Childersburg, Alabama

Childersburg
—  City  —
Downtown Childersburg
Childersburg Location in Alabama.
Coordinates: 33°16′30″N 86°21′11″W / 33.275°N 86.35306°W / 33.275; -86.35306
Country	United States
State	Alabama
County	Talladega
Area
– Total	7.9 sq mi (20.5 km2)
– Land	7.7 sq mi (20 km2)
– Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2)
Elevation	420 ft (128 m)
Population (2000)
– Total	4,927
– Density	623.7/sq mi (240.3/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
– Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	35044
Area code(s)	256
FIPS code	01-14464
GNIS feature ID	0116045
Website	http://www.childersburg.org/

Childersburg is a city in Talladega county^[1][2] in the U.S. state of Alabama. At the 2000 census the population was 4,927. It claims a history dating back before 1540, when it was noted as a village of the Coosa Nation visited by the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. The Alabama Army Ammunition Plant, important during World War II, was located 4 miles north of Childersburg.

Geography

Childersburg is located at 33°16′31″N 86°21′11″W / 33.27528°N 86.35306°W / 33.27528; -86.35306 (33.275187, -86.353166)^[3].

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.9 square miles (20 km²), of which, 7.7 square miles (20 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.52 km²) of it (2.40%) is water.

History

Succeeding indigenous peoples had lived in the area for thousands of years. In the sixteenth century, people identified as part of the Kymulga-phase culture (of the larger Mississippian culture) lived at Talisi, the former site of Childersburg.^[4] In the fall of 1540, the Spanish Hernando de Soto expedition rested here for about one month during its exploration of the Southeast.^[5]}} Childersburg calls itself "The Oldest City in America".^[6] The Abihka people (part of those who became known as the Muskogee or Creek) dominated the area by the 18th century.^[7]

The Alabama Army Ammunition Plant, a munitions plant, was established in Childersburg in 1941 and operated throughout World War II until August 1945.^[8] Operated by DuPont, the plant produced explosives, such as nitrocellulose, trinitrotoluene (TNT), and dinitrotoluene (DNT).^[8] The plant also secretly produced heavy water to support the Manhattan Project.^[9]

Demographics

As of the census^[10] of 2000, there were 4,927 people residing in the city, an increase over the 1990 population of 4,600.^[11] In 2000, there were 1,999 households and 1,419 families in the city. The population density was 637.2 people per square mile (246.1/km²). There were 2,149 housing units at an average density of 277.9 per square mile (107.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.87% White, 29.73% Black or African American, 0.32% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.26% from other races, and 0.73% from two or more races. 0.61% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,999 households out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.2% were married couples living together, 17.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.0% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $23,932, and the median income for a family was $30,524. Males had a median income of $31,892 versus $20,569 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,412. About 20.7% of families and 23.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 33.6% of those under age 18 and 19.9% of those age 65 or over.

Recreation

There are ten golf courses in Childersburg and its immediate vicinity.^[12]

Notable residents

• Richard Edgeworth - childhood actor, commercials.
• Joseph C. Parker, who later would be a key figure in convincing the congregation of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church to appoint Martin Luther King Jr. as their pastor, was for a time a school principal in Childersburg.^[13]
• Gerald Wallace - Portland Trail Blazers player; he had a cameo in the Like Mike movie (2002) as himself

Gallery

• 

  Welcome to Historic Childersburg

• 

  Childersburg Post Office (ZIP Code: 35044)

• 

  The Earle A. Rainwater Memorial Library

• 

  The Kymulga Mill And Covered Bridge Park is located 4.5 mi (7.2 km) northeast of Childersburg on State Route 46. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 29, 1976.

• 

  The Charles Butler House was added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 26, 1996.

References

1. ^ {http://www.childersburg.org/ City of Childersburg]
2. ^ {http://www.childersburg.com/ Childersburg Chamber of Commerce]
3. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
4. ^ Waselkov, Gregory A. and Marvin T. Smith. "Upper Creek Archaeology" in McEwan, Bonnie G., ed. Indians of the Greater Southeast: Historical Archaeology and Ethnohistory (Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 2000) p. 244
5. ^ Gentleman of Elvas (1557). "Chapter XVII, Of How the Governor went from Coca to Tastaluca". Narratives of the Career of Hernando De Soto in the Conquest of Florida as told by a Knight of Elvas. Kallman Publishing Co. (1968), Translated by Buckingham Smith. p. 81. ASIN B000J4W27Q. 
6. ^ City of Childersburg website, accessed July 18, 2011
7. ^ Waselkov. "Upper Creek Archaeology" p. 247
8. ^ ^{a b} United States Army Environmental Center Base Closure Division, Site Management Plan; Alabama Army Ammunition Plant, Talladega County, Alabama, May 10, 1995. Pages 5-6.
9. ^ Site Management Plan; Alabama Army Ammunition Plant, Talladega County, Alabama, May 10, 1995. Page 22.
10. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
11. ^ Childersburg - Hutchinson encyclopedia article about Childersburg
12. ^ Childersburg, Alabama Golf Courses
13. ^ [1]

External links

• Childersburg Chamber of Commerce
• City of Childersburg
• DeSoto Caverns Park

Coordinates: 33°16′31″N 86°21′11″W / 33.275187°N 86.353166°W / 33.275187; -86.353166