Lee County, Alabama Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Lee County
County
Main façade of Lee Courthouse, 2009
Motto(s): "The Heart of Dixie"
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	December 5, 1866; 157 years ago (1866-12-05)
Named for	General Robert E. Lee
Seat	Opelika
Largest city	Auburn
Area
• Total	616 sq mi (1,600 km²)
• Land	608 sq mi (1,570 km²)
• Water	8.3 sq mi (21 km²) 1.3%
Population (2020)
• Total	174,241
• Estimate (2023)	183,215
• Density	282.86/sq mi (109.21/km²)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	3rd
County Number 43 on Alabama License Plates Largest County by population not shuffled to top 08 on Alabama License Plates

Lee County is a county located in east central Alabama. As of the 2020 census the population was 174,241. The county seat is Opelika, and the largest city is Auburn. The county was established in 1866 and is named for General Robert E. Lee (1807–1870), who served as General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate States in 1865. Lee County comprises the Auburn-Opelika, AL Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Columbus-Auburn-Opelika, GA-AL Combined Statistical Area.

History
Geography
Demographics
- 2020 census
- 2010 census
Education
Communities
Places of interest
Gallery
See also

History

19th century

Lee County was established by the State Legislature on December 5, 1866, comprising parts of Macon, Tallapoosa, Chambers, and Russell counties. In an election to determine the county seat, Opelika was chosen over Auburn and Salem.

20th century

In 1923, Phenix City, located in the southeastern corner of Lee County, merged with the town of Girard, located in the northeastern corner of Russell County. To prevent the new town of Phenix City from straddling the Lee-Russell line, Lee County ceded to Russell County the 10 square miles (25.9 km²) in the southeastern corner surrounding Phenix City in exchange for 20 square miles (51.8 km²) in the northwest corner of Russell County surrounding the unincorporated community of Marvyn. This territory is what forms the southern "panhandle" of Lee County. Even after the land swap with Russell County, however, the city limits of present-day Phenix City stretch into the southeastern corner of Lee.

21st century

On March 3, 2019, a series of tornadoes hit the county, killing 23 people and injuring others. The deaths and injuries occurred in the community of Beauregard, situated southeast of the Auburn-Opelika metropolitan area.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 616 square miles (1,600 km²), of which 608 square miles (1,570 km²) is land and 8.3 square miles (21 km²) (1.3%) is water.

The county straddles the fall line between the Piedmont region to the north, and the Gulf coastal plain to the south. Thus, northern areas of the county are hillier compared to southern areas of the county.

Major highways

Interstate 85
U.S. Highway 29
U.S. Highway 80
U.S. Highway 280
U.S. Highway 431
State Route 14
State Route 51
State Route 147
State Route 169

Adjacent counties

Railroads

CSX A&WP Subdivision
Norfolk Southern Central of Georgia District

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1870	21,750	—
1880	27,262	25.3%
1890	28,694	5.3%
1900	31,826	10.9%
1910	32,867	3.3%
1920	32,821	−0.1%
1930	36,063	9.9%
1940	36,455	1.1%
1950	45,073	23.6%
1960	49,754	10.4%
1970	61,268	23.1%
1980	76,283	24.5%
1990	87,146	14.2%
2000	115,092	32.1%
2010	140,247	21.9%
2020	174,241	24.2%
2023 (est.)	183,215	30.6%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

2020 census

**Lee 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)	84,298	97,900	107,795	73.24%	69.81%	63.01%
Black or African American alone (NH)	25,954	31,674	39,252	22.55%	22.58%	22.53%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	251	397	365	0.22%	0.28%	0.21%
Asian alone (NH)	1,864	3,615	8,544	1.62%	2.58%	4.90%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	19	66	108	0.02%	0.05%	0.06%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	99	164	462	0.09%	0.12%	0.27%
Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH)	962	1,860	6,580	0.84%	1.33%	3.78%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	1,645	4,571	9,135	1.43%	3.26%	5.24%
Total	115,092	140,247	174,241	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the 2020 census, there were 174,241 people, 68,728 households, and 41,796 families residing in the county. The population density was 286.8 inhabitants per square mile (110.7/km²) There were 74,856 housing units.

2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 140,247 people, 55,682 households, and 33,692 families living in the county. The population density was 227.7 people per square mile (87.9 people/km²). There were 62,391 housing units at an average density of 101.3 units per square mile (39.1 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 71.3% White, 22.7% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 2.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.3% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. 3.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 55,682 households 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.1% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 27.9% of households were one person and 6.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.03.

The age distribution was 22.5% under the age of 18, 20.5% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% 65 or older. The median age was 28.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.0 males.

The median household income was $40,894 and the median family income was $59,112. Males had a median income of $42,335 versus $31,766 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,794. About 11.0% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Lee County is home to Auburn University, a large comprehensive public university, and Southern Union State Community College, a two-year degree and technical college.

Communities

Population distribution in Lee County by municipality, 2010

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Places of interest

Lee County is home to Auburn University Museum of Natural History, Chewacla State Park, the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Bean's Mill, the Salem-Shotwell Covered Bridge and the Grand National Golf course which is part of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.

Gallery

Samford Hall at the Auburn University, 2008.
Southern Union SCC's Opelika Campus, 2011.
Opelika's Historic Railroad Avenue, 2011.
Auburn University Regional Airport, 2007.

Lee County, Alabama facts for kids

Contents