Lowndes County, Alabama
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| Lowndes, Alabama | |
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| Image:Map of Alabama highlighting Lowndes.svg Location in the state of Alabama |
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 Alabama's location in the USA |
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Lowndes County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of William Lowndes, a member of the United States Congress from South Carolina. As of 2000 the population was 13,473. Its county seat is Hayneville.
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[edit] History
Lowndes County, Alabama was established on January 20, 1830.
The county is the site of a rare criminal case. In 1928, Two individuals, Lousie Butler and George Yelder, were convicted of murdering a person who was later found alive.
The county was referred to as "Bloody Lowndes," the rusty buckle of Alabama's black belt. In 1965, A full century after the War Between the States, things hadn't changed much: 86 white families owned 90 percent of the land in the county and controlled the government. Not a single black was registered to vote.
The success of the Selma to Montgomery marches, though, encouraged civil rights leaders to believe they could fight racism even in Bloody Lowndes. "The Lowndes County Freedom Organization" revisits this place where a new political party helped blacks stand up to murder and intimidation.
A young, dynamic leader named Stokely Carmichael and the organization he represented, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), launched an intensive effort to register blacks to vote in Lowndes County.
SNCC's plan was simple: get enough people to vote so blacks might control the local government. Carmichael and others organized registration drives, demonstrations and classes. They formed a political party and entered candidates in the races.
But it wasn't enough. The black candidates were defeated.
[edit] Tent City
White landowners in Lowndes County, retaliating against tenant farmers who registered, voted, or engaged in any voting rights activities, threw them off their land. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and Lowndes County leaders worked to help families stay together and remain in the county.
They bought tents, cots, heaters, food, and water and helped several families build a temporary "tent city" Despite harassment—including shots regularly fired into the encampment—residents persevered for nearly two years as organizers helped them find new jobs and look for permanent housing.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,878 km² (725 mi²). 1,859 km² (718 mi²) of it is land and 18 km² (7 mi²) of it (0.98%) is water.
[edit] Major Highways
[edit] Adjacent Counties
- Autauga County (north)
- Montgomery County (east)
- Crenshaw County (southeast)
- Butler County (south)
- Wilcox County (southwest)
- Dallas County (west)
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 13,473 people, 4,909 households, and 3,588 families residing in the county. The population density was 7/km² (19/mi²). There were 5,801 housing units at an average density of 3/km² (8/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 25.86% White, 73.37% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.12% from other races, and 0.40% from two or more races. 0.63% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 4,909 households out of which 35.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.90% were married couples living together, 25.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.90% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.28.
In the county the population was spread out with 30.20% under the age of 18, 9.10% from 18 to 24, 27.10% from 25 to 44, 21.40% from 45 to 64, and 12.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 87.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $23,050, and the median income for a family was $28,935. Males had a median income of $27,694 versus $20,137 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,457. About 26.60% of families and 31.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 41.70% of those under age 18 and 26.60% of those age 65 or over.
