Toney, Alabama

Toney is an unincorporated community in the northwestern part of Madison County, Alabama, United States, and is included in the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. As of 2008, the estimated population of the community is over 10,000, up 30% since the 2000 census.

Toney History

Toney was part of the Cherokee Nation land cessions. It had been a settled community for many thousands of years prior the Treaty. People often find artifacts of this early settlement including pottery, arrowheads and various Native American tools in the area. The Toney surname in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, descended from the family that founded Toney, Alabama. In the late 1800s, the C&N and St. Louis railroad was extended south from Fayetteville, Tennessee to the communities of Toney, Harvest and Capshaw, with plans to extend the tracks to Triana, Alabama. The railroad went bankrupt in the economic troubles that led to the Great Depression of the 1930s. The path of this rail road remains to this day as "Old Railroad Bed Road." Historic Toney was centered around the railroad and Toney Springs.The mixed-race families who formed the older settlement population were part Chickasaw, Cherokee and Powhatan Indian, Black and White American. The Toney-Powhatan Indian sacred burial ground circa 1800, is located on property developed by Powhatan Indians, and now called Redstone Arsenal and Triana, Alabama. Harris Toney fought for Alabama during the Civil War and is a Southern Cross of Honor Recipient. The Toney family is one of the oldest documented political dynasty in Alabama. Marvalene Freeman the Mayor of the Town of Triana, is a linear descendant of Harris Toney the founder of Toney and Triana, Alabama. Harris Toney pioneered and lobbied for the [http://www.historicmarkers.com/Alabama/Madison_County_Alabama/Indian_Creek_Canal_-_373/ Indian Creek waterway or Canal] in 1819.

The Toney Economy

The economy of Toney depends a great deal on construction of housing. There is no particular single source of this income. Having no government to speak of, the economy is largely self generated. Substantial numbers of the people work in industries in the City of Madison, City of Huntsville and the subdivision Triana-Blackwall. They find the unregulated and untaxed community much to their advantage.

The housing industry is rapidly expanding as of 2008. Service industries such as automotive repair and many others are growing rapidly. The area is a center of small businesses servicing a wide area and located within the Hwy-53 to I-65 economic development corridor.

Toney Fire Department

[http://www.toneyfire.com Toney Volunteer Fire Department] (TVFD) is an aggressive department which uses the most modern and advanced tools and methods available to assist personnel with the ever-changing environments that are faced with each incident.

TVFD supports a rapidly increasing 14,000 people covering approximately 32 square miles. Types of calls responded to range from fires, wrecks and medical alarms to assisting Madison County Deputies with searching for missing persons. In 2007 TVFD responded to a record-breaking 800+ calls, all were answered by TVFD personnel.

TVFD conducts monthly business meetings which are open to the public and held at 7:00 on the first Tuesday of each month at station 1 which is located on Old Railroad Bed Rd.

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