Millport

Millport is located in southern Lamar County in the west-central part of the state. It has a mayor/council form of government.

History

Originally known as Lick Skillet, much of the trade and industry in Millport centered on the three creeks that border the town. Settlers first came to the area around 1824. In 1858, the town moved its center to a place about a half-mile south of its current position. A post office was established in 1870. In 1878, the aptly named Henry Miller established the first water-powered grist mill in the area. Water-powered cotton gins and lumber mills soon followed.

The town shifted its location a second time when the Georgia Pacific Railroad came through around 1882, moving closer to the tracks. The townspeople thought that a more dignified name was in order after the railroad came through. The source of the present name is uncertain, but it is likely that it was named for the grist mill, referred to as Miller’s Port, owned by Henry Miller. The name was shortened to Millport.

Millport was incorporated in 1887. By 1909, it had a telephone system. In 1974, Weyerhaeuser established a wood-processing plant in Millport.

Demographics

According to 2020 Census estimates, Millport recorded a population of 1,209. Of that number, 81.2 percent of respondents identified themselves as white and 18.8 percent as African American. The town’s median household income was $59,444, and the per capita income was $20,546.

Employment

According to 2020 Census estimates, the workforce in Millport was divided among the following industrial categories:

  • Educational services and health care and social assistance (29.0 percent)
  • Other services, except public administration (21.9 percent)
  • Manufacturing (17.5 percent)
  • Public administration (5.6 percent)
  • Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing (5.4 percent)
  • Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services (5.2 percent)
  • Wholesale trade (4.2 percent)
  • Retail trade (3.5 percent)
  • Construction (3.1 percent)
  • Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation and food services (2.3 percent)
  • Transportation and warehousing, and utilities (1.3 percent)
  • Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and extraction (1.2 percent)

Education

Schools in Millport are part of the Lamar County school system; the town has one K-12 school.

Transportation

State Highways 96 bisects Millport running east-west, and State Highway 17 runs in conjunction with 96 east to the center of town, and then runs north from town.

Events and Places of Interest

Millport holds the Stallion Street Festival in early November; it features craft and food vendors as well as live music.

Additional Resources

Acee, Joe G. A History of Lamar County. 3rd ed. Vernon, Ala.: The Lamar Democrat, 1976.

Lamar County Heritage Book Committee. The Heritage of Lamar County. Clanton, Ala.: Heritage Publishing Consultants, 2000.

“Millport, Alabama, The First 100 Years.” West Alabama Gazette, June 10, 1982.

External Links

Share this Article