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Perry County, Alabama

Coordinates: 32°38′09″N 87°17′31″W / 32.63583°N 87.29194°W / 32.63583; -87.29194
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Perry County
County
Perry County courthouse in Marion
Perry County courthouse in Marion
Official seal of Perry County
Seal
Map of Alabama highlighting Perry County
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Map of the United States highlighting Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°38′09″N 87°17′31″W / 32.635833333333°N 87.291944444444°W / 32.635833333333; -87.291944444444
Country United States
State Alabama
FoundedDecember 13, 1819
Named forOliver Hazard Perry
SeatMarion
Largest cityMarion
Area
 • Total
724 sq mi (1,880 km2)
 • Land720 sq mi (1,900 km2)
 • Water4.2 sq mi (11 km2)  0.6%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
8,511
 • Estimate 
(2023)
7,738 Decrease
 • Density12/sq mi (4.5/km2)
Time zoneUTC−6 (Central)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district7th
Websitewww.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, 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

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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

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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

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Adjacent counties

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National protected area

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18203,646—
183011,490215.1%
184019,08666.1%
185022,28516.8%
186027,72424.4%
187024,975−9.9%
188030,74123.1%
189029,332−4.6%
190031,7838.4%
191031,222−1.8%
192025,373−18.7%
193026,3854.0%
194026,6100.9%
195020,439−23.2%
196017,358−15.1%
197015,388−11.3%
198015,012−2.4%
199012,759−15.0%
200011,861−7.0%
201010,591−10.7%
20208,511−19.6%
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

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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

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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

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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

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Perry County Circuit Clerk

United States presidential election results for Perry County, Alabama[19]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 1,268 28.43% 3,170 71.08% 22 0.49%
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

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Cities

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Unincorporated communities

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Places of interest

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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

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References

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  1. ^ a b "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

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  • 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
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32°38′09″N 87°17′31″W / 32.63583°N 87.29194°W / 32.63583; -87.29194

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