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Gadsden, AL

Fast Facts

Founded: 1825 Population: 37,291 Time Zone: -6
Latitude: 34.012 N Longitude: 086.019 W Altitude: 538 ft
Average High: 72.4 Average Low: 49.2 Annual Precipitation: 56.10

 

Map of North AL

Gadsden, Alabama, is located on the Coosa River in northeastern Alabama, United States, approximately 60 miles northeast of Birmingham. Gadsden is the county seat of Etowah County, AL. First settled by Europeans in 1810, Gadsden grew into a major manufacturing town with the invention of the Steam Boat.


The first substantial European settlement began as a small town called Double Springs. John Riley, a mixed Indian-white settler, built his house near two springs around 1825. Double Springs later became a stagecoach stop on the Huntsville-to-Rome route. The house changed hands to a couple named Gabriel and Asenath Hughes in 1840. Shortly thereafter, they began to purchase much of the land between Lookout Mountain, the Coosa River , and down to the mouth of Wills Creek. Their land, plus that of John S. Moragne and Joseph Rhea, became the first part of the city of Gadsden. Double Springs was transformed on July 4, 1845, when Captain James Lafferty piloted the first steamboat to the area, aptly named the Coosa. He landed near the site of the current Memorial Bridge on that date. The Hughes brothers offered to name the town "Lafferty's Landing" in his honor, but Lafferty declined. Instead, the name Gadsden was chosen, in honor of Colonel James Gadsden of South Carolina, famous for the later Gadsden Purchase.[1]


Gadsden grew to become one of the state's 2nd most important industrial centers, trailing only Mobile. Up until the 1980s, Gadsden was almost totally dependent on heavy industry, including Goodyear Tire, and Republic Steel. After virtually crumbling in the 1970s and 1980s, Gadsden decided its best course of action was to stop being dependent on industry, and shed its "company town" image. In 1991, Gadsden was awarded the honor of "All-America City" by the National Civic League, an award that honored the way Gadsden's citizens, businesses, government, and voluntary organizations all work together to address critical local issues.



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Coosa River Memorial Bridge Main Street Pitman Theater


History[2]

Spirit of American Citizenship Monument

  • 1810; First Settlers.
  • 1825; First House built by John Riley.
  • 1835; First Post Office.
  • 1838; Trail of Tears, Cherokee Nation.
  • 1845; First church, Lafferty's Landing, first steamboat on the upper Coosa River .
  • 1846; Original survey of Gadsden completed, Gadsden founded in honor of James Gadsden.
  • 1863; Emma Sansom leads General Forrest over Black Creek.
  • 1863, May 2-3; John Henry Wisdom rides 67 miles from Gadsden, AL, to Rome, GA, under very harassing conditions to warn the citizens of Col. Abel D. Streight's proposed march to burn Rome. Because of his efforts, barricades were erected and eventually Col. A. D. Streight's forces surrendered to General Bedford Forrest.
  • 1866; Etowah County formed (first known as Baine County).
  • 1867; First newspaper, The Gadsden Times.
  • 1868; Name of county changed to Etowah, which in Cherokee means a tree bearing good fruit.
  • 1868; First industry, Gaylor's Hat Factory.
  • 1870; First railroad.
  • 1870; First Courthouse.
  • 1872; Attalla incorporated.
  • 1876; Gadsden incorporated.
  • 1877; First public school.
  • 1882; First theater.
  • 1882; First iron works.
  • 1882; First hotel, Turrentine Inn.
  • 1883; First bank, Glenn& Brockway.
  • 1883, May 2; First fire department.
  • 1883, July 4; City's worst fire, which destroyed 21 businesses.
  • 1883; First opera house, Kyle Opera House.
  • 1883; Mayor/council form of government.
  • 1884; First college, Walnut Grove.
  • 1886; Walnut Grove incorporated.
  • 1886; First water works.
  • 1888; First bridge across the Coosa River (railroad/foot).
  • 1891; Alabama City founded.
  • 1904; First steel plant.
  • 1905; First hospital, Baptist Memorial.
  • 1905; Alabama's first hydroelectric plant begins operation. Note, the World's First Hydroelectric Power Plant Began Operation September 30, 1882, and was on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin.
  • 1910; Broad Street paved with brick.
  • 1913; First street car in operation.
  • 1925; First radio station, WJBY.
  • 1927; Etowah County Memorial Bridge, over the Coosa River, dedicated to the memory of the Etowah County World War (World War I) heroes who made the supreme sacrifice for the country.
  • 1929; Goodyear opens first rubber plant in South.
  • 1932; Alabama City and Gadsden merge.
  • 1934; Final run for streetcar made.
  • 1935; Gadsden Amphitheatre and Convention Hall completed .
  • 1937; Republic Steel buys local plant.
  • 1939; Glencoe incorporated.
  • 1941; Gadsden Ordinance Plant built.
  • 1942; Gadsden Air Depot built.
  • 1942; Construction begins on Camp Sibert. Camp Sibert was the first large-scale chemical agent training area in the United States and operated from 1942 to 1945, and was also iused as a POW camp.
  • 1946; Hokes Bluff incorporated.
  • 1946; Noccalula Falls lands bought.
  • 1949; Southside incorporated.
  • 1949; Gadsden/Etowah gets first major airline.
  • 1953; Ola Lee Mize awarded Congressional Medal of Honor.
  • 1957; Reece City incorporated.
  • 1958; Gadsden Air Depot closes.
  • 1963; Sardis and Mountainboro incorporated.
  • 1969; Ridgeville incorporated.
  • 1974; Gadsden Mall built.
  • 1984; Ling-Temco-Vought assumes ownership of steel plant.
  • 1984; Martin Luther King Center dedicated.



