Thomaston is a town in Marengo 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. At the 2020 census the population was 326, down from 417 at the 2010 census.

History

Thomaston was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted in 1901 when the railroad was extended to that point. Thomaston was named for C. B. Thomas, a town promoter. A post office called Thomaston has been in operation since 1892. It was incorporated on November 15, 1901.

Historic sites

Thomaston has one historic district, the Thomaston Central Historic District, which encompasses the core of the town. Additionally, there are three individually listed properties on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

: the Thomaston Colored Institute, C. S. Golden House, and Patrick Farrish House. The town is home to the Alabama Rural Heritage Center, and the Thomaston Community Market, (both now defunct), both community projects of Auburn University's Rural Studio. Thomaston is also home to the Alabama Whitetail Records Museum.

Geography

Thomaston is located in eastern Marengo County at .

Alabama State Route 28 State Route 28 (SR 28) is a state highway in the western part of the U.S. state of Alabama. The highway’s western terminus is at an intersection with SR 17 at Emelle in northwestern Sumter County, and its eastern terminus i ...

(Second Avenue) passes through the town, leading west to Linden, 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 southeast to Camden. State Route 25 (Range Street) crosses SR 28 in the center of town and leads north to

Greensboro Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina, af ...

and south to Thomasville. 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 ...

, Thomaston has a total area of , all land. The town drains west to Michigan Creek, which flows north to Chickasaw Bogue and is part of the

Tombigbee River The Tombigbee River is a tributary of the Mobile River, approximately 200 mi (325 km) long, in the U.S. states of Mississippi and Alabama. Together with the Alabama, it merges to form the short Mobile River before the latter empties i ...

watershed.

Demographics

2020 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 2000, there were 383 people, 163 households, and 105 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 212 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 50.13%

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 ...

, 48.56%

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 ...

, and 1.31% from two or more races. 2.35% 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 163 households, out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.9% 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, 23.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.0% were non-families. 33.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 25.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 3.01. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.0% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 21.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 79.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 69.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $25,972, and the median income for a family was $31,250. Males had a median income of $32,404 versus $21,750 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 town was $13,390. About 22.1% of families and 29.2% 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 43.2% of those under age 18 and 33.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Amelia L. Johnson High School is a small public school in Thomaston serving students from PK to high school. It is one of three high schools in Marengo County. Most of its students are African American and economically disadvantaged.

Government

Thomaston is governed by an elected mayor and council of five. Police protection is provided by the Thomaston Police Department. Thomaston has a small volunteer fire department. A rural health clinic is located in Thomaston and can handle small emergencies. It is open weekdays to offer medical care.

References

External links

*
Alabama Rural Heritage Foundation
{{authority control Towns in Marengo County, Alabama Towns in Alabama Populated places established in 1892