The area was inhabited for thousands of years by differing cultures of indigenous peoples.
1878 Farmers introduced Mandarin Satsuma oranges to Alabama from Japan for cultivation
1900 Satsuma area known as Fig Tree Island
1910 Pace Orange Orchard had about of pecans and satsuma trees on the area
1915 Town named "Satsuma"
1918 Mr. Norman E. McConaghy hired as manager of the Satsuma Orange & Pecan Groves Company.
1922 Packing house built; still stands above Mac's Landing
1912-1924 Satsuma trees damaged by cold weather and citrus canker
1959 Plans for a Town Charter submitted to the County of Mobile and the State of Alabama were approved. April 6, 1959 was the first municipal election.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which is land and 0.15% is water.
Demographics
At the 2000 census there were 5,687 people in 2,017 households, including 1,688 families, in the city. The population density was 873.1 people per square mile. There were 2,107 housing units at an average density of 323.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 93.72% White, 5.05% Black or African American, 0.55% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.16% from other races, and 0.28% from two or more races. 0.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 2,017 households 37.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 71.3% were married couples living together, 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.3% were non-families. 14.8% of households were one person and 6.8% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.10. The age distribution was 26.0% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 26.5% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males. The median household income was $50,496 and the median family income was $53,180. Males had a median income of $39,123 versus $24,851 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,972. About 4.7% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 10.9% of those age 65 or over.
2010 census
At the 2010 census there were 6,168 people in 2,290 households, including 1,774 families, in the city. The population density was 948.9 people per square mile. There were 2,416 housing units at an average density of 371.7 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 88.7% White, 7.9% Black or African American, 1.2% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. 1.1% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 2,290 households 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.8% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.5% were non-families. 18.8% of households were one person and 8.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.05. The age distribution was 23.8% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 29.4% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% 65 or older. The median age was 40.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males. The median household income was $59,289 and the median family income was $63,333. Males had a median income of $46,938 versus $33,791 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,087. About 0% of families and 0.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 0% of those under age 18 and 1.5% of those age 65 or over.
Before the Satsuma City School System was founded, the schools that served Satsuma included Robert E. Lee Primary School, Robert E. Lee Intermediate School, North Mobile County Middle School, Satsuma High School. Lee Primary, Lee Intermediate, and Satsuma High were in the city of Satsuma, while North Mobile County Middle was in Axis. Before the Saraland City Schools system formed, Satsuma residents attended Adams Middle School in Saraland. In 2003, officials of Satsuma, Saraland, and Chickasaw contemplated forming the "Delta School District." Such a split would have required an act from the Alabama Legislature. In June 2006, the City of Saraland voted to break away from the Mobile County Public School System and form its own school system. On September 7, 2010 North Mobile County Middle School opened, replacing the role of Adams Middle School in Saraland, because residents outside of Saraland are no longer zoned to Adams Middle. Satsuma residents considered leaving Mobile County schools since circa 2001. In 2010, the City of Satsuma began conducting a study on whether it can split from the Mobile County school system. Tom Williams, a council member of Satsuma, said he began considering splitting once Mobile County decided to situate the new middle school in Axis, from Satsuma, since students have longer bus rides to the school and that the school is further away from fire and police stations. The Mobile County government built the school outside of the Satsuma city limits so the city government would be unable to possess the school if it opted to secede.