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Good Year Plant

Alabama´s History

State History[3]



Ancient times[4]


  • 10,000 BC - 7000 BC
    Paleo-Indian culture of seminomadic hunter-foragers living in open countryside and in natural rock shelters (e.g. Russell Cave in Jackson County and the Stanfield-Worley bluff shelter in Colbert County).
  • 7000 BC - 1000 BC
    Archaic Period of Native American hunter-gatherer culture as Indians build temporary dwellings, add shellfish to their diets, and fashion atlatls (spear throwers) to hunt small game.
  • 2500 BC - 100 BC
    Gulf Formational Period of Indian culture with increasing sophistication in ceramic development with tempered pottery.
  • 300 BC - 1000 AD
    Woodland Period of permanent houses, embellished pottery, bows and arrows, and maize and squash cultivation.
  • 700 AD - 1300 AD
    Mississippian culture features ceremonial mounds (e.g. Moundville, in Hale County), ornate pottery, and sophisticated agriculture.


1500 - 1700
1700 - 1899
  • 1702, January 20; Le Moyne brothers, d' Iberville and de Bienville, establish French fort and settlement, Fort Louis de la Mobile, on a bluff twenty-seven miles up the Mobile River from Mobile Bay.
  • 1704, October 3; Cassette Girls arrive in Mobile. King Louis XIV pays passage and dowries for twenty-five young women to travel from France on board The Pelican to colony of Louisiana to become wives of colonists. Other Cassette Girls arrived in 1728.
  • 1711; Mobile moved from Twenty-seven Mile Bluff to permanent site at the mouth of the Mobile River.
  • 1717; Fort Toulouse on the Coosa River constructed to trade with the Indians and offset influence of British; farthest eastward penetration of the French.
  • 1720; French Louisiana capitol moved from Mobile west to Biloxi, MS, then to New Orleans (1722).
  • 1721; Africane sails into Mobile harbor with cargo of over 100 slaves.
  • 1724; French Code Noir extended from French West Indies to North American colonies, institutionalizing slavery in Mobile area.
  • 1756 - 1763; Seven Years War (French and Indian War) won by Great Britain. France ceded territorial claims east of the Mississippi River to Britain and those west of the River (including New Orleans) to Spain; Great Britain returned war-captured Cuba to Spain for Florida, which was divided into West Florida (including Mobile) and East Florida (the peninsula).
  • 1775 - 1783; American Revolution creates United States of America governed by the Articles of Confederation.
  • 1779; Spain, the United States' unsung ally, asks Britain to recognize the independence of the thirteen united States of America and to cease hostilities. Spain contributes over $5,000,000 to the revolution.
  • 1780, March 14: Spanish capture Mobile during American Revolution and retain the West and East Floridas as part of war-ending treaty.
  • 1787; United States Constitution written.
  • 1790; Creek Indians, led by Alexander McGillivray, negotiate the Treaty of New York with the U.S. government. The treaty ceded Creek territory in Georgia to the new nation, and acknowledged Indian rights in western Georgia and Alabama.
  • 1793; Eli Whitney invents cotton gin.
  • 1797 - 1799; U.S. Surveyor General Andrew Ellicott makes survey that establishes U.S. claims for its southern boundary with Spanish West Florida at the 31st parallel. Ellicott's Stone is placed north of Mobile in 1799 to mark the 31st parallel.
  • 1798; Mississippi Territory organized from Georgia's western land claims, including Alabama.
  • 1799, May 5; U.S. Army Lieutenant John McClary takes possession of Fort St. Stephens from the Spanish, and the United States flag is raised for the first time on soil that would eventually belong to Alabama.
  • 1802; Georgia formally cedes western claims for its southern boundary at the 31st parallel.
  • 1803; Louisiana Purchase from France gives U.S. immense new territory and port of New Orleans.
  • 1803 - 1811; Federal Road conceived and built connecting Milledgeville, Georgia, and Fort Stoddert, an American outpost north of Mobile.
  • 1805 - 1806; Indian cessions opened up to white settlement large portions of western (Choctaw) and northern (Chickasaw and Cherokee) Alabama.
  • 1810; West Florida, from Pearl River to the Mississippi, annexed by U.S. from Spain.
  • 1811 - 1812; Schools established at St. Stephens (Washington Academy, 1811) and Huntsville (Green Academy, 1812).
  • 1811 - 1816; Newspapers established in Mobile (Centinel, May 11, 1811; Gazette, 1812) and Huntsville (Alabama Republican, 1816).
  • 1812 - 1815; War of 1812 between U.S. and Great Britain.
    • April 1813; U.S. annexes West Florida, from the Pearl River to the Perdido River, from Spain; Spanish surrender Mobile to American forces (April 15).
    • September 15, 1814; British attack on Fort Bowyer on Mobile Point fails, prompting them to abandon plans to capture Mobile and turn towards New Orleans.
    • February 11, 1815; British forces take Fort Bowyer on return from defeat at New Orleans, then abandon upon learning that the war is over.
  • 1813 - 1814; Creek Indian War, a part of the War of 1812, fought largely within the boundaries of present-day Alabama. Andrew Jackson of Tennessee becomes a military hero as he leads U.S. forces against the "Red Stick" Creeks. [5][6]
