Cleburne County, Alabama


Cleburne County is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,972. Its county seat is Heflin. Its name is in honor of Patrick R. Cleburne of Arkansas who rose to the rank of major general in the Confederate States Army. The eastern side of the county borders the state of Georgia.

History

Cleburne County was established on December 6, 1866, by an act of the state legislature. The county was made from territory in Benton, Randolph, and Talladega counties. In 1867, Edwardsville was made the county seat. An election was held in 1905 to move the county seat to Heflin. The result of that election, which agreed to move the seat, was appealed to the Supreme Court, who decided on July 1, 1906, to uphold the election results. Heflin is still the county seat. Heflin was at one point thought of as a hub for nearby farmers to send their cotton. Shortly after the Civil War, a group of northern investors created the town of Fruithurst in Cleburne County as part of a wine-growing project. Fruithurst became a boomtown shortly thereafter.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the fourth-smallest county in Alabama by land area and second-largest by total area. Cleburne County is home to Alabama's highest natural point on Cheaha Mountain which is part of the southernmost mountain range in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

As of the census of 2010, there were 14,972 people, 5,891 households, and 4,196 families living in the county. The population density was 27 people per square mile. There were 6,718 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 94.0% White, 3.3% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.0% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. 2.1% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 5,891 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.8% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.6 years. For every 100 females there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.9 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,077, and the median income for a family was $41,585. Males had a median income of $39,709 versus $26,229 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,490. About 11.6% of families and 17.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.0% of those under age 18 and 13.7% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 14,123 people, 5,590 households, and 4,125 families living in the county. The population density was 25 people per square mile. There were 6,189 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 89.74% White, 7.70% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.77% from two or more races. 3.40% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 5,590 households, out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.40% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.20% were non-families. 23.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.95.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.30% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 28.50% from 25 to 44, 25.30% from 45 to 64, and 13.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 99.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,820, and the median income for a family was $35,579. Males had a median income of $29,752 versus $18,840 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,762. About 10.90% of families and 13.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.10% of those under age 18 and 20.10% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Although not to the same extent as Winston or Chilton Counties, Cleburne County was at least in Presidential elections a Republican island in overwhelmingly Democratic Alabama during the “Solid South” era due to its unsuitable terrain for slave-based plantation agriculture. This led to considerable Populist support during the period of “Redemption” by white Democrats, which produced later support for the Republican Party even when in most of Alabama whites associated the “Party of Lincoln” with occupation and black political power.
Since the end of the dealigned political era of the 1960s and 1970s, Cleburne County has followed the same trajectory towards overwhelming Republican dominance as the rest of Appalachia: in 2016 Hillary Clinton gained barely ten percent of the county's vote, a figure less than George McGovern in his landslide 1972 defeat.
YearGOPDemOthers
201687.4% 5,76410.4% 6842.2% 145
201283.4% 5,27215.4% 9711.2% 76
200880.4% 5,21618.0% 1,1681.7% 108
200475.4% 4,37024.0% 1,3910.6% 37
200065.5% 3,33332.7% 1,6641.9% 95
199648.6% 2,06341.0% 1,73710.4% 441
199246.3% 2,42540.9% 2,14412.8% 668
198868.4% 3,07130.8% 1,3830.8% 36
198470.5% 3,25926.8% 1,2382.7% 126
198052.8% 2,38945.3% 2,0501.9% 87
197636.1% 1,43662.6% 2,4901.4% 55
197285.2% 3,42014.5% 5810.3% 13
196812.1% 4854.0% 16083.9% 3,350
196476.2% 2,15623.8% 672
196040.0% 1,00859.9% 1,5100.2% 4
195642.8% 1,05657.0% 1,4070.3% 7
195233.6% 79266.1% 1,5570.2% 5
194830.9% 31769.1% 710
194434.6% 50465.0% 9480.4% 6
194024.0% 43475.7% 1,3690.3% 5
193630.8% 54368.6% 1,2120.6% 11
193222.4% 40577.4% 1,4030.2% 4
192858.3% 1,10841.8% 7940.0% 0
192451.2% 69645.7% 6223.1% 42
192058.6% 97141.3% 6840.1% 2
191642.8% 57856.2% 7601.0% 14
191210.0% 13351.7% 69138.3% 512
190849.9% 35738.8% 27811.3% 81
190435.9% 41460.9% 7013.2% 37

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