Madison 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 north central portion 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 388,153, and according to a 2023 population estimate the county has become the second-most populous county in Alabama after only Jefferson County, home to Birmingham. 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 Huntsville. Since the mid-20th century it has become an area of defense and space research and industry. The county is named in honor of

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

, fourth

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

and the first President to visit the state of Alabama. Madison County covers parts of the former

Decatur County Decatur County is the name of various past and present counties in the United States, all named for Stephen Decatur Commodore (United States), Commodore Stephen Decatur Jr. (; January 5, 1779 – March 22, 1820) was a United States Navy of ...

. Madison County is included in the Huntsville, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Madison County was established on December 13, 1808, by the governor of the

Mississippi Territory The Territory of Mississippi was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that was created under an organic act passed by the United States Congress, Congress of the United States. It was approved and signed into law by Presiden ...

. It is recognized as the "birthplace" of the state of

, which was admitted to the Union on December 14, 1819. Huntsville was designated as the first capital of the new state. For much of the county's history, its economy was based on agriculture, particularly cotton plantations, which were established across the uplands. These plantations and their owners' profits were dependent on the labor of enslaved African Americans before the Civil War. Madison County was one of the largest

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

-producing counties in the state. Madison County was the largest county in Alabama in population from 1810 to 1840. In the 1810 census alone, Madison County made up nearly half of the population in what would become Alabama, though this did not include Native American tribes and their people. By 1850 however it would lose the title and be the 7th due to its population growth having slowed down. The likely reason was due to Madison County having mainly relied on cotton with little to no other industries. Cotton remained important after the war. Most labor for cultivation was still provided by African Americans, but they worked as sharecroppers and tenant farmers. By the late 19th century, textile mills had been established around the county; they were restricted to white workers by the

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 ...

practices of racial segregation. During the early 20th century, the economy continued to be largely agricultural, although textile mills expanded their production. During World War II, the Army established

Redstone Arsenal Redstone Arsenal is a United States Army base adjacent to Huntsville, Alabama in the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge. A census-designated place in Madison County, Alabama, United States, it is part of the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistica ...

here as a chemical weapon manufacturing site, and the county attracted related industries. After the war, it became a center of new weapon and rocket development. In 1950, a group of exiled German

rocket scientist A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...

s, led by

Wernher von Braun Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( ; ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German–American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and '' Allgemeine SS'', the leading figure in the development of ...

, came to Redstone Arsenal from

Fort Bliss Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Established in 1848, the fort was renamed in 1854 to honor William Wallace Smith Bliss, Bvt.Lieut.Colonel William W.S. Bliss (1815–1853 ...

, Texas in order to conduct research and development of new types of rockets. By the 1960s, research expanded to rockets for space exploration. The Redstone rocket was modified to launch the first two Americans into space. The US began to emphasize investment in the

Space Race The Space Race (, ) was a 20th-century competition between the Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between t ...

, in order to compete with the Soviet Union during the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

years and to increase scientific gains. This work in the defense and space industries has generated tens of thousands of jobs in the area, most of them private contractors working in these fields. The population of Madison County has risen from 72,903 in 1950 to an estimated 403,565 in 2022.

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 (1.4%) is water. The topography in the southern and eastern portions of the county is dominated by the dissected remnants of the

Cumberland Plateau The Cumberland Plateau is the southern part of the Appalachian Plateau in the Appalachian Mountains of the United States. It includes much of eastern Kentucky and Tennessee, and portions of northern Alabama and northwest Georgia. The terms " Al ...

, such as Keel Mountain,

Monte Sano Mountain Monte Sano Mountain is a mountain located in Huntsville, Alabama. The name ''Monte Sano'' is Spanish for "Mountain of health". The mountain was given its name by Dr. Thomas Fern, who along with his two brothers, founded a small colony on the mo ...

and

Green Mountain Green Mountain is a common name for "The Peak", the highest point and a stratovolcano on Ascension Island, which has gained some fame for claims that it is one of very few large-scale artificial forests. Green Mountain is ranked 38th by topograp ...

. The northern and western portions of the county are flatter.

Rivers

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 ...

* Flint River * Paint Rock River

Adjacent counties

* Lincoln County, Tennessee (north) * Franklin County, Tennessee (northeast) * Jackson County (east) * Marshall County (southeast) * Morgan County (southwest) * Limestone County (west)

National protected area

Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge The Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge is a national wildlife refuge (NWR) located along the Tennessee River near Decatur, Alabama. Named after Major General Joseph Wheeler, it was established to provide a habitat for wintering and migrating bi ...

(part)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 388,153 people, 157,770 households, and 101,684 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 169,820 housing units.

2010

As of the 2010 census, there were 334,811 people, 109,955 households, out of which 33.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them; 53.40% 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, 11.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.50% were non-families. Nearly 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.40% 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 3.00. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.60% under the age of 18, 9.40% from 18 to 24, 31.50% from 25 to 44, 22.70% from 45 to 64, and 10.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $44,704, and the median income for a family was $54,360. Males had a median income of $40,779 versus $26,534 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 $23,091. About 8.10% of families and 10.50% 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 14.10% of those under age 18 and 9.60% of those age 65 or over.

2000

As of the 2000 census, there were 276,700 people, 109,955 households, and 75,319 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 120,288 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 72.06%

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 ...

, 22.78%

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 ...

, 0.77% Native American, 1.86% Asian, 0.06%

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 ...

, 0.59% from other races, and 1.89% from two or more races. Nearly 1.91% 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. According to the 2000 census, the largest ancestry groups in Madison County were English 50.2%, African 22.78%, Scots-Irish 8.71%, Irish 4.3%,

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

4.12%, and Welsh 2.9%.