  • 1817, March 3; The Alabama Territory is created when Congress passes the enabling act allowing the division of the Mississippi Territory and the admission of Mississippi into the union as a state.
  • 1818, Janurary 19; The first legislature of the Alabama Territory convenes at the Douglass Hotel in the territorial capital of St. Stephens.
  • 1818; "The Alabama", the area's first steamboat, constructed in St. Stephens.
  • 1818; Cedar Creek Furnace, the state's first blast furnace and commerical pig-iron producer, established in present-day Franklin County.
  • 1818, November 21; Cahaba designated by the territorial legislature as Alabama's state capital. Huntsville would serve temporarily as state capital.
  • 1819, March 2; President James Monroe signs the Alabama enabling act.
    • July 5 - August 2; Constitutional Convention meets in Huntsville and adopts state constitution.
    • September 20-21; The first general election for governor, members of Congress, legislators, court clerks, and sheriffs is held as specified by state constitution. Territorial governor William Wyatt Bibb is elected the state's first governor.
    • October 25 - December 17; General Assembly [legislature] meets in Huntsville while the Cahaba capitol is constructed.
    • October 28; Legislature elects William Rufus King and John W. Walker as Alabama's first U.S. senators.
    • December 14; Alabama enters Union as 22nd state.
  • 1820, May 8; The Alabama Supreme Court, composed of Alabama's circuit court judges, convenes for the first time.
  • 1820, July 10; Gov. William Wyatt Bibb dies as a result of injuries received in a riding accident. His younger brother Thomas Bibb, president of the state senate, automatically becomes governor, as required by the state constitution.
  • 1820, October 22; The steamboat Harriet reaches Montgomery after ten days of travel from Mobile. This was the first successful attempt to navigate so far north on the Alabama River, and it opened river trade between Montgomery and Mobile.
  • 1822, December; Legislature charters Athens Female Academy, which later becomes Athens State University.
  • 1825; French general and American Revolution hero, the Marquis de Lafayette, tours Alabama at Governor Israel Pickens invitation.
  • 1826; The Capital of Alabama is moved to Tuscaloosa.
  • 1830, January 19; LaGrange College chartered by legislature; eventually becomes the University of North Alabama. The college actually opened its doors to students on January 11, 1830.
  • 1830 - 1838; President Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Bill approved by Congress (1830); land cession treaties follow between the U.S. and each of the Indian peoples with a presence in Alabama, each of whom cede their remaining lands east of the Mississippi in exchange for western lands.
  • 1831; Nat Turner slave insurrection in Virginia.
    • 1832, April 13; University of Alabama formally opens its doors.
  • 1832; Bell Factory (Madison County), state's first textile mill, chartered by legislature.
  • 1832, June 12; Alabama's first railroad, the Tuscumbia Railway, opens, running the two miles from Tuscumbia Landing at the Tennessee River to Tuscumbia.
  • 1833, November 12-13; A fantastic meteor shower causes this night to be known as "the night stars fell on Alabama."
  • 1833; Daniel Pratt establishes cotton gin factory north of Montgomery; his company town, Prattville (founded 1839), would become a manufacturing center in the antebellum South.
  • 1835; Alabama gold rush, concentrated in east-central hill country, begins; peaks the next year.
  • 1835; Dr. James Marion Sims, "the Father of Modern Gynecology," establishes medical practice in Mt. Meigs, then in nearby Montgomery (1840). He moved on to New York in 1853 to found renowned Woman's Hospital.
  • 1836; Texas War for Independence from Mexico.
  • 1836 - 1837; Second Creek War (Seminole War); Battle of Hobdy's Bridge last Indian battle in Alabama (1837).
  • 1845 - 1848; U.S. annexes Texas; the Mexican-American War follows. Alabamians volunteered in large numbers to fight, but only the 1st Alabama regiment, a battalion, and several independent companies actually were received into federal service.
  • 1846, January 28; Legislature selects Montgomery as new capital; begins its first session there December 6, 1847.
  • 1856; Alabama Coal Mining Company begins first systematic underground mining in the state near Montevallo.
  • 1856; East Alabama Male College established at Auburn by Methodists; evolved into Auburn University.
  • 1858, October 4; Alabama School for the Deaf founded in Talladega; evolved into the state-supported Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind.
  • 1860; Federal Census:
    • State population = 964,201.
    • White population = 526,271 (54.58 % of state population)
    • African-American population = 437,770 (45.40 % of state population)
    • Slave population = 435,080 (99.39 % of African-American population)
    • Free black population = 2,690 (0.61 % of African-American population)
