Editing Courtland, Alabama

{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Courtland, Alabama
|settlement_type          = [[Town]]
|image_skyline            = Courtland-Town-Square-east2-al.jpg
|imagesize                = 250px
|image_caption            = Buildings along the Town Square (College Street)
|image_seal               = 
|image_blank_emblem       = Logo of Courtland, Alabama.png
|blank_emblem_type        = Logo
|image_map                = File:Lawrence County Alabama Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Courtland Highlighted 0118040.svg
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of Courtland in Lawrence County, Alabama.
|image_map1               = 
|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             = 
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Alabama|County]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_name1        = [[Alabama]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Lawrence County, Alabama|Lawrence]]
<!-- established --------------->
| established_title1       = Incorporated
| established_date1        = December 13, 1819<ref name="alabama-law-1823">A Digest of the Laws of the State of Alabama: Containing The Statutes and Resolutions in Force at the end of the General Assembly in January, 1823.  Published by Ginn & Curtis, J. & J. Harper, Printers, New-York, 1828.  Title 62. Chapter LII. Page 827-828. [https://books.google.com/books?id=JvtKAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA827 "An Act to Establish the Town of Courtland, in Lawrence County.—Passed  December 13, 1819." (Google Books)]</ref>
<!-- government type, leaders -->
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = 
|leader_name              = 
|established_date         = 
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 7.71
|area_total_sq_mi         = 2.98
|area_land_km2            = 7.65
|area_land_sq_mi          = 2.95
|area_water_km2           = 0.06
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.03
|elevation_ft             = 568
|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 583
|population_metro         = 
|population_density_km2   = 76.24
|population_density_sq_mi = 197.49
|timezone                 = [[Central Time Zone (North America)|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = -6
|coordinates              = {{coord|34|40|6|N|87|18|38|W|region:US-AL|display=inline,title}}
|timezone_DST             = CDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -5
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 35618
|area_code                = [[Area code 256|256]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 01-18040
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 2406323<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2406323}}</ref>
|footnotes                = 
|website                  = 
|pop_est_as_of = 
|pop_est_footnotes = 
|population_est = 
|unit_pref = Imperial
|area_footnotes = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{cite web|title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_01.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=October 29, 2021}}</ref>
}}
'''Courtland''' is a town in [[Lawrence County, Alabama|Lawrence County]], [[Alabama]], United States, and is included in the [[Decatur, Alabama Metropolitan Area|Decatur Metropolitan Area]], as well as the [[Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area]].  The population was 609 at the [[2010 United States Census|2010 census]], down from 769 in 2000.

==History==

A small creek named Big Nance Creek runs through the town.  The creek was named for a [[Cherokee]] chief who lived in the area when the first European settlers arrived.  The current town is reportedly located on the site of the Native American village.

Courtland began as a small settlement known as Ebenezer in the early 1800s. Its early settlers were wealthy planters mostly from [[Virginia]], [[Tennessee]], the [[Carolinas]] and [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]. It was presently named for the federal courthouse and land office there. In 1818, a group known as the Courtland Land Company bought the land on which the town is now situated and subdivided it into lots.<ref name=kaetz>James P. Kaetz, "[http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-3469 Courtland]," ''Encyclopedia of Alabama'', 20 June 2013.</ref> The town was incorporated on December 13, 1819, by the [[Alabama Territory|Alabama territorial legislature]]<ref name="alabama-law-1823"/>

The early roads [[Gaines Trace]] and [[Byler Road]] went through town.<ref>{{cite web |title=Early Roads / One of the South's First Railroads 1832 |publisher=The Historical Marker Database |url=http://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=29056 |accessdate=2012-04-26 |archive-date=2017-09-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170928005327/https://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=29056 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

One of the South's earliest railroads, the [[Tuscumbia, Courtland and Decatur Railroad]], was organized at Courtland in 1831, and chartered the following year.  The railroad's organizers routed the {{convert|50|mi|km|adj=on}} railroad to bypass the dangerous shoals along the [[Tennessee River]] to the north.  The railroad was absorbed by the [[Memphis and Charleston Railroad]] in the 1850s, and later became part of the [[Southern Railway (U.S.)|Southern Railway]].<ref name=kaetz />

In 1835, Courtland physician [[Jack Shackelford]] organized a volunteer military unit to fight in the [[Texas Revolution]].  Known as the "[[Red Rovers]]" for the color of their uniforms, the company was captured by Mexican forces at [[Battle of Coleto|Coleto]] in March 1836, and most of its men were killed in the [[Goliad massacre]]. Shackelford was among the few survivors.<ref>Alabama Historical Association, "The Red Rovers" historical marker on the Town Square in Courtland, 1964.</ref>

In 1944 and 1945, during [[World War II]], Courtland was home to the Courtland Army Airfield (Courtland AAF). It was dismantled after the war and given to the city of Courtland, which now operates it as [[Courtland Airport]].

