Gadsden, Alabama
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gadsden is a city in and the county seat of Etowah County, northeastern Alabama, United States, approximately 60 miles northeast of Birmingham. It is the principal city of and is included in the Gadsden Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 37,405.[1]
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 industry, 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.
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[edit] 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.
[edit] 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[2].
[edit] Geography
Gadsden is located at (34.010147, -86.010356)GR1.
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.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 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.
[edit] 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, one high school, 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, replaced the three city high schools (Gadsden High School, Emma Sansom High School, and Litchfield High School) via merger.
Gadsden is home to three institutions 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. Gadsden also serves as a remote location for both University of Alabama and Jacksonville State University.
[edit] Points of interest
- Noccalula Falls Park
- Noccalula Falls Botanical Gardens
- Coosa River
- Downtown Gadsden
- James D. Martin Wildlife Park
- Lookout Mountain
[edit] Media
Newspapers
- The Gadsden Times(daily morning paper. Part of the New York Times newspaper group.)
- Gadsden Messenger - Weekly, locally owned newspaper.
- The Reporter - Monthly, 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 1240 - Talk, Religious, Urban/Contemporary
FM Radio
- WKXX 102.9 - Top 40
- WSGN 91.5 - NPR/PBS (Gadsden State Community College)
- WGMZ (Z.93) - Classic Rock
[edit] Notable Residents
- SKY Yocum
- Steve Grissom, NASCAR driver
- David Rosser, Musician
- Daniel (Danny) Harbison Cartoonist, Educator
- Ted Sizemore, born in Gadsden, major league baseball player[3]
- Joshua Manning, US Navy, Knight-Errant
- Emma Sansom, aided Southern Confederacy during Civil War.
- Mr. 817, Mixtape DJ & Rapper
- Gold City, Sout==References ==
- B. L. Noojin, Athlete and businessman
- Goodson, Mike. Gadsden: City of Champions. Illustrated by Brock Cole. Arcadia, 2002; ISBN 0-7385-2375-5. Part of the "Making of America" series.
- ^ Annual Estimates of the Population for All Incorporated Places in Alabama (CSV). 2005 Population Estimates. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division (June 21, 2006). Retrieved on November 9, 2006.
- ^ "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.
- ^ [1969] (1979) in Reichler, Joseph L.: The Baseball Encyclopedia, 4th edition, New York: Macmillan Publishing. ISBN 0-02-578970-8.
[edit] External Links
- City of Gadsden
- Historic Downtown Gadsden
- Gadsden-Etowah Tourism Board
- Gadsden Riverfest - Yearly summer music festival
- Lookout Mountain Parkway
- Center For Cultural Arts
- Gadsden Museum Of Arts
[edit] External links
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