  • 1861 - 1865 American Civil War. 194 military land events and 8 naval engagements occurred within the boundaries of Alabama during the Civil War. [More Information]
    • 1861, January 4; A full week before Alabama secedes from the Union, Gov. A. B. Moore orders the seizure of federal military installations within the state. By the end of the next day Alabama troops controlled Fort Gaines, Fort Morgan, and the U.S. Arsenal at Mount Vernon.
    • 1861, January 10; First Shot of the Civil War fired at the Union Ship "Star of the West" as it attempted to reinforce Major Anderson at Fort Sumter.
    • 1861, January 11; The Alabama Secession Convention passes an Ordinance of Secession, declaring Alabama a "Sovereign and Independent State." By a vote of 61-39, Alabama becomes the fourth state to secede from the Union.
    • 1861, February 4; Delegates from six states that had recently seceded from the Union meet in Montgomery to establish the Confederate States of America. Four days later this provisional Confederate Congress, comprising representatives of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina, organized the Confederacy with the adoption of a provisional constitution.
    • 1861, February 18; After being welcomed to Montgomery with great fanfare, Jefferson Davis is inaugurated as president of the Confederate States of America on the portico of the Alabama capitol. Davis, a former U.S. senator from Mississippi, lived in Montgomery until May, when the Confederate government was moved from Montgomery to its new capital of Richmond, Virginia.
    • 1861, February 18; Jefferson Davis becomes the President of the Confederate States of America.
    • 1861, February-May; Montgomery , AL, serves as Confederate State of America (C.S.A.) capital until move to Richmond, Virginia.
    • 1861, March 4; Abraham Lincoln is inaugurated as the 16th President of the United States.
    • 1861, April 9; The Confederate cabinet at a meeting in Montgomery, AL, decides to open fire on Ft. Sumter. President Jefferson Davis orders General P. T. Beauregard to "reduce" Fort Sumter.
    • 1861, April 12; Bombardment of Fort Sumter begins at 4:30 A.M. The bombardment lasts 33 hours and the Confederates fire 3,000 shells. No one on either side is killed and only one injured at Fort Sumter. Edmund Ruffin is credited with the first shot. Captain James fired the signal shell from a ten inch mortar on Johnson's Island but the first gun from the iron clad battery on Morris Island is generally considered the first shot. Roger A. Pryor declined the honor of firing the signal shell. Ruffin later wraps himself in the Confederate Flag and commits suicide.
    • 1861, April 13; Fort Sumter surrenders at 2:30 PM on Saturday. Major Robert Anderson is allowed to fire a 100 gun salute to the United States Flag but only 50 guns are fired. One of the guns explodes and Private Daniel Hough is killed and five are injured. Some authors say two were killed. Perhaps one died of wounds.
    • 1861, April 15; Lincoln calls for 75,000 volunteers for three months service.
    • 1861; Construction begins on the Confederate submarine, H.L. Hunley in Mobile, Alabama. For more information; visit the Online Library; Ships of the Confederate States, Submarine H.L. Hunley (1863-1864).
    • 1862, June 16; In early June Major General David Hunter transports Horatio G. Wright's and Isaac I. Stevens's Union divisions under immediate direction of Brigadier General Henry Benham to James Island where they entrenched at Grimball's Landing near the southern flank of the Confederate defenses around Charleston, SC. Without orders, Benham launched an unsuccessful frontal assault against Fort Lamar at Secessionville.
    • 1862, September 22; President Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation declaring the freedom of all slaves in any state of the Confederate States of America that did not return to Union control by January 1, 1863.
    • 1863, April-May; Col. Abel D. Streight's Raid in north Alabama.
    • 1863; Emma Sansom leads General Forrest over Black Creek
    • 1863, May 2-3; John Henry Wisdom rides 67 miles from Gadsden, AL, to Rome, GA, under very harassing conditions to warn the citizens of Col. Abel D. Streight's proposed march to burn Rome. Because of his efforts, barricades were erected and eventually Col. A. D. Streight's forces surrendered to General Bedford Forrest.
    • 1863, July 1-3; Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
    • 1863, August 12; the Hunley arrived by train in Charleston.
    • 1863, November 19; President Abraham Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.
    • 1864, June 19; The CSS Alabama, captained by Mobile's Raphael Semmes, is sunk at the end of a fierce naval engagement with the USS Kearsarge off the coast of Cherbourg, France. The Alabama had docked there for maintenance and repairs after 22 months of destroying northern commerce on the high seas during the Civil War.
    • 1864, August 5; The Battle of Mobile Bay begins. U.S. Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, with a force of fourteen wooden ships, four ironclads, 2,700 men, and 197 guns, assaulted greatly outnumbered Confederate defenses guarding the approach to Mobile Bay. Farragut's victory removed Mobile as a center of blockade-running and freed Union troops for service in Virginia.
