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COUNTY HISTORY
Chambers County was created by an act of the Alabama General Assembly on 18 December 1832, from former Creek Indian territory. It is located in the east-central portion of the state, and is bounded on the east by the Chattahoochee River.
The county is named for Henry Chambers, a U.S. Senator from Alabama (1825-26). The location of the county seat was selected in 1833 and the town of LaFayette was built specifically for that purpose. The county became a center of the state's textile industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Other towns of note include Valley, Lanett and Fairfax.
Source: Owen, Thomas McAdory. History of Alabama and dictionary of Alabama biography . Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1921.
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Click on the links below for book titles specific to that Alabama county.
The date each county was formed is noted.
County Name |
Established |
Origin of Name |
County Seat |
Autauga |
Nov 21, 1818 |
American Indian Village of Atagi |
Prattville |
Baine, see Etowah | Dec 7, 1866 | Gen. David W. Baine, CSA | Gadsden |
Baldwin | Dec 21, 1809 | Sen. Abraham Baldwin/GA | Bay Minette |
Baker, see Chilton | Dec 30, 1868 | Alfred Baker | Grantville |
Barbour |
Dec 18, 1832 |
Gov. James Barbour/VA |
Clayton |
Benton, see Calhoun | Dec 18, 1832 | U.S. Sen. Thomas Hart Benton/MO | Jacksonville |
Bibb |
Feb 7, 1818 |
Gov. William W. Bibb |
Centreville |
Blount | Feb 6, 1818 | Gov. Willie G. Blount/TN | Oneonta |
Bullock | Dec 5, 1866 | Col. Edward C. Bullock | Union Springs |
Butler | Dec 13, 1819 | Capt. William Butler/Creek Wars | Greenville |
Cahawba, see Bibb | Feb 7, 1818 | Cahawba River, from Choctaw "water above" | Cahawba |
Calhoun | Dec 18, 1832 | Sen. John C. Calhoun/SC | Anniston |
Chambers | Dec 18, 1832 | Sen. Henry C. Chambers/AL | Lafayette |
Cherokee | Jan 9, 1836 | American Indian Tribe | Centre |
Chilton | Dec 30, 1868 | Confederate Cong. Wm. P. Chilton | Clanton |
Choctaw | Dec 29, 1847 | American Indian Tribe | Butler |
Clarke | Dec 10, 1812 | Gen. John Clarke/GA | Grove Hill |
Clay | Dec 7, 1866 | Sen. Henry Clay/KY | Ashland |
Cleburne | Dec 6, 1866 | Major Gen. Patrick Cleburne/AR | Heflin |
Coffee | Dec 29, 1841 | Gen. John Coffee | Elba |
Colbert | Feb 6, 1867 | Chiefs George & Levi Colbert | Tuscumbia |
Conecuh | Feb 13, 1818 | American Indian word | Evergreen |
Coosa | Dec 18, 1832 | Town of Alabama Indians | Rockford |
Cotaco; see Morgan | Feb 8, 1818 | Cotaco Creek | Somerville |
Covington | Dec 17, 1821 | Brig. Gen. Leonard Covington/MD | Andalusia |
Crenshaw | Nov 30, 1866 | Judge Anderson Crenshaw | Luverne |
Cullman | Jan 24, 1877 | Johann G. Cullmann | Cullman |
Dale | Dec 22, 1824 | Gen. Samuel Dale | Ozark |
Dallas | Feb 9, 1818 | A.J. Dallas, US Sec. of Treasury/PA | Selma |