===Courtland Historic District===
{{Main|Courtland Historic District}}

In the early 1990s, more than 100 buildings in Courtland were listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] as the Courtland Historic District.  Most of the buildings in the district date from the 1830s through the 1930s, and architectural styles include [[Federal architecture|Federal]], [[Italianate architecture|Italianate]], [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]], [[Colonial Revival]], and [[Neoclassical architecture|Neoclassical]].  The Town Square was part of the town's original 1818-1819 plan.  Many of the commercial buildings facing the square, especially along College Street and Tennessee Street, were built in the 1890s and early 1900s.  The train depot on the south side of the square, now a community center, was built in the late 1880s.  The Old Sherrod Hotel, located at the northwest corner of Tennessee Street and Alabama Street, was built around 1930, and provided housing for early [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] employees.<ref>Robert Gamble, "[https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/efff9624-0505-490d-a5dd-5c20d933273e/ Courtland Historic District]," National Register of Historic Places inventory form, 1991.</ref>

The [[John McMahon House]], a Federal-style home built around 1830, is listed individually on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref>{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref><ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20090321094715/http://www.preserveala.org/pdfs/AHC%20Historical%20Markers.pdf AHC Historical Markers]}} (PDF). Retrieved on 2008-04-03.</ref>  [[Rocky Hill Castle]] was a [[Slavery in the United States|forced-labor]] plantation whose architecturally renowned plantation house was demolished in 1961.<ref name="alcatalog">{{cite book | last =Gamble | first =Robert | year =1987 | title =The Alabama Catalog: A Guide to the Early Architecture of the State | page=253 | publisher =University of Alabama Press | location =University, AL | isbn =0-8173-0148-8 }}</ref><ref name="lostplan">{{cite book |title=Lost Plantations of the South |url=https://archive.org/details/lostplantationss00matr |url-access=limited |last=Matrana |first=Marc R. |year=2009 |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |location=Jackson, MS |isbn=978-1-57806-942-2 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/lostplantationss00matr/page/n330 112]–117 }}</ref>

==Geography==
Courtland is located at {{coord|34|40|6|N|87|18|39|W|type:city}} (34.668457, -87.310821).<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|accessdate=2011-04-23|date=2011-02-12|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref>  The town is concentrated in area along Big Nance Creek, a tributary of the [[Tennessee River]], west of [[Decatur, Alabama|Decatur]] and southeast of [[Muscle Shoals, Alabama|Muscle Shoals]].  The town's municipal boundaries extend northeastward to [[U.S. Route 72]].  The town of [[North Courtland, Alabama|North Courtland]] borders Courtland to the north.

According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|2.3|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|2.3|sqmi|km2}} is land and 0.43% is water.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1880= 580
|1890= 579
|1900= 488
|1910= 478
|1920= 367
|1930= 359
|1940= 454
|1950= 507
|1960= 495
|1970= 547
|1980= 456
|1990= 803
|2000= 769
|2010= 609
|2020= 583
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=Census.gov|accessdate=June 6, 2013}}</ref><br />2013 Estimate<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/popest/data/cities/totals/2013/SUB-EST2013-3.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2013|accessdate=June 3, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140522161634/http://www.census.gov/popest/data/cities/totals/2013/SUB-EST2013-3.html|archive-date=May 22, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>
}}
From 1880 until 1910, Courtland was the largest town in Lawrence County, losing the distinction in 1920 to the county seat of [[Moulton, Alabama|Moulton]], which has held it to date.<ref>1880-2010 U.S. Censuses research on Lawrence County, Alabama Communities</ref>

As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |accessdate=2008-01-31 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref> of 2000, there were 769 people, 316 households, and 210 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|331.2|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 363 housing units at an average density of {{convert|156.4|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 54.23% [[Race (United States Census)|White]], 40.44% [[Race (United States Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 2.08% [[Race (United States Census)|Native American]], 0.26% [[Race (United States Census)|Asian]], 0.13% [[Race (United States Census)|Pacific Islander]], and 2.86% from two or more races. 0.91% of the population were [[Race (United States Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Race (United States Census)|Latino]] of any race.

There were 316 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.0% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 20.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.8% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 85.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $27,500, and the median income for a family was $36,000. Males had a median income of $31,250 versus $17,188 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $14,456. About 18.1% of families and 20.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 22.7% of those under age 18 and 32.9% of those age 65 or over.

===2020 census===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Courtland racial composition<ref>https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=Courtland%20town,%20Alabama&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P1 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>
!Race
!Num.
!Perc.
|-
|[[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
|281
|48.19%
|-
|[[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
|241
|41.34%
|-
|[[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
|9
|1.54%
|-
|[[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]]
|1
|0.17%
|-
|[[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
|51
|8.75%
|-
|[[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
|8
|1.37%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 583 people, 293 households, and 211 families residing in the city.

==Notable people==
*[[Sam Agee]], [[American football]] player
*[[Thomas Jefferson Foster]], two-term member of the [[Confederate Congress]]
*[[Jack Shackelford]], one of the few survivors of the [[Goliad massacre]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Courtland, Alabama}}

{{Lawrence County, Alabama}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Lawrence County, Alabama]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1819]]