    • 1864, October 15-23; General P.G.T. Beauregard establishes his headquarters in "Ten Oaks " in Jacksonville, AL, while he coordinated the movement of General J. B. Hood's army, then marching across northeast Alabama enroute to Nashville, TN. He and his retinue, including Governor I.G. Harris of Tennessee and General M.L. Smith, were guests of Mr. and Mrs James Crook who erected "Ten Oaks " in 1850, the largest house in Calhoun County. Beauregard stood on the front balcony to be serenaded by the townspeople who were assembled in the yard to honor him on his appointment as Commander, Military Division of the West, C.S.A., by Jefferson Davis.
    • 1865, April 8; General Robert E. Lee surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Station, VA.
    • 1865, April 14; Lincoln shot by John Wilks Booth at Fords Theater on Good Friday.
    • 1865, April 14; General Robert Anderson raises the same flag over Fort Sumter that he lowered 4 years before.
    • 1865 May 26; Civil War end; when General Kirby Smith surrenders Confederate forces west of the Mississippi River.
  • 1865 - 1876; Era of Reconstruction in the South.
  • 1865, September 12; New Alabama Constitution adopted to comply with Presidential Reconstruction dictates to rejoin Union; rejected by U.S. Congress.
  • 1865, December 6; The Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S Constitution is ratified, thus officially abolishing slavery.
  • 1866; Lincoln Normal School founded as private institution for African-Americans at Marion; relocated to Montgomery (1887) and evolved into Alabama State University.
  • 1868; Reconstruction Constitution ratified (February) gaining Alabama readmission to the Union, and allowing black suffrage for the first time.
  • 1871; Birmingham, AL, is founded. Birmingham evolves into center of Southern iron and steel industry.
  • 1871, November; James Rapier of Lauderdale County elected to U.S. Congress, one of three African American congressmen elected from Alabama during Reconstruction. Benjamin Turner served from 1871-1873 and Jeremiah Haralson served 1875-1877.
  • 1875, November 16; Alabama's Constitution of 1875 is ratified. The Bourbon Democrats, or "Redeemers", having claimed to "redeem" the Alabama people from the Reconstruction rule of carpetbaggers and scalawags, wrote a new constitution to replace the one of 1868. It was a conservative document that gave the Democrats, and especially Black Belt planters, a firm grip on their recently reacquired control of state government.
  • 1876; Gadsden, AL, is incorporated.
  • 1880; National Baptist Convention (African-American Baptists) organized at Montgomery.
  • 1880, June 27; Helen Keller is born in Tuscumbia. Having lost both sight and hearing by illness as a small child, Keller's life story and activism inspired new attitudes toward those with handicaps.
  • 1881, February 10; The Alabama Legislature establishes Tuskegee Institute as a "normal school for the education of colored teachers." The law stipulated that no tuition would be charged and graduates must agree to teach for two years in Alabama schools. Booker T. Washington was chosen as the first superintendent and arrived in Alabama in June 1881. Washington's leadership would make Tuskegee one of the most famous and celebrated historic black colleges in the U.S.
  • 1893, February 22; The first Auburn/Alabama football game is played in Birmingham's Lakeview Park before a crowd of 5,000 spectators. Auburn won this first match-up 32-22. The rivalry continued until 1907 when the games were stopped, with the renewal of the series not coming until 1948.
  • 1893, September 30; Julia Tutwiler persuades the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama to try a qualified form of co-education. A faculty committee agreed to "admit young women of not less than 18 years of age, of good character and antecedents, who are able to stand the necessary examinations: for entrance to the sophomore class or higher." A required proviso was that "suitable homes and protection" be provided. In the fall of 1893, two women students entered the university.
  • 1895; Booker T. Washington speech to the Cotton States and International Exposition in Atlanta, GA, urges racial accommodation, suggesting blacks seek economic independence rather than political/social equality.
  • 1896, October 8; George Washington Carver arrives in Macon County to direct Tuskegee Institute's agricultural school. Born a slave in Missouri during the Civil War, Carver was studying in Iowa when school president Booker T. Washington invited him to Alabama. He remained at Tuskegee until his death in 1943, and although he dedicated much of his work to helping black farmers in the South, Carver's international fame came from his innovative uses of peanuts, sweet potatoes, and other southern products.
  • 1896; Plessy v. Ferguson decision by U.S. Supreme Court establishes "separate but equal" doctrine in racial policy.
  • 1898, February 15; The USS Maine (ACR-1) exploded and sinks in Havana Harbor, Cuba.
  • 1898; Spanish-American War.
  • 1899; The boll weevil crosses the Rio Grande from Mexico.


