Clarke County, Alabama
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Clarke County is a
county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
located in the southwestern part of the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
. As of the 2020 census, the population was 23,087. The
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
is Grove Hill. The county's largest city is
Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...
. The county was created by the legislature of the
Mississippi Territory The Territory of Mississippi was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that was created under an organic act passed by the United States Congress, Congress of the United States. It was approved and signed into law by Presiden ...
in 1812. It is named in honor of General John Clarke of
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
, who was later elected
governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
of that state. The county museum is housed in the Alston-Cobb House in Grove Hill.


History


Pre-European era

For thousands of years, this area was occupied along the rivers by varying cultures of
indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...
. At the time of European encounter, Clarke County was the traditional home of the
Choctaw The Choctaw ( ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States, originally based in what is now Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The Choctaw language is a Western Muskogean language. Today, Choct ...
and the
Creek people The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek or just Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language; English: ), are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern WoodlandsLouisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase () was the acquisition of the Louisiana (New France), territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. This consisted of most of the land in the Mississippi River#Watershed, Mississipp ...
, they started to establish relations with the United States. In 1805, by the Treaty of Mount Dexter, the Choctaw conveyed large amounts of land in what is now southeastern
Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...
and southwestern
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
, including much of the western portion of Clarke County, to the United States for settlement by European Americans.


Modern era

Clarke County was established on December 10, 1812, by the
Mississippi Territory The Territory of Mississippi was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that was created under an organic act passed by the United States Congress, Congress of the United States. It was approved and signed into law by Presiden ...
. The county had numerous forts, built by settlers for protection during the
Creek War The Creek War (also the Red Stick War or the Creek Civil War) was a regional conflict between opposing Native American factions, European powers, and the United States during the early 19th century. The Creek War began as a conflict within th ...
(1813–1814). Some of these forts included: Fort Carney, Fort Easley, Fort Glass, Fort Landrum,
Fort Madison Fort Madison is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, Lee County, Iowa, United States along with Keokuk, Iowa, Keokuk. Of Iowa's 99 counties, Lee County is the only one with two county seats. The population was 10,270 at the time of ...
, Fort Sinquefield, Turner's Fort, and Fort White. The first
county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
was Clarkesville, founded in 1820. The seat was moved to Macon, later renamed Grove Hill, in 1831. In 1883, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the conviction of Tony Pace and Mary Cox for interracial dating, in '' Pace v. Alabama''. That precedent was subsequently overturned. In 1892, Clarke County was the scene of a violent confrontation around economic divides that later became known as the Mitcham War.


Alcohol prohibition

Following the national repeal of prohibition in 1933, Clarke County voted to become a
dry county In the United States, a dry county is a county whose local government forbids the sale of any kind of alcoholic beverages. Some prohibit off-premises sale, some prohibit on-premises sale, and some prohibit both. The vast majority of counties n ...
in 1937, when wet-dry counties were established in Alabama. In the first decade of the 21st century, the county's largest communities voted to legalize alcohol sales:
Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...
on May 10, 2005; Thomasville on August 14, 2007; and Grove Hill on November 3, 2009.


Salt production

Clarke County is home to numerous salt springs. These springs have been used as a source for salt as early as the Mississippian period in 1100 AD. During the
Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, the county was notable for its salt production due to the naval blockade of southern ports. The Commissioner's Court of Clarke County appropriated $1500 in 1862 for the manufacturing of salt at the salt springs and the State of Alabama operated multiple salt works during the Civil War. These salt works had housing for workers, hospitals, and cemeteries and the salt was produced for military and civilian use. Forts were built at Oven Bluff (Fort Sidney Johnston) and Carney Bluff (Fort Gullett) to protect the salt works and the approach up the Tombigbee River while an additional fort was built at Choctaw Bluff ( Fort Stonewall) to protect any advance up the Alabama River.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (or 1.1%) is water. It is the third-largest county in Alabama by land area and the fourth-largest by total area.


