Attalla is a city in Etowah County,

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 ...

, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,048.

History

The town developed on the area of a former

Muscogee 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 Woodlands Here they waged war again ...

(Creek) village that was important 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 ...

. Most of the Creek people were forced out under the

Indian Removal Act The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was signed into law on May 28, 1830, by United States president Andrew Jackson. The law, as described by Congress, provided "for an exchange of lands with the Indians residing in any of the states or territories, ...

of 1830. White European migrants from the coastal areas came into this area to acquire land. The wealthier ones developed cotton plantations based on the labor of enslaved African Americans. Cherokee people had also lived in this area, after being encroached on in Tennessee and western North Carolina. David Brown (

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

) was assisted by the Rev. D. S. Butterick in preparing the ''Cherokee Spelling Book'' while he lived here. Attalla was not founded until 1870; it was established on land donated by W. C. Hammond, a plantation owner. It was incorporated as a city government on February 5, 1872. The town was officially named "Attalla" in 1893, derived from the

Cherokee language file:Cherokee Speakers by County, 2000.png, 350px, Number of speakers file:Lang Status 20-CR.svg, Cherokee is classified as Critically Endangered by UNESCO's ''Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger'' Cherokee or Tsalagi (, ) is an endangere ...

word ''otali'' meaning "mountain". Railroads served the town and connected it to other markets. When the railroads went into bankruptcy, Attalla's prosperity declined in the late 19th century financial troubles. Attalla is the site of the first hydroelectric dam constructed to provide electricity for a city; it was built in 1887.

20th century to present

William Lewis Moore, a white U.S. postman and civil rights activist, was murdered here on April 23, 1963. He was walking from

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

, to

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city sits on the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River and is locate ...

to publicize his support of civil rights with a letter for Mississippi Governor

Ross Barnett Ross Robert Barnett (January 22, 1898November 6, 1987) was an American politician and segregationist who served as the 53rd governor of Mississippi from 1960 to 1964. He was a Southern Democrat who supported racial segregation. Early life Ba ...

. The suspected killer, Floyd Simpson, was never charged with the crime.

Geography

Attalla is in Etowah County at (34.009818, -86.098413). It is bordered to the east by the city of Gadsden, 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 ...

, and at its southernmost point by Rainbow City.

Interstate 59 Interstate 59 (I-59) is an Interstate Highway located in the southeastern United States. It is a north–south route that spans from a junction with I-10 and I-12 at Slidell, Louisiana, to a junction with I-24 near Wildwood, Georgia ...

runs along the eastern edge of the city, with access from Exits 181 and 183.

U.S. Route 11 U.S. Route 11 or U.S. Highway 11 (US 11) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway extending across the eastern U.S. The southern terminus of the route is at US 90 in Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refu ...

passes through the center of town as Third Street and runs generally parallel to I59, leading northeast to Fort Payne and southwest to

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

. U.S. Routes

278 __NOTOC__ Year 278 ( CCLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Probus and Lupus (or, less frequently, year 1031 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 27 ...

and 431 also pass through the center of Attalla, leading east to downtown Gadsden. US 431 runs north to

Albertville Albertville (; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile'') is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Savoie Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in Southeastern France. It is best k ...

, while US 278 leads west to Cullman.

Alabama State Route 77 State Route 77 (SR 77) is a north–south state highway in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. The southern terminus of the highway is at an intersection with U.S. Route 431 (US 431) near LaFayette. The north ...

passes through the southern section of Attalla, leading north to US 431 and southeast to Rainbow City. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the city has a total area of , all of it land. Big Wills Creek, a tributary of the

Coosa River The Coosa River is a tributary of the Alabama River in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The river is about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, ac ...

, flows southeasterly through the city. The southern end of

Lookout Mountain Lookout Mountain is a mountain ridge at the northwest corner of the U.S. state of Georgia, the northeast corner of Alabama, and along the southeastern Tennessee state line in Chattanooga. Lookout Mountain was the scene of the 18th-century "La ...

rises to the east overlooking the city.

