Gadsden, Alabama

Encyclopedia : G : GA : GAD : Gadsden, Alabama

Gadsden is a city located in northeastern Alabama approximately 60 miles northeast of Birmingham, Alabama. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 38,978. The city is the seat of Etowah County.

It was at one time the state's 2nd most important industrial center, trailing only Mobile. The two cities were important shipping centers: Gadsden for riverboats and Mobile for international trade. Up until the 1980s, Gadsden was almost totally dependent on heavy industy, including Goodyear Tire, and Republic Steel. After virtually crumbling in the 1970s and 1980s, Gadsden decided its best course of action was to stop being dependent on industry, and shedding its "company town" image.

Contents

1 Double Springs
2 Gadsden in Recent History
3 Geography
4 Demographics
5 Education
6 Suburbs
7 Points of interest
8 Media
9 Famous Residents
10 Notes
11 Gadsden Local Links
12 External links

Double Springs

The first substantial white settlement in what is now Gadsden was a tiny town called Double Springs. It was begun by a mixed Indian-white settler named John Riley when he built his house near two springs around 1825. It became a stagecoach stop on the Huntsville-to-Rome route. The original house still stands today as the oldest house in Gadsden. The house changed hands to a couple named Gabriel and Asenath Hughes in 1840. Shortly thereafter, they began to purchase much of the land between Lookout Mountain, the Coosa River, and down to the mouth of Wills Creek. Their land, plus that of John S. Moragne and Joseph Rhea, became the first part of the city of Gadsden. Double Springs was transformed on July 4, 1845, when one Captain James Lafferty piloted the first steamboat to the area, aptly named the Coosa. He landed near the site of the current Memorial Bridge on that date. The Hughes brothers offered to name the town "Lafferty's Landing" in his honor, but Lafferty declined. Instead, the name Gadsden was chosen, in honor of Colonel James Gadsden of South Carolina, famous for the later Gadsden Purchase.

Gadsden in Recent History

After the civil rights movement and the closing of most of Gadsden's major industries in the 1970's and 80's, the city began to crash. A 1989 Rand McNally article listed Gadsden as one of the "Seven Worst Cities to Live in the United States." But due to the forward-looking citizenry of Gadsden, efforts like the Cultural Arts Center and downtown redevelopment earned Gadsden first place in the 2000 City Livability Awards Program["Gadsden Receives First Place in 2000 City Livability Awards Program." The United States Conference of Mayors],however underemployment continues as a very severe problem as indicated by the economic data presented below. Accessed December 9, 2005..

Geography

Gadsden is located at [34°0′37″N, 86°0′37″W] (34.010147, -86.010356)^{[Geographic references#1GR1]}.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 96.3 km² (37.2 mi²). 93.2 km² (36.0 mi²) of it is land and 3.1 km² (1.2 mi²) of it (3.25%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^{[Geographic references#2GR2]} of 2000, there were 38,978 people, 16,456 households, and 10,252 families residing in the city. The population density was 418.4/km² (1,083.6/mi²). There were 18,797 housing units at an average density of 201.8/km² (522.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 62.69% White, 34.00% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 1.22% from other races, and 1.17% from two or more races. 2.67% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 16,456 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.5% were married couples living together, 18.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.7% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 20.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 85.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $24,823, and the median income for a family was $31,740. Males had a median income of $29,400 versus $19,840 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,610. About 18.1% of families and 22.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.9% of those under age 18 and 14.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Gadsden City Board of Education contains a collection of the best schools in Northeast Alabama. The Board oversees sixteen schools: eight elementary schools, three middle schools, three high schools, and two specialty schools (one alternative center and one technical center). Among high schools, Gadsden City Schools ranks among the top in the state for number of National Merit Scholars and students in Gadsden City Schools constantly rank above the state and national average on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). The school system has approximately 5,600 students including full-day kindergarten programs.

A new high school, Gadsden City High School, is set to replace the three current city high schools (Gadsden High School, Emma Sansom High School, and Litchfield High School) via merger, with a projected 2006-07 total of 1,400 students. This new school is expected to provide a wide variety of new courses currently not offered anywhere in the region and will compete with other high schools on a national level.

Gadsden is also home to one institution of higher learning, Gadsden State Community College. The community college is the second largest among the 27 two-year institutions comprising the Alabama College System.

Suburbs

The Gadsden Metro area includes the following suburbs:

Altoona (Altoona is traditionally a historic, self-sufficient town)
Attalla (Attalla is also traditionally a historic, self-sufficient town)
Glencoe
Hokes Bluff
Mountainboro
Ohatchee
Rainbow City
Reece City
Ridgeville
Sardis City
Southside
Walnut Grove

Points of interest

Media

Newspapers

[The Gadsden Times](daily morning paper. Part of the New York Times newspaper group.)
Gadsden Messenger - Weekly, locally owned newspaper.

Television

WTJP Channel 60 - Trinity Broadcasting Network
WPXH Channel 44 - PAX Network affiliate
W15AP - Repeater for Birmingham's WBRC 6 (FOX)

AM Radio

WGAD 1350 - Oldies
WAAX 570 - News/Talk
WJBY - Religious
WMGJ - Urban

FM Radio

WKXX 102.9 - Top 40
WSGN 91.5 - NPR/PBS (Gadsden State Community College)
WQEN 103.7 - Licensed to Gadsden, but now broadcasting from Birmingham studio. Transmitter in Springville, AL.
WGMZ (Z.93) - Classic Rock

Famous Residents

Steve Grissom, NASCAR driver

Notes

Goodson, Mike. Gadsden: City of Champions. Illustrated by Brock Cole. Arcadia, 2002; ISBN 0738523755. Part of the "Making of America" series.

Gadsden Local Links

	State of Alabama History \| People \| Governors \| Metropolitan Areas

Capital

Montgomery

Regions

Cities

Counties

External links

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.