Houston County, Alabama facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Houston County
County
Houston County courthouse in Dothan
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	February 9, 1903
Named for	George S. Houston
Seat	Dothan
Largest city	Dothan
Area
• Total	582 sq mi (1,510 km2)
• Land	580 sq mi (1,500 km2)
• Water	1.8 sq mi (5 km2)  0.3%
Population  (2020)
• Total	107,202
• Estimate  (2023)	108,462
• Density	184.20/sq mi (71.12/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	2nd
County Number 38 on Alabama Licence Plates

Houston County is a county located in the southeastern part of Alabama. In 2020, about 107,202 people lived there. The main city, called the county seat, is Dothan. Dothan is partly in Houston County and partly in Henry County.

Houston County is part of the larger Dothan, Alabama metropolitan area.

A Look Back: Houston County's History

Houston County was created on February 9, 1903. It was formed from parts of Dale, Geneva, and Henry counties. The county was named after George Smith Houston. He was the 24th Governor of Alabama.

This area of Alabama was important for its pine trees and the turpentine industry. It also had large farms that grew cotton. Many people were forced to work on these farms.

For a long time, most people living here were African American. But in the early 1900s, many moved to cities in the North and Midwest. They were looking for better jobs and to escape unfair rules. At that time, many laws made it very hard for African Americans to vote. Many poor white people also faced similar challenges.

The original courthouse building

Geography: Where is Houston County?

Houston County covers about 582 square miles. Most of this area is land, with only a small part being water. The county is located in the Wiregrass region of southeast Alabama.

Main Roads in Houston County

These are the most important highways that run through the county:

• US 84
• US 231
• US 431
• SR 52
• SR 53
• SR 92
• SR 95
• SR 103
• SR 123
• SR 134
• SR 210
• SR 605

Neighboring Counties

Houston County shares its borders with these other counties:

• Henry County (to the north)
• Early County, Georgia (to the east)
• Seminole County, Georgia (to the southeast)
• Jackson County, Florida (to the south)
• Geneva County (to the west)
• Dale County (to the northwest)

Demographics: Who Lives Here?

In 2020, the county had 107,202 people. There were 39,761 households and 25,893 families.

Population in 2010

In 2010, there were 101,547 people living in Houston County. The population density was about 175 people per square mile.

The people living in the county were made up of different groups:

• 70.0% White
• 25.8% Black or African American
• 0.4% Native American
• 0.8% Asian
• 1.2% from other races
• 1.7% from two or more races
• 2.9% of the population were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).

About 29.2% of households had children under 18. About 47.9% were married couples living together. The average household had 2.44 people. The average family had 2.96 people.

The median age in the county was 38.5 years. This means half the people were younger than 38.5 and half were older.

Communities in Houston County

Houston County has one city, several towns, and many smaller, unincorporated communities.

City

• Dothan (This is the county seat. It is partly in Dale County and Henry County.)

Towns

Unincorporated Communities

These are smaller places that are not officially cities or towns.

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Houston (Alabama) para niños