Talladega, Alabama

Talladega, Alabama
—  City  —
Talladega Courthouse Square Historic District
Location in Talladega County and the state of Alabama
Coordinates: 33°26′5″N 86°6′5″W
Country	United States
State	Alabama
County	Talladega
Area
• Total	24 sq mi (62 km2)
• Land	23.9 sq mi (61.8 km2)
• Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation	558 ft (170 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	15,143
• Density	631/sq mi (244.2/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
• Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes	35160-35161
Area code(s)	256
FIPS code	01-74592
GNIS feature ID	0160707
Website	http://www.talladega.com/

Talladega ( /ˌtæləˈdɪɡə/) is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 15,143. The city is the county seat of Talladega County. Talladega is approximately 50 miles east of Birmingham, Alabama.

The city is home to the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind and the Talladega Municipal Airport, a public general aviation airport. The Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega College and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame are located nearby.

Talladega is a Muscogee (Creek) Native American word derived from TVLVTEKE. The source of this name is Creek 'talwa' [dot over the "a"], town, and 'atigi' [another dot over the "a"], border -- 'Border Town' -- a town indicating its location on the boundary between the lands of the Creek tribe and those of the Natchez. While the town's name is /ˌtæləˈdɪɡə/ by local inhabitants, the racetrack's name is /ˌtæləˈdeɪɡə/ by auto racing fans.

Geography

Talladega is located at 33°26′5″N 86°6′5″W (33.434728, -86.101299).

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 23.9 square miles (62 km²), of which, 23.9 square miles (62 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) of it (0.29%) is water. The mayor of Talladega is Larry Barton.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	1,320		—
1870	1,933		—
1880	1,233		−36.2%
1890	2,063		67.3%
1900	2,063		0%
1910	5,854		183.8%
1920	6,546		11.8%
1930	7,596		16.0%
1940	9,298		22.4%
1950	13,134		41.3%
1960	17,742		35.1%
1970	17,662		−0.5%
1980	19,128		8.3%
1990	18,175		−5.0%
2000	15,143		−16.7%
Est. 2009	16,735		10.5%

As of the census of 2000, there were 15,143 people, 5,836 households, and 3,962 families residing in the city. The population density was 634.4 people per square mile (244.9/km²). There were 6,457 housing units at an average density of 270.5 per square mile (104.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 56.15% White, 42.28% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.37% from other races, and 0.70% from two or more races. 0.90% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,836 households out of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.7% were married couples living together, 19.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.6% under the age of 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 85.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,617, and the median income for a family was $36,296. Males had a median income of $27,951 versus $21,326 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,733. About 14.1% of families and 19.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.4% of those under age 18 and 17.5% of those age 65 or over.

Famous Talladegans

• Gertrude Michael, American film, stage and television actress. Her best-remembered role is probably Rita Ross in Murder at the Vanities (1934), one of the last pre-Code films, in which she sang an ode to marijuana (Sweet Marijuana).
• Eddie King, was born on April 21, 1938, in Talladega, and played as a sideman to many other blues musicians including Sonny Boy Williamson II and Koko Taylor. His 1997 solo album, Another Cow's Dead, won the Blues Music Award.
• Tinsley R. Harrison, founding editor of Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine.
• The Talladega Municipal Airport was renamed Boswell field in honor of Eastaboga resident Lewis Archer Boswell. Local legend has it that Boswell made the first successful flight, before the Wright Brothers.
• Lee De Forest was not a native of Talladega but he spent most of his early life there. De Forest, who invented the vacuum tube and held over 300 patents, was the son of a president of Talladega College.
• Pulitzer-winning Washington correspondent, and former Washington bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times, Jack Nelson, was born in Talladega in October 1929, to Alonzo and Barbara O'Donnel. Beginning in September 2007, "The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press" offered one-year fellowships for recent law school graduates. They honor Nelson, who was chairman of its executive committee and served on its steering committee for 25 years.
• Robert Bradley grew up in Evergreen, Alabama, and attended school in Talladega at The Alabama School for the Blind. He is now a famous blues/rock artist that fronting his band, Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise. His early performinces were in churches around Talladega.
• The original members of the gospel group The Blind Boys of Alabama met in Talladega at The Alabama School for the Blind.
• Robert Smith Vance was born in Talladega in 1931, and spent his early childhood there. He became a progressive voice in Alabama politics during the 1960s and was appointed to a federal judgeship on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

Places of interest

Talladega includes a number of properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the J. L. M. Curry House and Swayne Hall, both listed as National Historic Landmarks. The main listed historic districts are the Silk Stocking District, which includes the Dr. Samuel Welch House, Talladega College Historic District, and Talladega Courthouse Square Historic District.

Gallery

• 

  The Talladega County Courthouse is located in Talladega which is the county seat of Talladega County.

• 

  Savery Library on the campus of Talladega College which is Alabama's oldest private historically black college.

• 

  Built in 1857, and eventually named for General Wager Swayne, Swayne Hall is the oldest building on the campus of Talladega College. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 1974

• 

  The Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind is a school for people with blindness and/or deafness located in Talladega.

• 

  The J. L. M. Curry House was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966.

• 

  Talladega is home to the famous Silk Stocking District. The neighborhood was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 13, 1979.

• 

  Boxwood was added to the National Register of Historic Places on June 9, 1983.

• 

  The First Presbyterian church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 17, 1983.

• 

  The Lawler-Whiting House was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 22, 1986.

• 

  The Idlewild Plantation House was built in 1843 and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1993.

• 

  Thornhill was added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 20, 1998.

• 

  The First United Methodist Church was built in 1921.

• 

  A historic marker commemorating General Andrew Jackson's victory over the Red Sticks at the Battle of Talladega during the Creek War.

• 

  A monument to the accomplishments of the USS Talladega stands in the Talladega Historic Courthouse Square.

• 

  A Group of doffers working in Cotton Factory posed by the superintendent of the factory. November 1910. Photographed by Lewis Hine.

External links

• Official Site
• Talladega in the Encyclopedia of Alabama