Arab () is a city mostly in Marshall County, with a portion in Cullman County, in the northern 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 ...

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 ...

, located from Guntersville Lake and

Guntersville Dam Guntersville Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River in Marshall County, Alabama, Marshall County, in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the d ...

, and is included in the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. The population was 8,461 at the 2020 census.

History

What is now Arab was established by Stephen Tuttle Thompson in the 1840s, and was originally known as "Thompson's Village". The current name of the town was an unintentional misspelling by the

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

in 1882 of the city's intended name, taken from Arad Thompson, the son of the town founder, who had applied for a post office that year. "Arad" was one of three names sent to the

Postal Service The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sy ...

for consideration, the others being "Ink" and "Bird." Arab has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names. Arab was incorporated on December 10, 1892. Arab was a

sundown town Sundown towns, also known as sunset towns, gray towns, or sundowner towns, were all-white municipalities or neighborhoods in the United States. They were towns that practiced a form of racial segregation by excluding non-whites via some combinati ...

, with a sign warning Blacks not to stay in Arab after dark and, historically, even barring them during the day.

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

material was disseminated in Arab in 2014 and 2015.

Geography

Arab is located at an elevation of on top of Brindlee Mountain, near the southwest end of the

Appalachian Plateau The Appalachian Plateau is a series of rugged dissected plateaus located on the western side of the Appalachian Mountains. The Appalachian Mountains are a range that run from Nova Scotia in Canada to Alabama in the United States. The Appalachi ...

. The city is primarily in southern Marshall County; a small portion extends south into Cullman County.

U.S. Route 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&nbs ...

runs north-to-south through Arab, and State Route 69 runs east-to-west, through the city's business district. US 231 leads north to

Huntsville Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S. The Huntsville metropolitan area had an estimated 525,465 ...

and south to Oneonta, while SR 69 leads east to

Guntersville Guntersville (previously known as Gunter's Ferry and later Gunter's Landing) is a city and the county seat of Marshall County, Alabama, Marshall County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of th ...

and southwest to Cullman. 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 city has a total area of , of which are land and , or 0.99%, are water. The city lies on the

Tennessee Valley Divide The Tennessee Valley Divide is the boundary of the drainage basin of the Tennessee River and its tributaries. The Tennessee River drainage basin begins with its tributaries in southwestern Virginia and flows generally west to the confluence of t ...

, with the north side draining either west to Cotaco Creek or east to Shoal Creek, both tributaries of the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is a long river located in the Southern United States, southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. Flowing through the states of Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, it begins at the confluence of Fren ...

, while the south half of the city drains to the headwaters of the Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River, part of the

Tombigbee River The Tombigbee River is a tributary of the Mobile River, approximately 200 mi (325 km) long, in the U.S. states of Mississippi and Alabama. Together with the Alabama, it merges to form the short Mobile River before the latter empties i ...

watershed.

Demographics

City of Arab

Arab was incorporated as a town in 1892, but it did not first report a population on the census until the 1920 U.S. Census.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 8,461 people, 3,484 households, and 2,300 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 3,739 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 8,050 people in 3,359 households, and 2,257 families residing in the city. The

was . There were 3,693 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.6%

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 ...

, 0.1%

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 ...

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 ...

, 0.6% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. 1.7% 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. Of the 3,359 households 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 29.6% of households were one person and 14.9% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.92. The age distribution was 23.7% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 22.0% from 25 to 44, 27.0% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% 65 or older. The median age was 42.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males. The median household income was $42,435 and the median family income was $64,432. Males had a median income of $44,401 versus $40,062 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,986. About 13.3% of families and 18.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 27.7% of those under age 18 and 14.8% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 7,174 people in 3,012 households, and 2,075 families residing in the city. The

was . There were 3,223 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.29%

, 0.18%

, 0.49% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.17% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races. 0.66% were

or Latino of any race. Of the 3,012 households 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 28.2% of households were one person and 13.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.87. The age distribution was 23.9% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.8% 65 or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.8 males. The median household income was $36,716 and the median family income was $45,761. Males had a median income of $32,425 versus $24,265 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,035. About 8.2% of families and 10.0% of the population were below the

, including 12.5% of those under age 18 and 14.9% of those age 65 or over.

Arab Precinct/Division (1920–)

Arab Precinct (Marshall County 26th Precinct) first appeared on the 1920 U.S. Census. In 1960, it was changed to the Arab Census Division as part of a general reorganization of counties. The census division only includes the Marshall County portion of the town of Arab. The Cullman County portion is in the Baileyton-Joppa Census Division.

Government

Arab has a mayor-council form of city government consisting of five council members and a mayor. City elections occur every four years. Council seats are at-large and are not associated with districts. Arab City Schools is the public school district. Arab has its own paid police department. Their fire department has one station, sitting on top of Marshall County 911 center. Both are paid departments.

Infrastructure

Utilities

Electricity service in Arab is provided through Arab Electric Cooperative, which buys power through the

Tennessee Valley Authority The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, and small areas of Georgia, North Carolin ...

. Water service in Arab is provided through Arab Water Works, which gets water from Browns Creek in Guntersville Lake. Natural gas is also provided in Arab, through Marshall County Gas District, which is based out of

Transportation

* U.S. Highway 231 * Alabama State Route 69

Education

Residents are in the Arab City School District, regardless of county.

Notable people

* Liles C. Burke, judge in the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama The United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama (in case citations, N.D. Ala.) is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are a ...

* Vernon Derrick, fiddle and mandolin player * Fred Nall Hollis, artist * Jill King, singer/songwriter * Jack Lively, Major League Baseball pitcher * Wayne Mills, country music singer

References

External links

City of Arab – Official Website

Arab Chamber of Commerce

{{authority control Cities in Alabama Cities in Cullman County, Alabama Cities in Marshall County, Alabama Huntsville-Decatur, AL Combined Statistical Area Populated places established in the 1840s 1882 establishments in the United States Sundown towns in Alabama