Calhoun County, Alabama Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Calhoun County
U.S. county
Calhoun County courthouse in Anniston
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	December 18, 1832 as Benton County
Named for	John C. Calhoun
Seat	Anniston
Largest city	Oxford
Area
• Total	612 sq mi (1,590 km²)
• Land	606 sq mi (1,570 km²)
• Water	6.4 sq mi (17 km²) 1.0%
Population (2020)
• Total	116,441
• Estimate (2023)	116,429
• Density	190.26/sq mi (73.46/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd
County Number 11 on Alabama License Plates

Calhoun County is a county in the east central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,441. Its county seat is Anniston. It is named in honor of John C. Calhoun, a US Senator from South Carolina who was a staunch supporter of slavery.

Calhoun County is included in the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Benton County was established on December 18, 1832, named for Thomas Hart Benton, a member of the United States Senate from Missouri, with its county seat at Jacksonville. Benton, a slave owner, was a political ally of John C. Calhoun, another slaveholder and a U.S. senator from South Carolina. Through the 1820s-1840s, however, Benton's and Calhoun's political interests diverged, with Calhoun increasingly using secession as a weapon to maintain and expand slavery throughout the United States. Benton, on the other hand, was slowly coming to the conclusion that slavery was wrong and that preservation of the union was paramount. On January 29, 1858, Alabama supporters of slavery, objecting to Benton's change of heart, renamed Benton County as Calhoun County. In 1870, during widespread terror in the state in the run-up to the 1870 gubernatorial election, four blacks and one white were lynched.

The county seat was moved to Anniston after years of controversy and a State Supreme Court ruling in June 1900. An F4 tornado struck here on Palm Sunday March 27, 1994. It destroyed Piedmont's Goshen United Methodist Church twelve minutes after the National Weather Service of Birmingham issued a tornado warning for northern Calhoun, southeastern Etowah, and southern Cherokee.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 612 square miles (1,590 km²), of which 606 square miles (1,570 km²) is land and 6.4 square miles (17 km²) (1.0%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Cherokee County - northeast
Cleburne County - east
Talladega County - south
St. Clair County - west
Etowah County - northwest

National protected areas

Mountain Longleaf National Wildlife Refuge
Talladega National Forest (part)

Transportation

Major highways

Interstate 20
U.S. Highway 78
U.S. Highway 278
U.S. Highway 431
State Route 9
State Route 21
State Route 144
State Route 200
State Route 202
State Route 204
State Route 301

Rail

Alabama and Tennessee River Railway
Norfolk Southern Railway
Amtrak

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1840	14,260	—
1850	17,163	20.4%
1860	21,539	25.5%
1870	13,980	−35.1%
1880	19,591	40.1%
1890	33,835	72.7%
1900	34,874	3.1%
1910	39,115	12.2%
1920	47,822	22.3%
1930	55,611	16.3%
1940	63,319	13.9%
1950	79,539	25.6%
1960	95,878	20.5%
1970	103,092	7.5%
1980	119,761	16.2%
1990	116,034	−3.1%
2000	112,249	−3.3%
2010	118,572	5.6%
2020	116,441	−1.8%
2023 (est.)	116,429	−1.8%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

2020 census

Calhoun County racial composition
Race	Num.	Perc.
White (non-Hispanic)	79,519	68.29%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	25,365	21.78%
Native American	386	0.33%
Asian	1,164	1.0%
Pacific Islander	112	0.1%
Other/Mixed	4,885	4.2%
Hispanic or Latino	5,010	4.3%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 116,441 people, 44,636 households, and 28,975 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 118,572 people, 47,331 households, and 31,609 families residing in the county. The population density was 194 people per square mile (75/km²). There were 53,289 housing units at an average density of 87 per square mile (34/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 74.9% White, 20.6% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.6% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. 3.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 47,331 households, out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% 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 2.97.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.9% under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 27.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.2 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,407, and the median income for a family was $49,532. Males had a median income of $41,599 versus $29,756 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,574. About 15.2% of families and 19.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.8% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Calhoun County contains five public school districts. There are approximately 17,000 students in public K-12 schools in Calhoun County. Public school districts are not conterminous with the county boundary.

The county contains two public higher education institutions. Gadsden State Community College operates a campus located in Anniston, and Jacksonville State University, founded in 1883 and with an enrollment of over 9,000 students, is located in Jacksonville.

Districts

School districts include:

Anniston City School District
Calhoun County School District
Jacksonville City School District
Oxford City School District
Piedmont City School District

Communities

Cities

Anniston (county seat)
Glencoe (partly in Etowah County)
Jacksonville
Oxford (partly in Talladega County and in Cleburne County)
Piedmont (partly in Cherokee County)
Southside (partly in Etowah County)
Weaver

Towns

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Ghost towns

Places of interest

Calhoun County is home to Jacksonville State University, the Anniston Museum of Natural History, the Berman Museum of World History and the Coldwater Covered Bridge. It also contains a portion of the Talladega National Forest.

Calhoun County, Alabama facts for kids

Contents