Rock Run is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Cherokee 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. Rock Run is located on County Route 29, southeast of

Centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

History

Rock Run had its start as a

mining community A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Historical mining communities Australia * Ballarat, Victoria * Bendi ...

, and may have been named from a run on the rocks containing

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the f ...

. According to another story, a settler climbing a hill dislodged a rock, and watching it roll down the hill, said "Look at that rock run!" A post office operated under the name Rock Run from 1883 to 1957.

Demographics

In 1890, it was listed on the U.S. Census as having 360 residents, making it the largest incorporated community in Cherokee County, narrowly ahead of

, the county seat.

Gallery

Below are photographs of Rock Run as documented by the

Historic American Engineering Record Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS). It administers three programs established to document historic places in the United States: Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American E ...

: File:RESIDUAL FOUNDATIONS FROM FURNACE OPERATION. - Rock Run Furnace and Town, County Road 12, Rock Run, Cherokee County, AL HAER AL-193-6.tif, Furnace foundations File:REMAINS OF FOUNDATION. - Rock Run Furnace and Town, County Road 12, Rock Run, Cherokee County, AL HAER AL-193-7.tif, Furnace foundation File:CROSS SECTIONAL VIEW OF FURNACE BASE. - Rock Run Furnace and Town, County Road 12, Rock Run, Cherokee County, AL HAER AL-193-5.tif, Furnace foundation File:1890's COMMISSARY BUILDING LOOKING NE. - Rock Run Furnace and Town, County Road 12, Rock Run, Cherokee County, AL HAER AL-193-1.tif, 1890 furnace commissary building

References

External links

* Historic American Engineering Record in Alabama Unincorporated communities in Cherokee County, Alabama Unincorporated communities in Alabama {{US-ghost-town-stub