Global InformationList of municipalities in Alabama information
Alabama is a state located in the Southern United States. According to the 2020 United States Census, Alabama is the 24th most populous state with 5,024,279 inhabitants[1] and the 28th largest by land area spanning 50,645.33 square miles (131,170.8 km2) of land.[2] Alabama is divided into 67 counties and contains 461 municipalities consisting of 174 cities and 287 towns.[3] These cities and towns cover only 9.6% of the state's land mass but are home to 60.4% of its population.[2]
The Code of Alabama 1975 defines the legal use of the terms "town" and "city" based on population. A municipality with a population of 2,000 or more is a city, while less than 2,000 is a town.[4] For legislative purposes, municipalities are divided into eight classes based on the municipality's population, as certified by the 1970 federal decennial census.[5][6] The class of a municipality does not change if its population increases or decreases since the population figures refer to the 1970 federal census. Any municipality incorporated after June 28, 1979, is placed in a class according to the population of the municipality at the time of its incorporation. Class 1 is defined as all cities with a population of at least 300,000, as of the 1970 census. Birmingham is the state's only Class 1 municipality.[7] Class 2 are cities between 175,000 and 299,999 inhabitants, as of the 1970 census. Mobile is the state's only Class 2 municipality. Montgomery and Huntsville are Class 3 municipalities. Class 3 cities are those with populations between 100,000 and 174,999 inhabitants, as of the 1970 census. Tuscaloosa and Gadsden are Class 4 cities with between 50,000 and 99,999 inhabitants, as of the 1970 census. Class 5 are cities with a population greater than 25,000 and less than 49,999. Class 6 are those with between 12,000 and 24,999 inhabitants, and Class 7 are cities with a population from 6,000 to 11,999 inhabitants. Class 8 includes all towns, plus all remaining cities with populations of less than 6,000.
The largest municipality by population is Huntsville with 215,006 residents while the smallest by population is Oak Hill with 14 residents.[8] The largest municipality by land area is Huntsville, which spans 209.05 sq mi (541.4 km2), while the smallest is McMullen at 0.11 sq mi (0.28 km2).[8]
- ^ "Change in Resident Population of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico: 1910 to 2020" (PDF). Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- ^ a b "GCT-PH1 – Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 – State — Place and (in selected states) County Subdivision". 2010 United States Census. United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
- ^ "Alabama: 2010 Population and Housing Unit Counts 2010 Census of Population and Housing" (PDF). 2010 United States Census. United States Census Bureau. September 2012. p. 19. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
- ^ "Code of Alabama - Title 11: Counties and Municipal Corporations - Section 11-40-6 - Municipal corporations classified as cities or towns; holding of election after change in government of municipality". Archived from the original on October 6, 2015. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
- ^ "2018 Alabama Code - Section 11-40-12 — Classification of municipalities". Justia Law. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- ^ "FAQs from the Alabama Municipal Journal". www.alalm.org. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2019.
- ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". Census.gov. Retrieved May 27, 2013.
- ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
Census 2020was invoked but never defined (see the help page).