Winston County, Alabama
Encyclopedia
Winston County is a county
County (United States)
In the United States, a county is a geographic subdivision of a state , usually assigned some governmental authority. The term "county" is used in 48 of the 50 states; Louisiana is divided into parishes and Alaska into boroughs. Parishes and boroughs are called "county-equivalents" by the U.S...
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, formerly known as Hancock County before 1858.
Its name is in honor of John A. Winston
John A. Winston
John Anthony Winston was the 15th Governor of the U.S. state of Alabama from 1853 to 1857. He was born in 1812 in Madison County, Alabama and became the first native born governor of Alabama. He was a son of William Winston and Mary Cooper of Tuscumbia Alabama...
, the 15th Governor of Alabama. As of 2010, the population was 24,484. Its county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
is Double Springs
Double Springs, Alabama
Double Springs is a town in Winston County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 1,003. The city is the county seat of Winston County.- Geography :Double Springs is located at .According to the U.S...
.
History
Winston County was established under the name Hancock County on February 12, 1850, from territory formerly in Walker County. It was originally named for John HancockJohn Hancock
John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...
, Governor of Massachusetts
Governor of Massachusetts
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the executive magistrate of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The current governor is Democrat Deval Patrick.-Constitutional role:...
and famous signer of the American Declaration of Independence, with its county seat at Houston. On January 22, 1858, the county was renamed Winston County to honor Alabama Gov. John A. Winston
John A. Winston
John Anthony Winston was the 15th Governor of the U.S. state of Alabama from 1853 to 1857. He was born in 1812 in Madison County, Alabama and became the first native born governor of Alabama. He was a son of William Winston and Mary Cooper of Tuscumbia Alabama...
.
During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, the county gained fame for its opposition to secession
Secession
Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...
, which was so strong that it was sometimes referred to as the Republic of Winston
Republic of Winston
The "Republic" of Winston was one of several places in the Confederate States of America where disaffection during the American Civil War was strong...
. The county today plays on its reputation as the "Free State of Winston" to attract tourists. The county's opposition to the Confederacy is briefly mentioned in the novels To Kill a Mockingbird
To Kill a Mockingbird
To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960. It was instantly successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature...
and Addie Pray
Addie Pray
Addie Pray is a novel by Joe David Brown. It was the basis for the movie Paper Moon directed by Peter Bogdanovich. The novel was re-printed in 2002 as a paperback with the title Paper Moon: A Novel....
. Tap Roots
Tap Roots
Tap Roots is a 1948 period film set during the American Civil War. It is very loosely based on the true life story of Newton Knight, a farm owner who attempted to secede Jones County from Mississippi....
, a 1948 movie based on a novel, presents a highly fictionalized and inaccurate version of Winston County's Civil War history.
In 1883 the county seat was moved to Double Springs to be near the center of the county, since Cullman County was created from the eastern portion of Winston.
The famous civil rights judge Frank M. Johnson
Frank Minis Johnson
Frank Minis Johnson, Jr. was a United States Federal judge, made a number of landmark civil rights rulings that helped end segregation in the South...
of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit was born in Winston County, in the Delmar Community.
Geography
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 631.86 square miles (1,636.5 km²), of which 614.44 square miles (1,591.4 km²) (or 97.24%) is land and 17.42 square miles (45.1 km²) (or 2.76%) is water.Major highways
U.S. Highway 278
State Route 5State Route 5 (Alabama)State Route 5 is a north–south state highway is the western part of the State of Alabama. While it once extended—prior to the renumbering of the highways of Alabama in 1957—from Mobile north to Tennessee, and was one of the major routes between Mobile and Birmingham, it has since been...
State Route 13
State Route 33
Adjacent counties
- Lawrence CountyLawrence County, AlabamaLawrence County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama, and is included in the Decatur Metropolitan Area, as well as the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. It was named after James Lawrence, a captain in the United States Navy from New Jersey. As of the 2010 census, the population was...
(north) - Cullman CountyCullman County, AlabamaCullman County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Colonel John G. Cullmann. As of 2010, the population was 80,406. Its county seat is the town of the same name, Cullman, Alabama. It is a "moist" county in terms of availablity of alcoholic beverages, which means...
(east) - Walker CountyWalker County, AlabamaWalker County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama.Its name is in honor of John Williams Walker, a member of the United States Senate. As of 2010 the population was 67,023...
