Macon County, Alabama

History

For thousands of years, this area was inhabited by varying cultures of indigenous peoples. The historic tribes encountered by European explorers were the Creek people, descendants of the Mississippian culture.

Macon County was established by European Americans on December 18, 1832, from land ceded by the Creek, following the US Congress' passage of the Indian Removal Act of 1830. The Creek were removed to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River. The new settlers brought slaves with them from eastern areas of the South or purchased them at the slave market in Montgomery, New Orleans or Mobile. They developed the county for large cotton plantations.

In the first half of the twentieth century, thousands of African-Americans migrated out of the county to industrial cities in the North and Midwest for job opportunities, and the chance to escape legal segregation. Those who remained have struggled for employment in the mostly rural county, and population has declined by about one-third since 1950.

While Alabama has the 5th highest gun related death rate among states at 24 per 100 000, Macon County has one of the highest gun homicide rates in the nation at 44.5 per 100 000.

Before 1983, Macon County was primarily known as the home of historic Tuskegee Institute, now Tuskegee University, and its noted founder and first president, Booker T. Washington.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 613 sqmi, of which 609 sqmi is land and 4.3 sqmi (0.7%) is water.

Major highways

• [[Image:I-85 (AL).svg|20px]] Interstate 85
• [[Image:US 29.svg|20px]] U.S. Highway 29
• [[Image:US 80.svg|20px]] U.S. Highway 80
• 20px State Route 14
• 20px State Route 49
• 20px State Route 81
• 20px State Route 138
• 20px State Route 186
• 20px State Route 199
• 20px State Route 229

Adjacent counties

• Tallapoosa County (north)
• Lee County (northeast)
• Russell County (southeast)
• Bullock County (south)
• Montgomery County (southwest)
• Elmore County (northwest)

National protected areas

• Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
• Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site
• The George Washington Carver Museum
• Tuskegee National Forest

Railroads

• CSX A&WP Subdivision
• Former Seaboard Line (abandoned)

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, the county had a population of 19,532. The median age was 39.6 years. 16.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 82.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 78.5 males age 18 and over.

46.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 53.9% lived in rural areas.

There were 7,965 households in the county, of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 44.7% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 9,604 housing units, of which 17.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 63.1% were owner-occupied and 36.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.2%.

Racial and ethnic composition

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 21,452 people living in the county. 82.6% were Black or African American, 15.5% White, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% Native American, 0.3% of some other race and 1.1% of two or more races. 1.1% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race).

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 24,105 people, 8,950 households, and 5,543 families living in the county. The population density was 40 /mi2. There were 10,627 housing units at an average density of 17 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 84.64% Black or African American, 13.96% White, 0.16% Native American, 0.38% Asian, 0.13% from other races, and 0.73% from two or more races. 0.72% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 8,950 households, out of which 28.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 31.70% were married couples living together, 25.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.10% were non-families. 33.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.20% under the age of 18, 16.90% from 18 to 24, 22.90% from 25 to 44, 21.00% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 85.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $21,180, and the median income for a family was $28,511. Males had a median income of $25,971 versus $21,773 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,714. About 26.80% of families and 32.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 43.80% of those under age 18 and 26.00% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Macon County has been overwhelmingly Democratic for most of the past century and a quarter. Apart from the "dealignment" era between 1948 and 1972, and Herbert Hoover in the highly controversial 1928 election, no Republican has won so much as twenty percent of the county's vote in the past century. No Republican has obtained a majority in that time span, although Dwight D. Eisenhower won a narrow plurality in 1956. Although Donald Trump in 2024 was able to crack 20% of the vote for the first time since Nixon in 1972, Macon County was still the most Democratic county in Alabama in that election.

In the elections of 1980, Macon was the most Democratic county in the nation while in 1984 it was the most Democratic outside of the District of Columbia. Macon County was only 0.02 percent shy of this in 1992, when it gave both George H. W. Bush his smallest proportion outside of the District of Columbia and independent Ross Perot his smallest vote share in any county nationwide.

The Sheriff of Macon County is Andre Brunson, who also was the former strength coach at Tuskegee University.

Communities

City

• Tuskegee (county seat)

Towns

• Franklin
• Notasulga (partly in Lee County)
• Shorter

Unincorporated communities

• Boromville
• Creek Stand
• Cross Keys
• Fort Davis
• Hardaway
• Little Texas
• Milstead
• Society Hill
• Warriorstand

Places of interest

Macon County is home to the Tuskegee University, a historically black college; Tuskegee National Forest, Tuskegee Lake, the Tuskegee Human and Civil Rights Museum, and Moton Field, the training site of the Tuskegee Airmen.

References

References

1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
3. Gannett, Henry. (1905). "The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States". U.S. Government Printing Office.
4. "America has a gun violence problem. What do we do about it?".
5. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
6. "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau.
7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau.
8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library.
9. (March 24, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau.
10. (April 2, 2001). "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau.
11. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
12. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)".
13. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
14. "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Macon County, Alabama".
15. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Macon County, Alabama".
16. "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Macon County, Alabama".
17. "U.S. Census website". [[United States Census Bureau]].
18. Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas; [http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/stats.php?year=1980&f=0&off=0&elect=0 1980 Presidential Election statistics]
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20. Dave Leip's U.S. Election Atlas; [http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/stats.php?year=1992&f=0&off=0&elect=0 1992 Presidential Election statistics]
21. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".
22. "Andre Brunson - Life Coach - Staff Directory".