Houston 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 corner of the U.S. state of

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 107,202. Its

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 Dothan, which is located on the border and partially in adjacent Henry County. Houston County is part of the Dothan, Alabama metropolitan area.

History

Houston County was established on February 9, 1903, from parts of Dale,

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

, and Henry counties. It was named after George Smith Houston, the 24th

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 ...

. This area of the state was historically developed for the pine timber and turpentine industries, as well as cotton plantations. The latter, especially, depended on enslaved African Americans for labor. Because of this history, African Americans predominated in the population until after the early 20th century, when many migrated to northern and midwestern cities for better economic opportunities and to escape

Jim Crow The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced racial segregation, " Jim Crow" being a pejorative term for an African American. The last of the ...

discrimination. They were essentially disenfranchised after the turn of the 20th century because of constitutional amendments and other laws that made voter registration nearly impossible. Many poor whites were disenfranchised at the same time. Court-house

Geography

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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.3%) is water. The county is located in the Wiregrass region of southeast Alabama.

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Adjacent counties

* Henry County (north) *

Early County, Georgia Early County is a County (United States), county located on the southwest border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 10,854. The county seat is Blakely, Georgi ...

(east) * Seminole County, Georgia (southeast) * Jackson County, Florida (south) * Geneva County (west) * Dale County (northwest)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 107,202 people, 39,761 households, and 25,893 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 101,547 people, 40,969 households, and 28,041 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 45,319 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 70.0%

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 ...

, 25.8%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.0%

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 ...

, 1.2% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. 2.9% 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. There were 40,969 households, out of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.9% 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, 16.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.6% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.96. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.5% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 27.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.5 males. The median income for a household in the county was $41,022, and the median income for a family was $51,741. Males had a median income of $41,021 versus $28,240 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 $22,725. About 12.7% of families and 16.8% 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 25.8% of those under age 18 and 11.5% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 88,787 people, 35,834 households, and 25,119 families living 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 39,571 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 73.08%

, 24.60%

, 0.37% Native American, 0.62% Asian, 0.02%

, 0.39% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. 1.26% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 35,834 households, out of which 33.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.50% were

living together, 14.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.90% were non-families. 26.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.95. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.90% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 28.70% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 13.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $34,431, and the median income for a family was $42,437. Males had a median income of $32,092 versus $21,409 for females. The

for the county was $18,759. About 11.80% of families and 15.00% of the population were below the

, including 21.10% of those under age 18 and 16.30% of those age 65 or over.

Government

, the County Chairman is Brandon Shoupe, while Peter Covert is the Chief Administrative Officer. The County Commission is: * District 1, Curtis Harvey * District 2, Tracy Adams * District 3, Rickey Herring * District 4, James Ivey Donald Valenza serves as Sheriff, Probate Judge is Patrick Davenport, Revenue Commissioner is Starla Moss, and Coroner is Robert Byrd. The county engineer is Barkley Kirkland. The District Attorney serves as prosecutor for cases in both Houston and Henry Counties. Houston County is located in Alabama's 1st congressional district; its current Representative () is Barry Moore (R). Houston County is reliably Republican at the presidential level. The last Democrat to win the county in a presidential election was Adlai Stevenson, who won it by a majority in

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, E ...

Communities

City

* Dothan (county seat; partly in Dale County and Henry County)

Towns

* Ashford * Avon * Columbia * Cottonwood * Cowarts * Gordon * Kinsey *

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

* Rehobeth * Taylor (partly in Geneva County) * Webb

Unincorporated communities

* Ardilla * Big Creek * Crosby * Grangeburg * Love Hill *

Lucy Lucy is an English language, English feminine given name derived from the Latin masculine given name Lucius with the meaning ''as of light'' (''born at dawn or daylight'', maybe also ''shiny'', or ''of light complexion''). Alternative spellings ar ...

* Pansey * Peterman * Pleasant Plains * Wicksburg

Education

There are two school districts including parts of the county: Dothan City School District and Houston County School District.
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References

External links

Houston County web site
{{coord, 31, 09, 08, N, 85, 17, 36, W, region:US-AL_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title Dothan metropolitan area, Alabama 1903 establishments in Alabama