Communities

Cities

* Huntsville (county seat; portions in Limestone County and Morgan County) * Madison (partly in Limestone County) * New Hope * Owens Cross Roads

Towns

* Gurley * Triana

Census-designated places

Harvest Harvesting is the process of collecting plants, animals, or fish (as well as fungi) as food, especially the process of gathering mature crops, and "the harvest" also refers to the collected crops. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulses fo ...

* Hazel Green * Meridianville * Moores Mill * New Market *

Unincorporated communities

* Big Cove * Brownsboro * Chase * Hobbs Island * Maysville *

Monrovia Monrovia () is the administrative capital city, capital and largest city of Liberia. Founded in 1822, it is located on Cape Mesurado on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast and as of the 2022 census had 1,761,032 residents, home to 33.5% of Liber ...

* Moontown * Plevna * Poplar Ridge *

Rainbow A rainbow is an optical phenomenon caused by refraction, internal reflection and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a continuous spectrum of light appearing in the sky. The rainbow takes the form of a multicoloured circular ...

* Ryland * Toney

Education

The Madison County School System operates public schools throughout unincorporated Madison County as well as the municipalities of Gurley, New Hope, and Owens Cross Roads. Communities served include Hazel Green,

, Meridianville,

, Moores Mill, New Market,

, and Toney. It also includes a few parcels of Huntsville.
Text list
- Huntsville parcel in county schools is on page 4 (PDF p. 5/7).. The system has 14 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, 5 high schools and a ninth grade school, and a career/technical center. High schools in the Madison County School System are: * Buckhorn High School ( New Market) * Hazel Green High School * Madison County High School ( Gurley) * New Hope High School * Sparkman High School (Harvest) There are a number of private schools serving Madison County. These include Randolph School, Madison Academy, Westminster Christian Academy, Faith Christian Academy, and several others. Madison City and the vast majority of Huntsville both have their own separate school systems ( Madison City School District and Huntsville City School District). The Madison City School District also includes the town of Triana.

Transportation

Major highways

* Interstate 565 * U.S. Highway 72 ( University Drive in Huntsville city limits) * U.S. Highway 231 ( Memorial Parkway in Huntsville city limits) * U.S. Highway 431 ( Governors Drive in Medical District of Huntsville; Memorial Parkway for rest of length in Huntsville City Limits) * State Route 53 (Jordan Lane in much of Huntsville city limits) * State Route 255 ( Research Park Boulevard)

Transit

Orbit In celestial mechanics, an orbit (also known as orbital revolution) is the curved trajectory of an object such as the trajectory of a planet around a star, or of a natural satellite around a planet, or of an artificial satellite around an ...

Rail

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

* Huntsville and Madison County Railroad Authority

Air travel

The Port of Huntsville provides both passenger air service, via Huntsville International Airport which allows access to most of the rest of the United States, and shipping air service, via the International Intermodal Center. There are also three smaller public airports in the county: Hazel Green Airport, Madison County Executive Airport, and Moontown Airport.

Bicycle routes

There are several bicycle routes in the city of Huntsville. Madison County has a master plan to develop a 70-mile bicycle and walking trail.

Politics

Madison County was formerly an overwhelmingly Democratic county as with most of the rest of Alabama, with only a narrow loss by

Al Smith Alfred Emanuel Smith (December 30, 1873 – October 4, 1944) was the 42nd governor of New York, serving from 1919 to 1920 and again from 1923 to 1928. He was the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party's presidential nominee in the 1 ...

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

due to Prohibitionist anti-Catholicism disrupting this trend until the 1960s. Even in 1964, the county nearly voted against

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

due to its opposition to the Arizona Senator's privatization plans for 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 ...

. However, since that time, the county has become solidly Republican, with the only national Democratic nominee to carry the county since 1960 being Deep South native

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 ...

in 1976. In the 2016 election,

Gary Johnson Gary Earl Johnson (born January 1, 1953) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 29th List of governors of New Mexico, governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003 as a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republica ...

had his best showing in the state, carrying 4.05 percent of the vote. The county is trending less Republican recently, 58.9% in 2004, 56.9% in 2008, 54.8% in 2016, and in 2020 the Republican margin of victory was the lowest since 1980. For Alabama counties supporting Donald Trump in 2016, it was the fourth narrowest margin, and in 2020 the third-narrowest after Conecuh and Barbour. The governing body of the county is a commission. The commission is responsible for levying the county tax, establish, maintain, and discontinue county roads and bridges. The commission is also responsible for the county jail as well as the sheriff's department. The County Commission is composed of seven members. A Chairman is elected at-large by the county while each of the other six members is elected by their districts. Each commissioner serves a four-year term. In 2020, Violet Edwards made history becoming the first black woman to be elected to the Madison County Commission.

Places of interest

Madison County is home to Monte Sano State Park, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, and part of the Flint River. It also contains Hampton Cove Golf Course, part of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. There is a historical marker for Lincoln School and Village which were incorporated into Huntsville in 1956.Alabama Historical Marker: Lincoln School and Village.
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References

External links

Madison County web siteMadison County Schools

Madison Alabama Chamber of Commerce
*Madison Count
map of roads/towns
(map © 2007 Univ. of Alabama).
Margaret Rieder Collection, The University of Alabama in Huntsville Archives and Special Collections
Historian's collection of research and documents on Madison County history. {{authority control Huntsville-Decatur, AL Combined Statistical Area 1808 establishments in Mississippi Territory Populated places established in 1808