, Benton renounced his support for slavery, alienating him from the Democratic Party. He lost his seat in 1851, and in 1858 the name of the county was changed to Calhoun County, honoring Benton's Senate rival, the fiercely pro-southern John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, who had died earlier that year.
• Cahawba County, for the former capital city of Cahawba, changed to Bibb County in 1820
• Cotaco County (for Cotaco Creek), changed to Morgan County in 1821
• Elk County (for the Elk River), originally part of another Houston County (for John Houstoun), changed to Lauderdale County and Limestone County in 1818
• Hancock County (for John Hancock), changed to Winston County in 1858
• Jones County (for Josiah Jones, a local political leader), changed back to Covington County in 1868 after Jones refused the honor
• Jones County (for E. P. Jones), then Sanford County, before becoming Lamar County in 1877
• Sanford County (for H. C. Sanford), changed to Lamar County in 1877

Fictional counties of note

See also: List of fictional counties

• Aurora County, the setting for several books by Deborah Wiles.
• Beechum County, the setting for the 1992 film, My Cousin Vinny.
• Greenbow County, the title character's birthplace in the 1994 feature film Forrest Gump, changed from Mobile in the 1986 Winston Groom novel.
• Maycomb County, the setting for Harper Lee's 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird, which was adapted into a feature film in 1962.
• Pearl County, the setting for William March's 1943 novel Looking Glass and of several of his short stories.

References

• "CountyState.info Alabama". Official County Websites. Retrieved on 2007-09-13. - official sites

1. ^ ^{a b} Foscue, Virginia O. (1989) Place Names in Alabama. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. ISBN 081730410X
2. ^ ^{a b} Nicholson, David. "Alabama License Plates, 1969-present". License Plates of North America, 1969-present. Retrieved on 2007-08-08.
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Alabama QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau". State & County QuickFacts. Retrieved on