Demographics

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 6,795 people, 2,672 households, and 1,976 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 2,914 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 78.42% White, 13.5% Black or African American, 1.5% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 1.64% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 2.22% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 2,620 households 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.6% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.5% were non-families. 29.0% of households were one person and 13.9% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.00. The age distribution was 23.7% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.5 males. The median household income was $27,444 and the median family income was $39,549. Males had a median income of $30,605 versus $19,693 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,727. About 16.4% of families and 18.6% 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 22.5% of those under age 18 and 22.0% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

At the 2010 census there were 6,048 people, 2,442 households, and 1,627 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 2,841 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 81.5% White, 12.7% Black or African American, .4% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 2.9% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. 4.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 2,442 households 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% were married couples living together, 18.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.4% were non-families. 29.8% of households were one person and 13.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.07. The age distribution was 22.7% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% 65 or older. The median age was 39.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.9 males. The median household income was $32,426 and the median family income was $35,934. Males had a median income of $33,428 versus $25,441 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,457. About 13.9% of families and 18.2% of the population were below the

, including 27.5% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 5,827 people, 2,151 households, and 1,364 families residing in the city.

Attalla Precinct/Division (1880–1970)

The Attalla Beat (Etowah County 17th Beat) first appeared on the 1880 U.S. Census. In 1890, "beat" was changed to "precinct". In 1960, the precinct was changed to "census division" as part of a general reorganization of counties. In 1980, Attalla census division was consolidated with Gadsden census division.

Education

The Attalla City School System is the public

school district A school district is a special-purpose district that operates local public Primary school, primary or Secondary school, secondary schools or both in various countries. It is not to be confused with an attendance zone, which is within a school dis ...

. As of 2006, it has some 1,823 students. The district includes the following schools: *Attalla Elementary School (Grades Pk–5) *Etowah Middle School (Grades 6–8) * Etowah High School (Grades 9–12) The system formerly had Alma Hinson Junior High School. In 1962, the editor of ''The Etowah News Journal'' described the school as having a "nothing short of excellent" curricula and "a bright exception" to problems in other schools in the system.

Transportation

Etowah County Rural Transportation provides

dial-a-ride Demand-responsive transport (DRT), also known as demand-responsive transit, demand-responsive service,
US National Trans ...

bus service throughout the city and county.

Notable people

* Gerald William Barrax (1933–2019), poet and educator * Betty Kelly (born September 16, 1944), member of Motown girl group

Martha and the Vandellas Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1973 as Martha Reeves & the Vandellas) were an American girl group formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960s as a major act for Motown Records. Formed by friends Annett ...

* Larry Means (born April 20, 1947), former member of the

Alabama Senate The Alabama State Senate is the upper house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alabama. The body is composed of 35 members representing an equal number of districts across the state, with each district con ...

and current mayor * Patrick Nix (born April 7, 1972), former

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

quarterback * Tyrone Nix (born September 30, 1972), defensive coordinator for the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford, Mississippi, Oxford. The first was the Ole ...

* Derrick Nix (born February 22, 1980), defensive coordinator for the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...

* B. L. Noojin (1885–1950),

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

, educator, and politician * Albert Staton (1899–1980), basketball and football player for

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public university, public research university and Institute of technology (United States), institute of technology in Atlanta, ...

Gallery

File:4th Street Attalla Oct 2014.jpg, 4th Street, Attalla File:Bank of Attalla Oct 2014.jpg, Bank of Attalla File:Historic Alabama Power Company sign, Attalla, Alabama LCCN2010640595.tif, Historic Alabama Power Company sign, Attalla File:5th Avenue Attalla Oct 2014 1.jpg, 5th Avenue, Attalla File:5th Avenue Attalla Oct 2014 2.jpg, 5th Avenue, Attalla File:Country Music Opera House Oct 2014.jpg, Country Music Opera House, Attalla File:First United Methodist Church Attalla Oct 2014.jpg, First United Methodist Church, Attalla File:Seven Cedars Attalla Oct 2014.jpg, Seven Cedars, Attalla File:Houses on 5th Avenue Attalla Oct 2014.jpg, Houses on 5th Avenue, Attalla File:Walker's Drug Store building Attalla Oct 2014.jpg, Walker's Drug Store building, Attalla File:Old Attalla Elementary School Oct 2014 2.jpg, Old Attalla Elementary School

References

Notes

References

External links

City of Attalla official website
{{authority control Alabama placenames of Native American origin Cities in Alabama Cities in Etowah County, Alabama Populated places established in 1870 U.S. Route 11 1870 establishments in Alabama