1900 - 2006




For more information about The History of Alabama, visit the following sites:



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Gadsden, AL Weather Information



Monthly average highs and low temperatures and the average amount of precipitation for Gadsden, AL.
Data from Gadsden Weather station, 1.58 miles from Gadsden.


 

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Annual

Avg. High

50.6 °

55.9 °

64.9 °

73.3 °

80.6 °

87.1 °

90.5 °

89.6 °

83.9 °

74.2 °

63.5 °

54.3 °

72.4 °

Avg. Low

29.9 °

32.3 °

39.5 °

47.2 °

56.2 °

64.4 °

69.0 °

68.1 °

62.2 °

49.3 °

40.1 °

32.6 °

49.2 °

Mean

40.3 °

44.1 °

52.2 °

60.3 °

68.4 °

75.8 °

79.8 °

78.9 °

73.1 °

61.8 °

51.8 °

43.5 °

60.8 °

Avg. Precip.

5.85 in

4.91 in

6.55 in

5.21 in

4.59 in

4.34 in

4.47 in

3.65 in

4.13 in

2.95 in

4.56 in

4.89 in

56.10 in


The climate in Gadsden, AL warm and humid during summer with mean temperatures in the high 70's and cold during winter with mean temperatures tending to be in the low 40's.


The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of 90.50 degrees Fahrenheit, while the coldest month of the year is January with an average minimum temperature of 29.90 degrees Fahrenheit.


Temperature variations between night and day tend to be moderate during summer with a difference that can reach 22 degrees Fahrenheit, and moderate during winter with an average difference of 22 degrees Fahrenheit.


The annual average precipitation at Gadsden is 56.10 Inches. Rainfall in is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is March with an average rainfall of 6.55 Inches.



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Historical Weather data





AL Notable Severe Weather Events



Alabama´s History

Droughts[7]


Alabama has had five major droughts since recordkeeping began -- 1929-32, 1938-45, 1950-63, 1980-82, and 1984-88. A network of 20 long-term gaging stations was used to define the areal extent and recurrence interval of the droughts. Six of these gaging stations, which had record lengths ranging from 50 to 65 years, were selected to show the intensity and duration of droughts.

  • 1929-1932 - The drought of 1929-32 had a recurrence interval greater than 25 years in the Mulberry Fork basin in other river basins in east-central Alabama, the recurrence interval was 10-25 years. In the Flint River basin of the Tennessee River Valley area, the drought had a recurrence interval of 25 years.
  • 1938-1945 - The drought of 1938-45 was statewide but was most severe in the northeastern part of the State, where recurrence intervals were greater than 25 years. Runoff during 1941 averaged about 50 percent of the annual average for gaging stations in the Mulberry Fork and Flint River basins. In the rest of the State, the drought had a recurrence interval of 10-25 years.
  • 1950-1963 - Included in the sustained drought of 1950-63 was a severe drought during 1954-55. In terms of areal coverage and severity, 1954 is the most extreme drought year on record in Alabama. The annual-departure graphs show a generally negative departure from 1950 to 1955. Runoff during 1954 averaged about 50 percent of the annual average of 21 inches for the four gaging stations in the Mobile River basin. In southern Alabama, precipitation for 1954 was less than average each month, and the annual total of 34.4 inches was the smallest in 71 years of record (U.S. Weather Bureau, 1955). The drought of 1950-63 had a recurrence interval of 44-60 years for gaging stations in the Mobile River basin. In the Flint River basin (fig. 4, site 6) of northern Alabama, the drought had a recurrence interval of 27 years.
  • 1980-1982 - Statewide, an extended period of greater than average rainfall began about 1970, lasted about 10 years, and produced a steady upward trend in the annual-departure graphs. Rainfall again became deficient in 1980, however, and in 1981 the rainfall deficiency across the State ranged from 5 to 14 inches. The drought of 1980-82 affected most of Alabama and had recurrence intervals of 10-25 years. Greater than average rainfall during 1983 resulted in recoveries in stream flow at the six gaging stations until about mid-1984.
  • 1984-1988 - Beginning in mid-1984, all gaging stations in Alabama show significant negative annual departures some continuing through 1988. The drought of 1984-88 affected the entire state to some degree but was most significant in the eastern half. Recurrence intervals ranged from 30 to 50 years in eastern Alabama to 10 to 25 years north of this area. The recurrence interval for a narrow area in west-central Alabama and most of the Conecuh River basin in southern Alabama was 10-25 years. Maximum rainfall deficiencies in east-central Alabama ranged from 21.1 to 25.3 inches during 1986 (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 1986). Similar unofficial rainfall deficiencies were reported for 1987. Emergency water measures and restricted reservoir releases were implemented. During the most intense period of the drought, August 1988, daily water supplies were being transported to 15 communities in east-central Alabama. Crop losses during 1986 are reported to have been about $500 million (John Trotman, U.S. Department of Agriculture, oral communication., 1986).


For more information:

Tornadoes



Between 1950 and 1995 there were a total of 1,029 tornados in Alabama, killing 277 people and injuring 4,020. Of the 1,029 tornados, 34 where classed as F4 and 13 as F5.


The following statistics where manually compiled from "The Tornado Project". The statistics are compiled by county. If a single tornado crossed a county line, then that tornado is counted once for each county that it passed through.


Enhanced Fujita Scale
EF0 EF1 EF2 EF3 EF4 EF5

Intensity Number
F0 158
F1 572
F2 323
F3 129
F4 34
F5 13



  • 1908, April 24-26; violent tornadoes moved through parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, killing 324 people and injuring 1,652 others. The worst damage took place in Amite, La., where 29 people died.
  • 1932, March 21-22; a total of 330 people died as a result of tornadoes that touched down across northern Alabama. One tornado hit the northeast part of the state, killing 38 and injuring 500.
  • 1974; The most prolific tornado outbreak of the 20th century was the Super Outbreak of April 3-4, 1974. During a 16-hour period, 148 tornadoes occurred from Illinois and Indiana into Michigan and Ohio southward through the Tennessee Valley into Mississippi and Alabama. This outbreak produced the largest number of tornadoes, with 30 causing F4 damage or worse. On one occasion, as many as five large tornadoes were on the ground at one time. The most famous tornado from this outbreak was an F5 tornado that moved through Xenia, Ohio. Damages in Xenia alone totaled over $100 million. The outbreak killed 315 people and resulted in 6,142 injuries.
  • 1994, March 27; Palm Sunday, 22 people died in Goshen, AL, after a tornado hit a church.


