Perry County, Alabama

Perry County
County
Perry County courthouse in Marion
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°38′09″N87°17′31″W / 32.635833333333°N 87.291944444444°W / 32.635833333333; -87.291944444444
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	December 13, 1819
Named for	Oliver Hazard Perry
Seat	Marion
Largest city	Marion
Area
• Total	724 sq mi (1,880 km2)
• Land	720 sq mi (1,900 km2)
• Water	4.2 sq mi (11 km2)  0.6%
Population  (2020)
• Total	8,511
• Estimate  (2023)	7,738
• Density	12/sq mi (4.5/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th
Website	www.perrycountyal.gov/home
County Number 53 on Alabama Licence Plates

Perry County is a county located in the Black Belt region in the central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,511. ^[1] Its county seat is Marion. ^[2] The county was established in 1819 and is named in honor of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry of Rhode Island and the United States Navy. ^[3] As of 2020, ^[update] Perry County was the only county in Alabama, and one of 40 in the United States, not to have access to any wired broadband connections. ^[4]

History

In 1935, a sharecropper called Joe Spinner Johnson was organizing sharecroppers into a union. His landlord called him away from his job, and gave him up to a gang of whites. They tied him up, beat him, and took him to Selma, where he was thrown in jail. Other prisoners heard him screaming and being beaten. A few days later, his mutilated body turned up near Greensboro. ^[5]

The Perry County town of Marion was the site of a 1965 killing of an unarmed Black man, Jimmie Lee Jackson, by a white state trooper, James Bonard Fowler, which sparked the Selma to Montgomery marches. In 2008, the county voted to establish a Barack Obama Day, a legal holiday, every second Monday of November. ^[6]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 724 square miles (1,880 km²), of which 720 square miles (1,900 km²) is land and 4.2 square miles (11 km²) (0.6%) is water. ^[7] The county boasts a diverse geography, with the southern half of the county being located in the Gulf Coastal Plain region, and the northern half of the county being located in the far southern extensions of the foothills of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians. This area is mainly forested, with some hills and valleys. ^[8]

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 80
• State Route 5
• State Route 14
• State Route 61
• State Route 175
• State Route 183
• State Route 219
• State Route 289

Adjacent counties

• Bibb County (north)
• Chilton County (northeast)
• Dallas County (east)
• Marengo County (southwest)
• Hale County (west)

National protected area

• Talladega National Forest (part)

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1820	3,646		—
1830	11,490		215.1%
1840	19,086		66.1%
1850	22,285		16.8%
1860	27,724		24.4%
1870	24,975		−9.9%
1880	30,741		23.1%
1890	29,332		−4.6%
1900	31,783		8.4%
1910	31,222		−1.8%
1920	25,373		−18.7%
1930	26,385		4.0%
1940	26,610		0.9%
1950	20,439		−23.2%
1960	17,358		−15.1%
1970	15,388		−11.3%
1980	15,012		−2.4%
1990	12,759		−15.0%
2000	11,861		−7.0%
2010	10,591		−10.7%
2020	8,511		−19.6%
2023 (est.)	7,738	[9]	−9.1%
U.S. Decennial Census [10] 1790–1960 [11] 1900–1990 [12] 1990–2000 [13] 2010–2020 [1]

2020 Census

Perry County, Alabama – Racial and ethnic composition
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 (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000 [14]	Pop 2010 [15]	Pop 2020 [16]	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	3,642	3,142	2,345	30.71%	29.67%	27.55%
Black or African American alone (NH)	8,057	7,244	5,914	67.93%	68.40%	69.49%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	9	17	15	0.08%	0.16%	0.18%
Asian alone (NH)	4	30	10	0.03%	0.28%	0.12%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	2	5	1	0.02%	0.05%	0.01%
Other race alone (NH)	1	4	0	0.01%	0.04%	0.00%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	44	35	137	0.37%	0.33%	1.61%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	102	114	89	0.86%	1.08%	1.05%
Total	11,861	10,591	8,511	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 8,511 people, 3,070 households, and 1,476 families residing in the county.

Perry County was ranked as the county with the level of obesity by U.S. News & World Report, with a 52.5% obesity rate in 2024. ^[17]

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 10,591 people living in the county. 68.7% were Black or African American, 30.3% White, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% Native American, 0.2% of some other race and 0.4% of two or more races. 1.1% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).

