The Decatur, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area is a moderately urban region of North-Central

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

. The 2020 Census put the population of the metropolitan area at 152,740, of which one-third resides within the boundaries of its core city, Decatur, Alabama, It is also considered to be part of the

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

Northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sep ...

, and North-Central regions of Alabama. The metropolitan area is the combined area of the City of Decatur and the surrounding areas in suburban, rural, and more developed parts of

Morgan Morgan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Morgan (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Morgan le Fay, a powerful witch in Arthurian legend * Morgan (surname), a surname of Welsh origin * Morgan (singer), ...

and Lawrence Counties. The Decatur Metropolitan Area is apart of the Huntsville-Decatur CSA, With

Huntsville Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...

and

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

being other Principal cities in the CSA.

Cities and towns

Principal cities

* Decatur *

Hartselle Hartselle is the second largest city in Morgan County, Alabama, United States, south of Decatur. It is part of the Decatur Metropolitan Area and the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the ...

Moulton Moulton may refer to: Places in the United Kingdom ;In England *Moulton, Cheshire *Moulton, Lincolnshire **Moulton Windmill * Moulton St Mary, Norfolk *Moulton, Northamptonshire **Moulton College, agricultural college **Moulton Park, industria ...

(Has its own MSA, but has lands in Morgan County)

Other cities and towns

* Courtland *

Eva Eva or EVA may refer to: * Eva (name), a feminine given name Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Eva (Dynamite Entertainment), a comic book character by Dynamite Entertainment * Eva (''Devil May Cry''), Dante's mother in t ...

* Falkville * Hillsboro * North Courtland * Priceville *

Somerville Somerville may refer to: *Somerville College, Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford Places *Somerville, Victoria, Australia * Somerville, Western Australia, a suburb of Kalgoorlie, Australia * Somerville, New Zealand, a subur ...

* Town Creek *

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

Unincorporated communities

* Burningtree Mountain *

Caddo The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, wh ...

* Cotaco * Danville * Five Points * Flint * Florette * Hatton * Hulaco * Lacey's Spring * Landersville * Mallard Creek * Morgan City * Moulton Heights * Mount Hope * Neel * Oakville * Pittsburg * Punkin Center * Red Bank * Ryan * Speake * Tanner * Valhermoso Springs * Wheeler * Wren

Transportation

Major Highways

Interstate 65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

''(

Lacon Lacon can refer to: ;People: * Demetrius Lacon (late 2nd century BC), Greek philosopher * Lacon family, a Sardinian dynasty * Lacon baronets, of the English baronetcy * William Lacon (ca. 1540–1609), English politician * Roland Lacon (ca. 1537� ...

to Decatur ( Limestone County))'' - enters the area at the southern Morgan County line between

and Cullman Counties, near Lacon. Bends around a mountain where it passes over US 31. It continues north towards Hartselle where it enters the city limits for about 3 miles. Leaving Hartselle, I-65 travels towards Decatur where small portions of the city limits leak over into rural Priceville. I-65 soon is lifted onto a bridge (over the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names, ...

), linking Morgan County and Limestone County. After entering Limestone County, an interchange with

I-565 Interstate 565 (I-565) is a Interstate spur that connects I-65 in Decatur with U.S. Route 72 (US 72) in Huntsville in the US state of Alabama. I-565 serves the cities of Decatur, Madison, and downtown Huntsville. It also prov ...

, Alt US 72, and Alabama 20 give routes to

(to the east), and Decatur (to the west). *

U.S. Highway 31 U.S. Route 31 or U.S. Highway 31 (US 31) is a major north–south U.S. highway connecting southern Alabama to northern Michigan. Its southern terminus is at an intersection with US 90/ US 98 in Spanish Fort, Alabama. Its ...

''(

to Decatur ( Limestone County))'' - from the southern Morgan County line between

and Cullman Counties, near Lacon. The route continues north, passing under I-65, towards Hartselle. After traversing through Hartselle, US 31 briefly enters unincorporated land, but quickly enters the Decatur city limits. As the highway passes through Decatur, it gives access to places such as: Decatur High School /

Ogle Stadium Decatur High School is a public high school in Decatur, Alabama, United States. It is one of two high schools in the Decatur City School District. Decatur High offers technical, academic, and Advanced Placement (AP) programs, as well as dual e ...

Cooks Natural Science Museum Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...

