Ozark, Alabama

History

The Ozark area was originally inhabited by the Muscogee people. It is said that Ozark received its name after a traveler visited and was reminded of the Ozark Mountains in Arkansas.

The first known European settler in Ozark was John Merrick Sr., a veteran of the Revolutionary War, in 1822. In honor of him, the town was named Merricks. It was later changed to Woodshop, which was its name when the town received its post office. The first appearance of the name Ozark was in 1855, when the citizens requested a name change.{{Cite book

The county seat was moved from Newton to Ozark 1870.{{Cite encyclopedia | access-date = February 1, 2010 | archive-date = June 21, 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100621203225/http://encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-1327 | url-status = live

Ozark is home to four sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the Claybank Log Church, the Samuel Lawson Dowling House, the Old Train Depot, and the J. D. Holman House.

Geography

Ozark is part of the Wiregrass Region.

Major highways that run through the city include U.S. Route 231 and Alabama State Routes 27 and 249. US 231 runs northwest to southeast through the city, leading northwest 34 mi to Troy and southeast 23 mi to Dothan. SR 27 leads east 31 mi to Abbeville and southwest 19 mi to Enterprise.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 34.5 sqmi of which 34.2 sqmi is land and 0.2 sqmi (0.70%) is water.

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification, Ozark has a humid subtropical climate (abbreviated Cfa).

|Jan dew point C =4.6 |Feb dew point C =6.2 |Mar dew point C =8.5 |Apr dew point C =12.2 |May dew point C =16.4 |Jun dew point C =20.5 |Jul dew point C =22.0 |Aug dew point C =21.8 |Sep dew point C =19.6 |Oct dew point C =14.2 |Nov dew point C =9.0 |Dec dew point C =6.4 | access-date=March 15, 2023 | archive-date=July 25, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190725164937/http://prism.oregonstate.edu/explorer/ | url-status=live

Demographics

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2010 census

At the 2010 census, there were 14,907 people, 6,209 households, and 4,064 families living in the city. The population density was 440 PD/sqmi. There were 6,920 housing units at an average density of 201.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 64.8% White, 30.2% Black or African American, 0.7% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. 3.2% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 6,209 households 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.3% were married couples living together, 17.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.5% were non-families. 30.5% of households were one person and 12.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.91.

The age distribution was 23.1% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 28.2% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% 65 or older. The median age was 41.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

The median household income was $41,079 and the median family income was $52,061. Males had a median income of $41,513 versus $28,227 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,103. About 13.6% of families and 18.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.2% of those under age 18 and 14.4% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 14,368 people, 5,946 households, and 3,651 families residing in the city.

Education

Ozark is served by the Ozark City Schools. Schools located in the city are Carroll High School (grades 9 through 12), Carroll Career Center (grades 9 through 12), D.A. Smith Middle School (grades 6 through 8), Harry N. Mixon Intermediate School (grades 3 through 5), and Joseph W. Lisenby Primary School (grades k through 2.)

Dale County School District is headquartered in Ozark, but does not include Ozark.

There is one private school in Ozark, Harvest Christian School for K-12.

Post-secondary education is available at Enterprise State Community College's Alabama Aviation Center at Ozark. Programs are offered in aviation maintenance technology.

Image:Carroll_at_District.JPG|Carroll High School Band 2009 Image:Carroll_Football_2007.jpg| Carroll High School Marching Band "Pride of the Wiregrass" 2007

Media

Radio stations

• WDBT 103.9 FM (News/Talk)
• WOAB 104.9 FM (Adult standards)
• WOZK 900 AM (MOR)

Newspaper

• The Free Press (1896–1900)
• The Southern Star- weekly

Notable people

• Mary Tarver Carroll, writer and clubwoman
• Steve Clouse, state representative
• Larry Donnell, tight end for the New York Giants
• Wilbur Jackson, National Football League running back (1974–1982), SF49ers, Washington Redskins
• Meg McGuffin, Miss Alabama 2015
• Steve McLendon, nose tackle/defensive end, Pittsburgh Steelers
• Byron Mitchell, former super middleweight boxing champion
• Marc Ronan, Major League Baseball catcher
• Naseeb Saliba, co-founder of Tutor-Saliba Corporation
• Josh Savage, professional football player

References

References

1. "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
2. {{GNIS. 2404456
3. (April 2020}}{{cbignore). "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Ozark city, Alabama". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder.
4. (March 23, 2010). "Table 1. Annual Estimates of the Population of Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2009 (CBSA-EST2009-01)". [[United States Census Bureau]], Population Division.
5. "Dothan-Enterprise-Ozark, AL Combined Statistical Area". [[US Census Bureau]].
6. (March 6, 2020). "OMB Bulletin No. 20-01: Revised Delineations of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Delineations of These Areas". [[United States Office of Management and Budget]].
7. United States Census Bureau. "Census of Population and Housing".
8. "Explore Census Data".
9. "Home". Dale County School District.
10. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Dale County, AL". [[U.S. Census Bureau]].
11. "The Free Press Archive".