Major highways

* U.S. Highway 43 * U.S. Highway 84 * State Route 5 * State Route 69 * State Route 154 * State Route 177 * State Route 178 * State Route 295


Adjacent counties

* Marengo County (north) * Wilcox County (northeast) * Monroe County (east) * Baldwin County (south) * Washington County (southwest) * Choctaw County (northwest)


Demographics


2020 Census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 23,087 people, 9,090 households, and 5,662 families residing in the county.


2010

According to the 2010 United States census: *54.5%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
*43.9%
Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
*0.4% Native American *0.3% Asian *0.0%
Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...
or
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
*0.7% Two or more races *1.0% Hispanic or Latino (of any race)


2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 27,867 people, 10,578 households, and 7,700 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 12,631 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 55.94%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 43.02%
Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
or
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.22% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.16% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races. Nearly 0.65% of the population were
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race. There were 10,578 households, out of which 35.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them; 53.90% were married couples living together, 15.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.20% were non-families. Nearly 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.90% 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 3.13. In Clarke County, the population was spread out, with 28.00% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 22.50% from 45 to 64, and 13.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.60 males. The median income for a household in the county was $27,388, and the median income for a family was $34,546. Males had a median income of $34,111 versus $19,075 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,581. About 18.10% of families and 22.60% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.60% of those under age 18 and 23.80% of those age 65 or over.


Education

Clarke County contains two public school districts. There are approximately 3,400 students in public PK-12 schools in Clarke County.


Districts

School districts include:Text list
* Clarke County School District * Thomasville City School District


Government

Since
1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...
, the majority of Clarke County voters has mostly supported Republican candidates for the presidency, but party affiliations have changed. Prior to the civil rights era, most whites were members of the Democratic Party, although they began to vote for Nixon and other Republican presidential candidates. After the Civil War, many African Americans had joined the Republican Party, but they were essentially disenfranchised around the turn of the 20th century by state changes to its constitution and laws, making voter registration more difficult. After they regained their ability to vote through national legislation in the mid-1960s, they largely joined the Democratic Party, which had supported their effort to regain their constitutional civil rights. Most conservative whites gradually left that party and joined the Republican Party. Voting and party affiliation in Clarke County, as throughout much of Alabama, is aligned by ethnicity, with conservative whites, the majority, voting for Republican candidates and African Americans supporting Democratic candidates. For some positions, white voters have sometimes continued to vote for state-level Democrats, such as Doug Jones in
2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
.


Communities


Cities

*
Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...
* Thomasville


Towns

* Coffeeville * Fulton * Grove Hill (county seat)


Census Designated Places

* Carlton * Rockville *
Whatley Whatley may refer to: Places * Whatley, Alabama, a place in the United States * Whatley, Mendip, in the district of Mendip, Somerset, England * Whatley, South Somerset, in the district of South Somerset, Somerset, England People * Whatley (surname ...


Unincorporated communities

*
Alma Alma or ALMA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Alma'' (film), a 2009 Spanish short animated film * ''Alma'', an upcoming film by Sally Potter * ''Alma'' (Oswald de Andrade novel), 1922 * ''Alma'' (Le Clézio novel), 2017 * ''Alma'' ( ...
*
Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...
* Barlow Bend * Bashi * Campbell * Dickinson * Gainestown *
Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hampshire, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 70,131 and the district had a pop ...
* McEntyre * Morvin * Opine * Salitpa * Suggsville * Tallahatta Springs * Tattlersville * Walker Springs


Former communities

* Choctaw Corner * Clarkesville * Failetown


Notable people

* Loraine Bedsole Bush Tunstall (1881-1953), social reformer * Martha Loftin Wilson (1834–1919), missionary worker, journal editor, heroine of the American Civil War


See also

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


References


External links


Clarke County Alabama Official Site
* Clarke Count
map of roads/towns
(map 2007 Univ. of Alabama).
Coastal Gateway Regional Economic Development Alliance

South Alabama Community Website

Digital Alabama: Clarke County Alabama History
{{Coord, 31, 40, 25, N, 87, 50, 17, W, region:US-AL_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title 1812 establishments in Mississippi Territory Populated places established in 1812