DeKalb County was created by the Alabama legislature on January 9, 1836, from land ceded to the Federal government by the Cherokee Nation. It was named for Major General Baron Johann de Kalb, a hero of the American Revolution. DeKalb County was the one time home of the famous Cherokee Native AmericanSequoyah. The county's eastern edge, along the state line, was also the epicenter of an earthquake on April 29, 2003, measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale. Power was knocked out in the area, mirrors and pictures thrown to the floor, foundations cracked, and one chimney fell to the ground. It was felt over a significant portion of the southeastern states, including quite strongly in northeastern Alabama and neighboring northernGeorgia, and nearby eastern Tennessee. It was also felt slightly in western upstateSouth Carolina, far west-southwestern North Carolina, south and southeastern Kentucky, and east-northeastern Mississippi. On the whole, DeKalb County is a dry county. In 2005, a change in local laws enabled Fort Payne to become the only location in the county to allow the legal sale of alcohol. Collinsville and Henagar later allowed alcohol sales. DeKalb County saw one of the highest death tolls in Alabama during a massive tornadic system in April 2011, the 2011 Super Outbreak, with 31 deaths reported in the county.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.
As of the census of 2010, there were 71,109 people, 26,842 households, and 19,361 families living in the county. The population density was 92 people per square mile. There were 31,109 housing units at an average density of 39.9 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 84.5% White, 1.5% Black or African American, 1.4% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 9.9% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. 13.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. As of the census of 2000, there were 64,452 people, 25,113 households, and 18,432 families living in the county. The population density was 83 people per square mile. There were 28,051 housing units at an average density of 36 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 92.55% White, 1.68% Black or African American, 0.80% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 3.10% from other races, and 1.62% from two or more races. 5.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. According to the census of 2000, the largest ancestry groups in DeKalb County were English 78.31%, Scotch-Irish 8.29%, Scottish 3.33%, Irish 3.31%, Welsh 1.22%, and African 1.68%
DeKalb County is strongly Republican. Eighty-three percent of its voters supported Donald Trump in 2016, and no Democrat has carried it since Southerner Jimmy Carter did so in 1976. Populist appeal in the county during the period of “Redemption” meant that even during the “Solid South” era DeKalb County sometimes supported victorious Republican presidential candidates, as it did during the three Republican landslides of the 1920s.
