Editing Phenix City, Alabama (section)

==History==
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2024}}
[[File:New Russell County Courthouse.JPG|thumb|left|[[Russell County, Alabama|Russell County]] Courthouse in Phenix City]]

What some claim was the last battle of the [[American Civil War]], the [[Battle of Columbus (1865)|Battle of Columbus]], took place here on April 16, 1865, in Phenix City, then known as [[Girard, Alabama|Girard]].<ref>[http://cwba.blogspot.com/2010/03/misulia-columbus-georgia-1865-last-true.html The Last True Battle]</ref> Union General James Wilson was met with Confederate opposition as he crossed the [[Chattahoochee River]] in an attempt to destroy the military industry of [[Columbus, Georgia]].

Phenix City was initially two towns bordering each other on the north and south. On the south side was Girard, in Russell County, and the town of Brownville, on the north side, which was entirely within [[Lee County, Alabama|Lee County]]. Because a community in [[Tuscaloosa County, Alabama|Tuscaloosa County]] already claimed the name of [[Brownville, Alabama|Brownville]], post office officials insisted on the name of "Lively". To compound the confusion, the nearby railroad depot was called Knight's Station. Because residents preferred Brownville, on the 1880 U.S. census, it was listed as both Brownville and Lively. It was formally incorporated by the legislature on February 23, 1883.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-2133|title=Phenix City}}</ref>

Within the decade, the name would be changed to Phenix (or Phenix City), although some misspellings had it as "Phoenix". It was not clear if it was named for Phenix Mills in nearby [[Columbus, Georgia]] or for the [[phoenix (mythology)|fabled bird]]. It appeared as Phenix City on the 1890 U.S. census and was incorporated as such on February 19, 1897, by the state legislature. The city's official website displays the mythical phoenix, while the city's seal also depicts a phoenix burning up in its nest. The 'Our Community/History' page confirms the uncertainty behind the name: "Although no definitive source reveals why this name was chosen."

On August 9, 1923, Russell County's neighboring Girard (which made up most of current downtown Phenix City) and Lee County's Phenix City formally merged, keeping the name of Phenix City. Because the consolidated city still remained divided into two counties, in 1932, the Lee County portion was moved entirely into Russell County (also cited for the redraw was to account for population shifts involved in the [[Auburn University]] opening and expansion). Lee County received the rural segment at [[Marvyn, Alabama|Marvyn]] as compensation, which was formerly in Russell County's northwest corner.

In 1926, the Russell County portion of Phenix City was designated the second county seat (the seat from 1868 had been at rural [[Seale, Alabama|Seale]]). In 1934/35, Phenix City then became the sole county seat.

Phenix City was notorious during the 1940s and 1950s for being a haven for organized crime, prostitution, and gambling. Many of its customers came from the [[United States Army]] training center at [[Fort Benning]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]. The leaders of the crime syndicate in Phenix City were Jimmie Matthews and Hoyt Shepherd. [[Albert Patterson]], from Phenix City, was elected to become attorney general of Alabama on a platform of reforming the city, but was shot and killed in 1954 outside his office on 5th Ave, north of 14th Street.   As a result, the city had a negative reputation, and many people still associate this legacy with Phenix City. ''The Tragedy and the Triumph of Phenix City, Alabama'' by Margaret Ann Barnes chronicles these events, which led the small town to be known as "Sin City, USA". The bordertown was the subject of an acclaimed film, ''[[The Phenix City Story]]'', made in 1955.

In 1955, it won the [[All-America City Award]] from the [[National Municipal League]].

Despite the city having been entirely annexed into Russell County in 1932, the growth of the city has spread northward back into Lee County, where it first appeared on 1980 U.S. Census records. {{As of|2010}}, nearly 4,200 residents (out of almost 33,000) reside in the Lee County portion.<ref>1880–2010 U.S. censuses research on Brownville and Phenix City, Alabama</ref>