Chilton County


Motorists traveling Interstate 65 between Montgomery and Birmingham Clanton Water TowerLocated in central Alabama, Chilton County is renowned for its bountiful peach crop industry. Over 80 percent of Alabama's peach crop comes from the county. Since 1947, the county has sponsored the Chilton County Peach festival. In addition, the town boasts a peach-shaped water tower to honor the county's famous fruit. The county is governed by an elected seven-member commission.

· Founding Date: December 30, 1868
· Area: 695 square miles
· Population: 41,953 (2006 Census Bureau estimate)
· Major Waterways: Coosa River
· Major Highways: I-65, U.S. 82, U.S. 31
· County Seat: Clanton
· Largest City: Clanton

History 

William Parish Chilton (1810-1871) was a prominent lawyer William P. ChiltonChilton County was created by an act of the Alabama State Legislature on December 30, 1868, from land taken from Autauga, Bibb, Perry, and Shelby counties. The county was originally named Baker County for Alfred Baker, credited as the founder of the town of Clanton. After the Civil War, Baker served as the first mayor of the town and came into conflict with townspeople after cooperating with local Republican politicians. On December 17, 1874, citizens of Clanton voted to change the name of their county to Chilton to honor William P. Chilton, chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court and a member of the provisional and regular Congress of the Confederacy.

In 1902, Jefferson Manly Faulkner, a Montgomery lawyer and Confederate veteran, donated 80 acres of his own land in southeastern Chilton County as the site for the Alabama Confederate Soldiers Home. The retirement community consisted of a 22-building complex that included a 25-bed hospital. At its peak, the home housed more than 100 people. The area now serves as Confederate Memorial Park. In post-World War II years Chilton County emerged as the principle peach growing area in the state, a status it continues to hold. After a particularly large crop, the town of Thornsby held the first Peach Festival in 1947. The festival moved to Clanton in 1952, where it continues to be celebrated.

Major Cities and Demographics 

Maplesville is a small community located at the MaplesvilleAt the time of the 2000 Census, Chilton County recorded a population of 39,593, a 22 percent increase from the 1990 Census. According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the 2006 population was 41,953, with 88.3 percent White, 10.5 percent African American, and 3.7 percent Hispanic. The county seat, Clanton, had an estimated population of 8,336 in 2005. Other significant population centers in the county include Jemison (2,550), Maplesville (685), and Thorsby (2,004). In 2004 the median household income was $35,507, compared with $37,062 for the state as a whole. In 1999, the per capita income was $15,303, compared with $18,189 for the state.

Economy 

The most profitable industry in Chilton County since the nineteenth century has been timber, and it remains so to this day. In addition to timber, the county received a boon to its economy in 1914 and 1922 when Alabama Power built its first two hydroelectric plants, Lay Dam and Mitchell Dam, on the Coosa River. Although peaches remain a popular industry in Chilton County, the area is also known for other fruit and vegetable crops, including strawberries, watermelons, and tomatoes. Cattle, poultry, corn, and cotton are also important economically.

Lay Dam is located on the Coosa River Construction of Lay DamIn 2000, the workforce in Chilton County consisted of 25.6 percent in sales and office work; 22 percent employed in management and professional occupations; 20 percent in production, transportation, and material moving; 18.7 percent in construction, extraction, and maintenance; 16.9 percent in manufacturing; 12.4 percent in service occupations; and 4.1 percent in agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing. The Chilton County School System currently employs 440 teachers who serve almost 7,000 students in 12 schools. In addition, the county contains two private schools that enroll approximately 250 students.

Geography 

Chilton County is 31st in size among Alabama Chilton County MapComprising approximately 695 square miles, Chilton County lies in the central area of the state, almost wholly within the Coastal Plain physiographic section. It is bounded to the north by Shelby County, to the east by Coosa and Elmore counties, to the south by Autauga and Dallas counties, and to the west by Perry and Bibb counties. Part of the southwest corner of the county lies within the Talladega National Forest.

The Coosa River runs along the eastern edge of the county, and its tributary, Waxahatchee Creek, crosses the area. In 1914 and 1922 Alabama Power built two dams on the Coosa River, creating Lay Lake and Mitchell Lake. Interstate 65 is Chilton County's major transportation route, running north-south through the center of the county. Gragg-Wade Field Airport is the county's only public airport.

Events and Places of Interest  

Confederate Memorial Park is the site of Alabama's Confederate Memorial ParkAs the state's largest commercial producer of peaches, Chilton County is host to the annual Chilton County Peach Festival, which includes a parade, beauty pageants, peach cook-off, and auction. Lay Lake and Lake Mitchell, along the Coosa River, offer abundant fishing for spotted and large-mouth bass, crappie, bream, and walleye. The Talladega National Forest, located in the southwestern part of the county, offers hiking trails and several scenic views. The Confederate Memorial Park, located in the southern part of the county, is the historic site of Alabama's only home for Confederate veterans. It includes two cemeteries and a museum that houses Civil War uniforms, weapons, and equipment, plus many relics from the Alabama Confederate Soldiers' Home.

Additional Resources  

Heritage of Chilton County. Clanton, Ala.: Heritage Publishing Consultants Inc., 2000.

Wyatt, Thomas Eugene. Chilton County and Her People: History of Chilton  County. Montevallo, Ala.: Times Printing Company, 1970.

Patricia Hoskins Morton
Auburn University


Published August 23, 2007
Last updated December 10, 2009