Coffee 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 southeastern 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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,465. Its name is in honor of General John Coffee. Coffee County comprises the

Enterprise Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to: Business and economics Brands and enterprises * Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company * Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company * Enterpris ...

, Micropolitan Statistical Area, which was originally Enterprise–Ozark micropolitan area in 2010 censuses before being split off. It was originally included in the Dothan-Enterprise- Ozark, Combined Statistical Area in its 2012 statistics but the area in its recent years has been separated from the Dothan metropolitan area and Ozark micropolitan area in later censuses and is its own primary statistical area now. Despite the census change of the statistics by 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 still remains culturally connected alongside the two core based areas as it is commonly described as part of what is called the Wiregrass region together and also it shares its locations of

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

base, Fort Novosel. 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 mostly known as

Elba Elba (, ; ) is a Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National Park, a ...

, although Enterprise contains a second county courthouse as well.

History

The land in Coffee County was originally part of Dale County, which was incorporated in 1824. Coffee County was formed from the western part of Dale County on December 29, 1841. It was named after John R. Coffee, a soldier in the Creek War of 1813—14. The first county seat was in Wellborn. After the courthouse was destroyed by fire in 1851, the county seat was moved to Elba.

Geography

According to the

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water. The county is located in the Wiregrass region of southeast Alabama.

Major highways

* U.S. Highway 84 * U.S. Highway 231 * State Route 27 * State Route 51 * State Route 87 * State Route 88 * State Route 92 * State Route 134 * State Route 189 * State Route 192

Adjacent counties

* Pike County (north) * Dale County (east) * Geneva County (south) * Covington County (west) *

Crenshaw County Crenshaw County is a county located in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is located immediately south of the Montgomery metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,194. Its county seat is Luverne. ...

(northwest)

Demographics

2020 Census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 53,465 people, 19,924 households, and 13,747 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 49,948 people, 19,849 households, and 13,837 families residing in the county. 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 22,330 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 74.7%

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 ...

, 16.7%

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 ...

, 1.3% Native American, 1.3% Asian, 0.2%

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 ...

, 3.2% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. 6.4% 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. The largest self-reported ancestry groups in Coffee County were English (59.9%), German (4.4%), Irish (3.3%), "American" (3.1%), (1.8%), Scottish (1.2%) and Portuguese (1.0%). There were 19,849 households, out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.3% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.98. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.2% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.3 males. The median income for a household in the county was $42,253, and the median income for a family was $54,929. Males had a median income of $41,635 versus $29,082 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $22,797. About 14.1% of families and 17.2% 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 26.4% of those under age 18 and 13.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Coffee County is reliably Republican at the presidential level. The last Democrat to win the county in a presidential election is

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

, who won it by a majority in

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

Communities

Cities

(county seat) *

(partly in Dale County)

Towns

* Kinston * New Brockton

Unincorporated communities

* Alberton * Basin * Battens Crossroads *

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

* Central City * Clintonville *

Curtis Curtis or Curtiss is a common English given name and surname of Anglo-Norman origin, deriving from the Old French ''curteis'' (Modern French">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of Fren ...

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

* Danleys Crossroads * Frisco * Goodman * Ino * Jack *

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

* Keyton * Pine Level * Richburg * Roeton *

Tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

* Victoria

Education

School districts include:
Text list
- "Fort Rucker School District" refers to the DoDEA schools. * Coffee County School District * Elba City School District * Enterprise City School District Fort Novosel residents are within the

Department of Defense Education Activity The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) is a federal school system headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, responsible for planning, directing, coordinating, and managing prekindergarten through 12th grade educational programs on beh ...

(DoDEA) system, for elementary school. Students on-post in Fort Novosel beyond the elementary level may attend non-DoDEA schools for secondary levels, with an on-post family choosing one of the following three options: Enterprise City, Daleville City School System, or Ozark City Schools. - From a .mil site.

Notable people

Katie Britt Katie Elizabeth Boyd Britt (née Boyd; born February 2, 1982) is an American politician and attorney serving since 2023 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Alabama. A member of the ...

, current Senator for Alabama. * Jim Folsom,

governor of Alabama A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

from 1947 to 1951 and 1955 to 1959, was born in Coffee County. *Coffee County is home to "The Dancing Ghost" of Grancer Harrison, featured in the book '' 13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey.'' * Alex Ríos,

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player born in Coffee County * Zig Ziglar, Christian motivational speaker, was born in Coffee County in 1926.

In popular culture

The county is referred to in Joe David Brown's 1971 novel '' Addie Pray,'' which inspired the movie '' Paper Moon.''

References

External links

Official Website of Coffee County Government
{{authority control Enterprise–Ozark micropolitan area 1841 establishments in Alabama Populated places established in 1841