(south) - Marion CountyMarion County, AlabamaMarion County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Marion County was created by an act of the Alabama Territorial General Assembly on February 13, 1818. The county is located in the northwestern part of the state, bounded on the west by the state of Mississippi. It encompasses . Marion County...
(west) - Franklin CountyFranklin County, AlabamaFranklin County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Benjamin Franklin, famous statesman, scientist, and printer. As of 2010, the population was 31,704...
(northwest)
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 24,843 people, 10,107 households, and 7,287 families residing in the county. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 40 people per square mile (16/km2). There were 12,502 housing units at an average density of 20 per square mile (8/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.32% White
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.038% Black
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.46% Native American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.13% Asian
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.01% Pacific Islander
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.90% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.81% from two or more races. Nearly 1.5% of the population were Hispanic
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
or Latino
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
of any race.
There were 10,107 households, out of which 31.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 9.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. Nearly 25.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43, and the average family size was 2.89.
In the county, the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.5 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $28,435, and the median income for a family was $32,628. Males had a median income of $26,206 versus $17,760 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the county was $15,738. 17.1% of the population and 12.9% of families were below the poverty line. 21.8% of those under the age of 18 and 23% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
In keeping with its history from the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, Winston County was for many years an island of Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
voting in an otherwise heavily Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
state. In 1912 Winston County joined three other Alabama counties in voting for the Bull Moose Party
Progressive Party (United States, 1912)
The Progressive Party of 1912 was an American political party. It was formed after a split in the Republican Party between President William Howard Taft and former President Theodore Roosevelt....
candidacy of Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
.
Cities and towns
- AddisonAddison, AlabamaAddison is a town in Winston County, Alabama, U.S. At the 2010 U.S. Census it had a population of 758.-Geography:Addison is located at .According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land....
- ArleyArley, AlabamaArley is a town in Winston County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 290. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the town had a population of 321. -Geography:Arley is located at ....
- DelmarDelmar, AlabamaDelmar is a small, rural, unincorporated community in west-central Winston County, United States. Delmar is located six miles north of Natural Bridge five miles south of Haleyville and 15 miles west of Double Springs, the county seat of what was once the "Free State of Winston." Delmar has an...
- Double SpringsDouble Springs, AlabamaDouble Springs is a town in Winston County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 1,003. The city is the county seat of Winston County.- Geography :Double Springs is located at .According to the U.S...
- HaleyvilleHaleyville, AlabamaHaleyville is a city in Winston and Marion counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. Most of the city is located in Winston County, with a small portion of the western limits entering Marion County. Haleyville was originally named Davis Cross Roads, having been established at the crossroads of Byler...
(part - part of Haleyville is in Marion CountyMarion County, AlabamaMarion County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Marion County was created by an act of the Alabama Territorial General Assembly on February 13, 1818. The county is located in the northwestern part of the state, bounded on the west by the state of Mississippi. It encompasses . Marion County...
) - LynnLynn, AlabamaLynn is a town in Winston County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 597.-Geography:Lynn is located at .According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
- Natural BridgeNatural Bridge, AlabamaNatural Bridge is a town at the southwest edge of Winston County, Alabama, United States, located near the intersection of U.S. Highway 278 and Alabama Highway 13. The population was 28 at the 2000 census...
- NauvooNauvoo, AlabamaNauvoo is a town in Walker and Winston counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2000 census, the population of the town is 284. Camp McDowell, an Episcopalian church camp, is located nearby.-History:...
(part - part of Nauvoo is in Walker CountyWalker County, AlabamaWalker County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama.Its name is in honor of John Williams Walker, a member of the United States Senate. As of 2010 the population was 67,023...
) - South HaleyvilleSouth Haleyville, AlabamaSouth Haleyville is a small poverty line incorporated community of Haleyville, Alabama. Most of Haleyville's industry is in this community. Much of South Haleyville lies in the parts of Haleyville that exist across the county line into Marion County....
(poverty line community in western Haleyville) - Houston
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Winston County, Alabama
- Properties on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in Winston County, Alabama
External links
- Winston County is covered by the Northwest Alabamian Newspaper.
- Winston County map of roads/towns (map © 2007 Univ. of AlabamaUniversity of AlabamaThe University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
).
- Winston County, Alabama: The Free State of Winston http://www.freestateofwinston.org
- Winston County article in the Encyclopedia of Alabama