Russellville, Alabama

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Russellville, Alabama, is a city in Franklin County in the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 8,971. The city is the county seat of Franklin County.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Local features
5 References
6 Internal Links
7 External links

[edit] History

After the War of 1812, the U.S. government appropriated money to improve a route from Nashville to New Orleans. It was named Jackson's Military Road after Andrew Jackson, and it passed through what was to become Russellville. (Present-day Jackson Avenue and Jackson Highway, U.S. Route 43, follow portions of the original road.)

Russellville is named after Major William Russell, an early settler in the area who helped in the construction of Jackson's Military Road. The town grew at this road's intersection with the Gaines Trace.

Russellville was incorporated on November 27, 1819, the same year that Alabama joined the Union as the twenty-second state.

[edit] Geography

Russellville is located at 34°30′37″N, 87°43′42″W (34.510344, -87.728248)^GR1.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 34.6 km² (13.4 mi²). 34.3 km² (13.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.3 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.90%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 8,971 people, 3,556 households, and 2,364 families residing in the city. The population density was 261.8/km² (677.9/mi²). There were 3,882 housing units at an average density of 113.3/km² (293.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 79.31% White, 11.25% Black or African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.27% Pacific Islander, 7.54% from other races, and 1.17% from two or more races. 12.64% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,556 households out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.0% 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 3.03.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there are 89.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,333, and the median income for a family was $35,799. Males had a median income of $27,238 versus $18,551 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,871. About 16.7% of families and 22.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.2% of those under age 18 and 24.9% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Local features

Russellville has been growing economically since 2004 since a new Wal-Mart Supercenter opened on Highway 43 on the south side of the city. Many businesses have built or relocated to this side of the town since the new Wal-Mart location opened. Many have criticized Wal-Mart for taking away business from the historic downtown section, however many businesses have since relocated away from the downtown area beforehand already.

Roxy Theater - The Roxy Theater is located on the main drag of the downtown area, just next to the county courthouse. The theater once was home to current release movies, but has recently been renovated and remodeled for other staged events held throughout the year.

King Drive-In - The King Drive In is located just north of Russellville on Highway 43. The drive in theater plays currently released films throughout the spring, summer, and fall months on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. The theater features old style speakers that hang on car windows, but also offers the sound track of films through FM radio broadcasts as well. The theater is famously known for the line by the owner at the beginning of each night that states "If you're ready, I'm ready .. It's movie time!"

Watermelon Festival - The annual "Watermelon Festival" is held each August in downtown Russellville, in which a carnival type event is held by the city to try and ignite interest in the downtown area. Events within the festival include performances by popular local bands as well as a car and truck show.

"The Strip" - Until approximately 2006, "The Downtown Strip" had been a source of entertainment for local teenagers and young adults throughout Franklin County. This strip is best described as similar to the atmosphere of that of the George Lucas film, American Graffiti. Many local teenagers have for a number of years driven up and down the "main drag" in downtown Russellville, meeting with friends. The Strip has declined in recent years due to a transfer in ownership of most of the facilities and buildings within Downtown Russellville. An effort to "reclaim the strip" inspired in part by activity amongst Strip veterans on the popular online site MySpace, had regenerated populated nights along the strip in recent years. However, due to continual lack of interest, the strip has largely faded away from its previous former glory.