For more information:

Hurricanes


Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale
Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4 Category 5


  • 1926, September - Miami Hurricane - Category 4. The Miami Hurricane was an intense hurricane that devastated Miami, Florida in September of 1926. The storm also caused significant damage in the Florida Panhandle, Alabama, and the Bahamas. After crossing over the state of Florida, the Hurricane made landfall near Mobile, Alabama as a Category 3 hurricane on September 20 before hooking westward along coastal Alabama and Mississippi, eventually dissipating on September 22 after moving inland over Louisiana.

  • 1969, August - Hurricane Camille - Category 5. Hurricane Camille made landfall near the mouth of the Mississippi River on the night of August 17, resulting in catastrophic damage. Camille was the only Atlantic hurricane with official winds reported to reach 190 mph (310 km/h) until Allen equaled that number in 1980. Camille caused extensive damage along U.S. Highway 90 in Alabama. 26,000 homes and over 1,000 businesses were wiped out completely across the state of Alabama.

  • 1975, September - Hurricane Eloise - Category 3. Hurricane Eloise made landfall midway between Fort Walton Beach and Panama City, Florida. The highest wind gust reported from an inland location in the United States from Eloise was 120 mph/104 knots at a location 5 miles (8.0 km) northwest of Ozark, Alabama.

  • 1979, August - Hurricane Frederic - Category 4. Hurricane Frederic made landfall on Dauphin Island, Alabama at 0300 (GMT) on September 13. The causeway linking Dauphin Island to the mainland was swept away in many areas. Sustained winds were estimated at 125 mph, making Frederic a strong Category 3 hurricane.

  • 1985, August - Hurricane Danny - Category 1. Hurricane Danny made landfall near Lake Charles, Louisiana, and spawned several destructive tornadoes in Alabama. The two most damaging tornadoes spawned by Hurricane Danny were the "Redstone Arsenal Tornado" and the "Jasper Tornado" that struck Huntsville and Jasper, Alabama. The Redstone tornado touched down at 2030 UTC near the Gold-Rithe area. The twister damaged trees and signs and flipped over two trailers. The tornado also damaged a runway at Marshall Space Flight Center.

  • 1988, September - Hurricane Florence - Category 1. Hurricane Florence made landfall in Louisiana. Brewton, Alabama reported a storm-wide peak rainfall total of 10.67 inches (271 mm). Despite the rainfall, no damage was reported in Alabama or Mississippi. In Mobile Bay in Alabama, one man died while attempting to secure his boat - the only direct fatality related to the hurricane.

  • 1989, September - Hurricane Georges - Category 4. The tropical cyclone made seven landfalls on its long track through the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico during September, becoming the second most destructive storm of the season. Georges killed 603 people, mainly on the island of Hispaniola, and caused nearly $6 billion (1998 US dollars, $7 billion 2006 USD) in damages, mostly in Puerto Rico and Hispaniola.

    Upon making landfall, Georges brought a strong storm surge peaking at 11.9 feet (3.6 m) in Fort Morgan, along with 25 foot (7.6 m) waves on top of it. While moving slowly through the state, it dropped torrential rainfall, peaking at 29.66 inches (75 cm) in Bay Minette. Outer squalls spawned tornadoes in the southeast portion of the state, though damage from them was minimal. Overall, damage in Alabama amounted to $125 million (1998 USD, $146 million 2006 USD). Freshwater flooding in Mobile resulted in one death, the only death in the United States.

  • 1997 - Hurricane Danny - Category 1. Hurricane Danny stalled near the mouth of Mobile Bay on July 19, then turned to the east, and made its final landfall near Mullet Point, Alabama later that day. Extreme amounts of rainfall were produced over Alabama. Dauphin Island had the highest amount of rainfall, 37.75 inches (959 mm) reported by the HPC. Dauphin Island Sea Lab recorded 36.71 inches (932 mm) of rain, but not all the rain may have recorded in the rain gauge at this location, so it is possible the rainfall may have been underestimated. Doppler weather radar estimates show that around 43 inches (1,090 mm) of rain fell off the coast of Dauphin Island. A storm surge of over 6.5 feet (1.98 m) occurred off of Highway 182, midway between Gulf Shores, and Fort Morgan, Alabama, in addition to the rainfall. Unusually, when the storm stalled off the coast of Alabama, prevailing northerly winds forced the water out of Mobile Bay, causing tides to be two feet (0.61 m) below normal.

  • 2002, September - Hurricane Isidore - Category 3. Isidore made landfall at Telchac Puerto in Yucatán as a major hurricane on September 22. Hurricane Isidore and later Hurricane Lili contributed to the shutdown of offshore oil and gas platforms. The effects of back-to-back storms resulted in the loss of production of 14.4 million barrels of oil and 88.9 billion cubic feet of natural gas. A storm surge of 8.3 feet (2.5 m) was measured at Rigoletes, Louisiana, and at Gulfport Harbor, Mississippi. Hurricane Isidore brought widespread heavy rainfall from the central Gulf coast into the Ohio Valley, with a maximum of 15.97 inches (406 mm) at Metarie, Louisiana. The flooding was responsible for moderate crop damage, with a total of $330 million in damage (2002 USD, $360 million 2006 USD). Isidore claimed five lives; four direct and one indirect. The indirect death was from a man that went into cardiac arrest in Mississippi, whereas the other four were drowning deaths.