2000 census

As of the census ^[18] of 2000, there were 11,861 people, 4,333 households, and 3,046 families living in the county. The population density was 16 people per square mile (6.2 people/km²). There were 5,406 housing units at an average density of 8 units per square mile (3.1 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 68.38% Black or African American, 30.86% White, 0.08% Native American, 0.03% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 0.54% from two or more races. Nearly 0.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,333 households, out of which 33.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.40% were married couples living together, 25.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. Nearly 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63, and the average family size was 3.23.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 29.80% under the age of 18, 11.10% from 18 to 24, 23.60% from 25 to 44, 20.70% from 45 to 64, and 14.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $20,200, and the median income for a family was $26,150. Males had a median income of $26,272 versus $16,839 for females. The per capita income for the county was $10,948. About 31.20% of families and 35.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 48.90% of those under age 18 and 25.80% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Perry County Circuit Clerk

United States presidential election results for Perry County, Alabama ^[19]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	1,339	25.60%	3,860	73.80%	31	0.59%
2016	1,407	26.66%	3,824	72.45%	47	0.89%
2012	1,506	24.68%	4,568	74.87%	27	0.44%
2008	1,679	27.26%	4,457	72.37%	23	0.37%
2004	1,738	31.47%	3,767	68.21%	18	0.33%
2000	1,732	29.93%	4,020	69.47%	35	0.60%
1996	1,703	28.85%	4,053	68.66%	147	2.49%
1992	1,829	31.46%	3,712	63.86%	272	4.68%
1988	2,107	36.59%	3,574	62.07%	77	1.34%
1984	2,600	48.08%	2,731	50.50%	77	1.42%
1980	2,262	34.68%	4,208	64.52%	52	0.80%
1976	2,164	32.38%	4,486	67.13%	33	0.49%
1972	2,800	49.13%	2,718	47.69%	181	3.18%
1968	308	5.55%	2,457	44.25%	2,788	50.21%
1964	2,046	79.73%	0	0.00%	520	20.27%
1960	744	41.52%	973	54.30%	75	4.19%
1956	613	33.83%	974	53.75%	225	12.42%
1952	756	35.80%	1,352	64.02%	4	0.19%
1948	30	2.78%	0	0.00%	1,051	97.22%
1944	47	4.46%	1,004	95.35%	2	0.19%
1940	39	2.51%	1,509	97.17%	5	0.32%
1936	24	1.55%	1,527	98.45%	0	0.00%
1932	37	2.54%	1,382	95.05%	35	2.41%
1928	459	26.97%	1,242	72.97%	1	0.06%
1924	25	2.59%	928	96.17%	12	1.24%
1920	34	2.74%	1,195	96.14%	14	1.13%
1916	20	2.16%	895	96.44%	13	1.40%
1912	3	0.39%	731	93.84%	45	5.78%
1908	12	1.52%	776	97.98%	4	0.51%
1904	47	5.00%	799	85.00%	94	10.00%

Communities

Cities

• Marion (county seat)
• Uniontown

Unincorporated communities

• Adler
• Augustin
• Folsom
• Hamburg
• Heiberger
• Jericho
• Levert
• Morgan Springs
• Oakmulgee
• Osborn
• Perryville
• Radford
• Sprott
• Suttle
• Vaiden
• Vilula

Places of interest

Perry County is home to Perry Lakes Park, part of the Talladega National Forest, the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame located at Judson College, and Marion Military Institute.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Perry County, Alabama
• Properties on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in Perry County, Alabama

References

1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties . Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. Owen, Thomas McAdory; Owen, Marie Bankhead (1921). History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography. Vol. 2. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company. p. 1108.
4. Analytics. "United States County Broadband Statistics for 2020 - BroadbandNow.com". BroadbandNow. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
5. "Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror". Equal Justice Initiative. 2017. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
6. Bello, Marisol (January 26, 2009). "Renamed schools, streets mark early tributes to Obama". USA Today .
7. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
8. "Perry County".
9. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
10. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
11. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
12. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
13. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
14. "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Perry County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau .
15. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Perry County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau .
16. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Perry County, Alabama". United States Census Bureau .
17. Johnson, Steven (August 8, 2024). "The 26 Most Obese Counties in America". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
18. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
19. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections" . Retrieved November 21, 2016.

Further reading

• English, Bertis D. Civil Wars, Civil Beings, and Civil Rights in Alabama's Black Belt: A History of Perry County (University Alabama Press, 2020).
• Fraser, Rory F., Buddhi R. Gyawali, and John Schelhas. "Blacks in space: Land tenure and well-being in Perry County, Alabama." Small-Scale Forest Economics, Management and Policy 4 (2005): 21–33. online

External links

• Official website of Perry County Sheriff
• Perry County map of roads/towns (map © 2007 Univ. of Alabama)

32°38′09″N87°17′31″W / 32.63583°N 87.29194°W / 32.63583; -87.29194