Sumter County, Alabama

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Sumter County Courthouse
Sumter County Courthouse
administration
US state : Alabama
Administrative headquarters : Livingston
Address of the
administrative headquarters: 		County Courthouse
P.O. Box 70
Livingston, AL 35470-0070
Foundation : December 18, 1832
Made up from: Original County
Area code : 001 205
Demographics
Residents : 13,763  (2010)
Population density : 5.9 inhabitants / km 2
geography
Total area : 2365 km²
Water surface : 22 km²
map
Map of Sumter County within Alabama

The Sumter County is a county in the US state of Alabama . The county seat is in Livingston .

geography

The county is located in western Alabama, borders Mississippi to the west and covers an area of ​​2,365 square kilometers (900 square miles), of which 22 square kilometers are water. The following counties border Alabama clockwise: Pickens County , Greene County , Marengo County, and Choctaw County .

Sumter County is located on the eastern Gulf Coast Plain , made up of gently sloping prairies and shallow lowlands on the coast. The eastern border is formed by the Tombigbee River , which has the highest biodiversity in the country and is home to some endangered species . Oak forests grow along the banks of the Tombigbee and its tributaries , while the prairies are more dotted with spruce pines. The river has become fully navigable through a series of locks and dams, construction of which began in the 1930s .

history

Sumter County was formed on December 18, 1832 from parts of the Choctaw Indian Territory, which was ceded to the United States by the Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek in 1830 . Livingston became the first and to this day only district capital. The county was named after Brigadier General Thomas Sumter from South Carolina who fought in the American Revolutionary War. He later served in both the Senate and the United States House of Representatives . He was the last surviving officer from the War of Independence.

The county's first settlers came from North Carolina , South Carolina, Georgia , Tennessee, and Virginia . Some of the first cities were Gaston , Gainesville , Payneville , Bluffport , Warsaw , Tompkinsville, and Sumterville .

The first public school, Livingston State Normal School , was founded in 1883. Today's brick courthouse was built in 1902 after two previous wooden buildings burned down in the same place in 1839 and 1901.

economy

As part of the Black Belt , Sumter County was dominated by agriculture well into the 20th century. Mainly cotton , grain and sweet potatoes were grown . Due to the proximity to the Tombigbee River, the goods could easily be exported to more distant areas. At the end of the 19th century, Gainesville was at times one of the largest inland ports in the world where cotton was handled. After damage caused by the boll weevil and the Great Depression , farmers tried to mixed cultivation convert, but only with limited success. Nowadays, cattle is mostly farmed, the most important branch of industry is the timber industry .

education

Sumter County's school system employs more than 350 teachers who teach approximately 2,700 students in seven primary and secondary schools. The University of West Alabama at Livingston, formerly Livingston Female Academy , offers a traditional four-year college undergraduate and graduate programs.

Demographic data

growth of population
Census Residents ± in%
1840 29,937 -
1850 22,250 -25.7%
1860 24,035 8th %
1870 24,109 0.3%
1880 28,728 19.2%
1890 29,574 2.9%
1900 32,710 10.6%
1910 28,699 -12.3%
1920 25,569 -10.9%
1930 26,929 5.3%
1940 27,321 1.5%
1950 23,610 -13.6%
1960 20,041 -15.1%
1970 16,974 -15.3%
1980 16,908 -0.4%
1990 16,174 -4.3%
2000 14,798 -8.5%
2010 13,763 -7%
Before 1900

1900–1990 2000 2010

Sumter County's age pyramid (as of 2000)

As of the 2000 census , Sumter County had 14,798 people. Of these, 253 people lived in collective accommodation, the other residents lived in 5,708 households and 3,664 families. The population density was 6 people per square kilometer. The racial the population was composed of 73.17 percent African American, 25.92 percent white, 0.10 percent Asian, 0.09 percent Native American, 0.01 percent of residents from the Pacific island area and 0.18 percent from other ethnic groups Groups; 0.52 percent were descended from two or more races. 1.12 percent of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 5,708 households, 31.9 percent had children and young people under the age of 18 living with them. There were married couples living together in 36.7 percent, 23.5 percent were single mothers, 35.8 percent were not families, 31.2 percent of all households were single households and 12.3 percent had people aged 65 and over or above. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.26 people.

29.1 percent of the population were under 18 years old, 12.2 percent between 18 and 24, 25.3 percent between 25 and 44, 19.5 percent between 45 and 64 and 13.9 percent were 65 years or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 84.9 males and for women aged 18 and over there were 78.2 males.

With a median household income of $ 18,911 and a median family income of $ 23,176, Sumter is one of the poorest counties in Alabama. Males had a median income of $ 28,059 versus $ 17,574 for females. The per capita income was $ 11,491. 32.9 percent of families and 38.7 percent of the population lived below the poverty line.

cities and communes

The largest city in Sumter County is Livingston with an estimated 3,485 inhabitants ( as of 2010 ). Other population centers include York , Cuba, and Gainesville .

Culture and sights

Old Town Gainesville has several historic cemeteries and churches, including a Presbyterian Church building from 1837, a Methodist Church from 1872, an Episcopal Church founded in 1879, and a Confederate Cemetery. The Coleman Center for the Arts in York is home to a small art museum, library, and cultural center. In addition to the permanent exhibition, which shows an original drawing by Renoir , the museum also has traveling exhibitions .

The Alamuchee Covered Bridge

The Alamuchee Covered Bridge on the University of West Alabama campus was built in 1861 by Captain WAC Jones of Livingston and is one of the oldest surviving covered bridges in the south. It was made from hand-planed pine heartwood and originally spanned the Sucarnoochee River . In 1924 the bridge was moved over a stream on the old road between Bellamy and Livingston, then moved to the university grounds in 1958 and restored in 1971. There is also an open-air exhibition with sculptures by contemporary artists on campus.

Coffin Shop (2008)

A total of 13 structures and sites in the county are listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) as of April 13, 2020, including the Coffin Shop , the Gainesville Historic District and Oakhurst .

literature

  • Thomas McAdory Owen: History of Alabama and Dictionary of Alabama Biography. SJ Clarke Publishing Co., Chicago IL 1921.
  • Virginia O. Foscue: Place Names in Alabama. University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa et al. 1989, ISBN 0-8173-0410-X .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ GNIS-ID: 161585. Retrieved on February 22, 2011 (English).
  2. ↑ Sumter County at alabama.gov . Retrieved February 12, 2011
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g Donna J. Siebenthaler: Sumter County . In: Encyclopedia of Alabama . 2013.
  4. ↑ Charles Curry Aiken, Joseph Nathan Kane: The American Counties: Origins of County Names, Dates of Creation, Area, and Population Data, 1950-2010 . 6th edition. Scarecrow Press, Lanham 2013, ISBN 978-0-8108-8762-6 , p. 294.
  5. ↑ US Census Bureau - Census of Population and Housing . Retrieved March 15, 2011
  6. ↑ Extract from Census.gov . Retrieved February 28, 2011
  7. ↑ Excerpt from factfinder.census.gov.Retrieved February 28, 2011
  8. ^ Extract from census.gov.Retrieved March 31, 2012
  9. ↑ Sumter County, Alabama , 2000 census data sheet at factfinder.census.gov .
  10. ↑ Search mask database in the National Register Information System. National Park Service , accessed April 13, 2020.
    Weekly List on the National Register Information System. National Park Service , accessed April 13, 2020.

Web links

Commons : Sumter County, Alabama  - collection of pictures, videos, and audio files

Coordinates: 32 ° 36 ′  N , 88 ° 12 ′  W