, and views of the downtown area. US 31 leaves the metro area after passing over the Captain William J. Hudson "Steamboat Bill" Memorial Bridges into Limestone County where the Decatur city limits end. (near the

Calhoun Community College Calhoun Community College is a public community college in Tanner, Alabama. It is the 2nd largest of the 24 two-year institutions that make up the Alabama Community College System. History The college was founded in 1946 and named after John C ...

) *

U.S. Highway 72 Alternate Alternate U.S. Route 72 (US 72 Alt.) exists in Alabama on the south side of the Tennessee River between Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Muscle Shoals and Decatur, Alabama, Decatur, while U.S. Highway 72 (Alabama), US 72 follows on the north side ...

''( Decatur ( Limestone County) to

)'' - enters the metro area in the Limestone County portion of Decatur at the interchange with I-65 and

. (I-565 terminates here). Crosses the

on the Captain William J. Hudson "Steamboat Bill" Memorial Bridges, combined with US 31 and State Route 20, into urban northern Decatur. Alt 72 bends west and continues into the industrial portion of Decatur. The

Port of Decatur The Port of Decatur is a transshipment port on the Tennessee River, in the city of Decatur, Alabama, United States of America. The port was founded in 1971. Port facilities Port facilities include Intermodal freight transport, intermodal tran ...

, and such notable industries as The United Launch Alliance,

Solutia Solutia Inc. was an American manufacturer of materials and specialty chemicals including polyvinyl butyral (PVB), ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) interlayers for laminated glass, aftermarket window films, prote ...

Vulcan Materials Vulcan Materials Company () is an American company based in Birmingham, Alabama. It is principally engaged in the production, distribution and sale of construction materials. Vulcan is the largest producer of construction materials, primarily gra ...

, and 3M have operations along this route. The United Launch Alliance is especially important, since all satellite launch vehicles used by

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

, are produced at this single location. Alt 72 eventually leaves the metro area as it exits Lawrence County, and enters Colbert County of The Shoals. *

U.S. Highway 231 U.S. Route 231 (US 231) is a north-south United States Numbered Highway System, U.S highway that is a parallel route of U.S. Route 31, US 31. It runs for from St. John, Indiana, St. John, Indiana, at U.S. Route 41 in Indiana, US 41 ...

''( Lacey's Spring to southern Morgan County)'' - enters the metro area from southern

. Crossing the

, connecting

and northeastern Morgan Counties. US 231 continues south, passing through Morgan City, towards the Gadsden area. * State Route 20 ''( Decatur ( Limestone County) to western Lawrence County)'' - enters the metro area in the Limestone County portion of Decatur at the interchange with I-65 and

. (I-565 terminates here). Crosses the

on the Captain William J. Hudson "Steamboat Bill" Memorial Bridges, combined with US 31 and

, into urban northern Decatur. Alabama 20 bends west and continues into the industrial portion of Decatur. The

, and such notable industries as The United Launch Alliance,

, and 3M have operations along this route. The United Launch Alliance is especially important, since all satellite launch vehicles used by

, are produced at this single location. Alabama 20 eventually leaves the metro area as it exits Lawrence County, and enters Colbert County of The Shoals. * 20px State Route 24 * 20px State Route 33 * 20px State Route 36 * 20px State Route 67 ''( Hulaco to US 72 Alt./ SR 20 ( Decatur))'' - enters the area at Hulaco and continues to

. Passes by the old Morgan County Courthouse. Travels through Priceville (past the Racking Horse World Celebration Arena), and enters Decatur at an interchange with I-65. As SR 67 crosses 6th Avenue ( US 31) it becomes known as the

Beltline The Atlanta BeltLine (also Beltline or Belt Line) is a open and planned loop of multi-use trail and light rail transit system on a former railway corridor around the core of Atlanta, Georgia. The Atlanta BeltLine is designed to reconnect neig ...

, a bypass that was constructed to alleviate traffic problems on the swollen 6th Avenue. The highway continues on a north-northwesterly curve and terminates at US 72 Alt./ SR 20 inside Decatur.

References

{{Coord, 34, 34, 52, N, 86, 59, 0, W, display=title Geography of Morgan County, Alabama Geography of Lawrence County, Alabama Geography of Limestone County, Alabama Metropolitan areas of Alabama Huntsville-Decatur, AL Combined Statistical Area