Decatur | Dec. 7, 1821 | Commodore Stephen Decatur | Woodville |
DeKalb | Jan 9, 1836 | Major Gen. Baron DeKalb/Am. Rev. | Fort Payne |
Elmore | Feb 15, 1866 | Gen. John A. Elmore | Wetumpka |
Escambia | Dec 10, 1868 | American Indian name/river | Brewton |
Etowah | Dec 7, 1866 | Cherokee Indian name | Gadsden |
Fayette | Dec 20, 1824 | Marquis de LaFayette | Fayette |
Franklin | Feb 6, 1818 | Benjamin Franklin | Russellville |
Geneva | Dec 26, 1868 | Geneva, Switzerland | Geneva |
Greene | Dec 13, 1819 | Gen. Nathaniel Greene/GA | Eutaw |
Hale | Jan 30, 1867 | Col. Stephen F. Hale | Greensboro |
Hancock, seeWinston | Feb 12, 1850 | Gov. John Hancock/MA | Double Springs |
Henry | Dec 13, 1819 | Gov. Patrick Henry/VA | Abbeville |
Houston | Feb 9, 1903 | Gov. George S. Houston | Dothan |
Jackson | Dec 13, 1819 | Gen. Andrew Jackson | Scottsboro |
Jefferson | Dec 13, 1819 | Pres. Thomas Jefferson | Birmingham |
Jones, see Lamar | Feb 4, 1867 | E. P. Jones/Fayette County | Vernon |
Lamar | Feb 4, 1867 | Sen. L.Q.C. Lamar/MS | Vernon |
Lauderdale | Feb 6, 1818 | Col. James Lauderdale/TN | Florence |
Lawrence | Feb 6, 1818 | Capt. J. Lawrence, USN/VT | Moulton |
Lee | Dec 5, 1866 | Gen. Robert E. Lee | Opelika |
Limestone | Feb 6, 1818 | Limestone Creek | Athens |
Lowndes | Jan 20, 1830 | Cong. William Lowndes/SC | Hayneville |
Macon | Dec 18, 1832 | Sen. Nathaniel Macon/NC | Tuskegee |
Madison | Dec 13, 1808 | Pres. James Madison | Huntsville |
Marengo | Feb 6, 1818 | French battlefield | Linden |
Marion | Feb 13, 1818 | Gen. Francis Marion/SC | Hamilton |
Marshall | Jan 9, 1836 | Chief Justice John Marshall | Guntersville |
Mobile | Dec 18, 1812 | Named for Maubila Indians | Mobile |
Monroe | Jun 29, 1815 | Pres. James Monroe | Monroeville |
Montgomery | Dec 6, 1816 | Major L.P. Montgomery/TN | Montgomery |
Morgan | Feb 6, 1818 | Gen. Daniel Morgan/VA | Decatur |
Perry | Dec 13, 1819 | Commodore O.H. Perry/RI | Marion |
Pickens | Dec 20, 1820 | Gen. Andrew Pickens/SC | Carrollton |
Pike | Dec 17, 1821 | Gen. Zebulon M. Pike/NJ | Troy |
Randolph | Dec 18, 1832 | Sen. John Randolph/VA | Wedowee |
Russell | Dec 18, 1832 | Col. Gilbert C. Russell/Creek Wars | Phenix City |
Sanford, see Lamar | Feb 4, 1867 | H. C. Sanford/Cherokee County | Vernon |
St. Clair | Nov 20, 1818 | Gen. Arthur St. Clair/PA | Ashville |
Shelby | Feb 7, 1818 | Gov. Isaac Shelby/KY | Columbiana |
Sumter | Dec 18, 1832 | Gen. Thomas Sumter/SC | Livingston |
Talladega | Dec 18, 1832 | Town of Creek Indians | Talladega |
Tallapoosa | Dec 18, 1832 | American Indian name | Dadeville |
Tuscaloosa | Feb 6, 1818 | Chief Tuscaloosa | Tuscaloosa |
Walker | Dec 26, 1823 | Sen. John W. Walker | Jasper |
Washington | Jun 4, 1800 | Pres. George Washington | Chatom |
Wilcox | Dec 13, 1819 | Lt. J.M. Wilcox/Creek Wars | Camden |
Winston | Feb 12, 1850 | Gov. John A. Winston | Double Springs |