Crenshaw County, Alabama Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Crenshaw County
U.S. county
Crenshaw County courthouse in Luverne
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	November 30, 1866
Named for	Anderson Crenshaw
Seat	Luverne
Largest city	Luverne
Area
• Total	611 sq mi (1,580 km²)
• Land	609 sq mi (1,580 km²)
• Water	2.1 sq mi (5 km²) 0.3%
Population (2020)
• Total	13,194
• Estimate (2023)	13,101
• Density	21.594/sq mi (8.338/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	2nd
County Number 24 on Alabama Licence Plates

Crenshaw County is a county located in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is located immediately south of the Montgomery metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,194. Its county seat is Luverne. Its name is in honor of an Alabama judge, Anderson Crenshaw.

History
Geography
- Major highways
- Adjacent counties
Demographics
- 2020 Census
- 2010 census
Communities
See also

History

Crenshaw County was established after the American Civil War on November 30, 1866, by the Reconstruction era legislature. It was formed from parts of Butler, Coffee, Covington, Pike and Lowndes counties. While part of the coastal area, this county had relatively infertile soils, limiting cotton and other agriculture. Its planters used enslaved African Americans for all needed types of labor. Many of their descendants stayed in the area, and nearly one-quarter of the county population is African American.

Crenshaw County became a center of timbering in the Piney Wood region, especially after the Montgomery and Florida Railroad Company constructed a line through the county in 1886. This provided transport to markets for timber. It connected with Sprague Junction in Montgomery County, Alabama. The timber camps were rough work areas where racial tensions sometimes flared.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 611 square miles (1,580 km²), of which 609 square miles (1,580 km²) is land and 2.1 square miles (5.4 km²) (0.3%) is water. The county is located in the Gulf Coastal Plain region of the state. Much of the land is also covered by forests that are used for logging.

Major highways

U.S. Highway 29
U.S. Highway 331
State Route 10
State Route 97
State Route 106
State Route 141
State Route 189

Adjacent counties

Montgomery County (north)
Pike County (east)
Coffee County (southeast)
Covington County (south)
Butler County (west)
Lowndes County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1870	11,156	—
1880	11,726	5.1%
1890	15,425	31.5%
1900	19,668	27.5%
1910	23,313	18.5%
1920	23,017	−1.3%
1930	23,656	2.8%
1940	23,631	−0.1%
1950	18,981	−19.7%
1960	14,909	−21.5%
1970	13,188	−11.5%
1980	14,110	7.0%
1990	13,635	−3.4%
2000	13,665	0.2%
2010	13,906	1.8%
2020	13,194	−5.1%
2023 (est.)	13,101	−5.8%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

2020 Census

**Crenshaw County, Alabama – Racial and Ethnic Composition**
(*NH = Non-Hispanic*)
*Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.*
Race / Ethnicity	Pop 2000	Pop 2010	Pop 2020	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	10,042	10,020	9,333	73.49%	72.06%	70.74%
Black or African American alone (NH)	3,369	3,241	3,085	24.65%	23.31%	23.38%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	51	56	48	0.37%	0.40%	0.36%
Asian alone (NH)	15	189	83	0.11%	1.36%	0.63%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	1	1	2	0.01%	0.01%	0.02%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	11	2	27	0.08%	0.01%	0.20%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH)	89	193	429	0.65%	1.39%	3.25%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	87	204	187	0.64%	1.47%	1.42%
Total	13,665	13,906	13,194	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 13,194 people, 4,943 households, and 3,384 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 13,906 people, 5,652 households, and 3,882 families living in the county. The population density was 23 people per square mile (8.9 people/km²). There were 6,735 housing units at an average density of 11 units per square mile (4.2 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 72.6% White, 23.4% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 1.4% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.7% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. 1.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,652 households, out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% were married couples living together, 15.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.3% were non-families. 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.9% 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 23.8% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 28.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.7 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.3 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,140, and the median income for a family was $47,685. Males had a median income of $35,598 versus $22,410 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,793. About 13.7% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.5% of those under age 18 and 16.7% of those age 65 or over.

The largest self-reported ancestry groups in Crenshaw County were English (64.5%), German (12.1%), Irish (11.2%), Italian (3.9%), "American" (3.1%), Scottish (2.9%) and Portuguese (1.8%).

Crenshaw County, Alabama facts for kids

Contents

History

Geography

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

2020 Census

2010 census

Communities

City

Towns

Unincorporated communities

See also