The U.S. state of
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = " Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...
has 67
counties. Each county serves as the local level of government within its borders. The land enclosed by the present state borders was joined to the United States of America gradually. Following the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
, West Florida was ceded to Spain by treaty while the remainder was organized primarily as the
Mississippi Territory
The Territory of Mississippi was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from April 7, 1798, until December 10, 1817, when the western half of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Mississippi. T ...
, and later the
Alabama Territory
The Territory of Alabama (sometimes Alabama Territory) was an organized incorporated territory of the United States. The Alabama Territory was carved from the Mississippi Territory on August 15, 1817 and lasted until December 14, 1819, when it wa ...
.
The territorial assembly established some of the earliest county divisions that have survived to the present, including the earliest county formation, that of
Washington County, created on June 4, 1800.
[ In 1814, the Treaty of Fort Jackson opened the territory to American settlers, which in turn led to a more rapid rate of county creation. Alabama was admitted to the Union as the 22nd state in 1819.][Foscue, Virginia O. (1989) ''Place Names in Alabama''. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. ] Houston County was the last county created in the state, on February 9, 1903.[
According to 2021 U. S. Census data, the average population of Alabama's 67 counties is 75,222, with Jefferson County as the most populous (667,820), and Greene County (7,629) the least.][ Wikisource:Alabama State Constitution of 1901/Initial Constitution#Section 39]
The Alabama Department of Revenue's Motor Vehicle Division issues standard automobile license plates that bear 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 first three prefixes are reserved for the state's historically most populous counties, and thereafter proceed alphabetically. Individual license plate numbers are assigned sequentially in each licensing office. The numbers are in the format ''XAA1111'' or ''XXAA111'', depending on whether the prefix is one or two digits. Overflow registrations are accommodated by substituting a letter for one of the registration numbers, such that XXZ999Z is followed by XXA0A0A.Federal Information Processing Standard
The Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) of the United States are a set of publicly announced standards that the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed for use in computer systems of non-military, American ...
(FIPS) code, used by the United States government to uniquely identify counties, is provided with each entry. The FIPS code links in the table point to U. S. Census "quick facts" pages for each county. Alabama's FIPS state code is 01.
Counties
Former county names
Former counties
See also
* List of census county divisions in Alabama
References
;Specific
;General
*
External links
Map series
showing evolution of county boundaries. Cartographic Research Laboratory. University of Alabama Department of Geography.
Alabama Counties
Alabama Counties Features. Digital Alabama
{{featured list
*
Alabama, counties in
Counties