  • 2004, September - Hurricane Ivan - Category 5. The heaviest damage as Ivan made landfall on the U.S. coastline was observed in Baldwin County in Alabama, where the storm's eye (and eye wall) made landfall. High surf and wind brought extensive damage to Orange Beach near the border with Florida. There, two five-story condominium buildings were undermined to the point of collapse by Ivan's storm surge of 14 feet (4.3 m). Both were made of steel-reinforced concrete. Debris gathered in piles along the storm tide, exacerbating the damage when the floodwaters crashed into homes sitting on pilings. Brewton, a community about 50 miles (80 km) inland, also suffered severe damage. In addition to the damage to the southern portions of the state, there was extensive damage to the state's electrical grid. At the height of the outages, Alabama Power reported 489,000 subscribers had lost electrical power - roughly half of their subscriber base. The city of Demopolis, over 100 miles (160 km) inland in west-central Alabama, endured wind gusts estimated at 90 mph (140 km/h), while Montgomery saw wind gusts in the 60 mph (97 km/h) to 70 mph (110 km/h) range at the height of the storm. Ivan caused 14.6 billion (2005 USD) dollars in damage and was directly responsible for the deaths of 91 people.

  • 2004, October - Tropical Storm Matthew was a weak tropical storm that made landfall in Louisiana. In Alabama, wind gusts peaked at 47 mph (75 km/h) at Dauphin Island. The storm produced light rainfall across the state, totaling to 2.74 inches (70 mm) at Grand Bay. In addition, Matthew produced tides of 1 to 3 feet (.3 to .9 m) above normal, causing minor to major beach erosion. The beach erosion, which typically would have been minor for a weak storm, was greater than expected due to the passage of Hurricane Ivan just weeks before. No major damage was reported in Alabama.

  • 2005, August - Hurricane Katrina - Category 5. Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States. Katrina made its second landfall at 6:10 a.m. CDT on August 29 as a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 125 mph (205 km/h) near Buras-Triumph, Louisiana. At landfall, hurricane-force winds extended outward 120 miles (190 km) from the center and the storm's central pressure was 920 mbar. After moving over southeastern Louisiana and Breton Sound, it made its third landfall near the Louisiana/Mississippi border with 120 mph (195 km/h) sustained winds, still at Category 3 intensity.

    Although Hurricane Katrina made landfall well to the west, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle were both affected by tropical-storm force winds and a storm surge varying from 12 to 16 ft (3-5 m) around Mobile Bay, with higher waves on top. Sustained winds of 67 mph (107 km/h) were recorded in Mobile, Alabama, and the storm surge there was approximately 12 feet (3.7 m). The surge caused significant flooding several miles inland along Mobile Bay. Four tornadoes were also reported in Alabama. Ships, oil rigs, boats and fishing piers were washed ashore along Mobile Bay: the cargo ship M/V Caribbean Clipper and many fishing boats were grounded at Bayou La Batre.


Greatest rainfall totals caused by a hurricane in Alabama.


Rank

(in)

Storm

1

37.75 inches

Danny 1997

2

29.66 inches

Georges 1998

3

22.63 inches

Alberto 1994

4

19.42 inches

Opal 1995

5

16.56 inches

Unnamed 1987

6

16.09 inches

Beryl 1988

7

13.20 inches

Carmen 1974

8

12.80 inches

Dennis 2005

9

12.23 inches

Juan 1985

10

11.36 inches

Allison 2001


For more information:

Floods


  • 1886, Apr. - Highest stage on Alabama River at Montgomery since 1814. This flood primarily affected the Southwest portion of the state.
  • 1906, Sept. - Hurricane. Rain, 11 inches, primarily affecting the coastal portion of the state.
  • 1916, July - Hurricane. Maximum winds, 128 miles per hour. Record tide, 10.8 feet; rain, 19 inches. Damage, $3.5 million.
  • 1926, Sept. - Hurricane. Rain, 19 inches, primarily affecting the coastal portion of the state.
  • 1929, Mar. - Flood in the Southeast portion of the state caused $9 million in damages.
  • 1936 - Floods in the West portion of the state.
  • 1961, Feb. - Mar. - Record-breaking discharges and stages; record duration. Damage, $36 million.
  • 1969, Aug. - Hurricane Camille, primarily affecting the coastal portion of the state.
  • 1970, Mar. - Isolated in greater Birmingham area.
  • 1973, Mar. - Apr. - Covered about one-third of State.
  • 1979, Mar. - Apr. - Severe in Tombigbee River basin. Some peak discharges were twice that of 100-year recurrence interval. Damage, $75 million.
  • 1979, Sept. - Hurricane Frederic, primarily affecting the coastal portion of the state. Damage, $2 billion.


For more information:




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References

  1. ^ Etowah County & Gadsden, Alabama - HISTORY - THE EARLY YEARS   [Online] http://www.gadsden-etowahtourismboard.com/GadsdenHistory.htm
  2. ^ Etowah County & Gadsden, Alabama   [Online] http://www.gadsden-etowahtourismboard.com/HistoryDates.htm
  3. ^ Alabama History Timeline   [Online] http://www.archives.state.al.us/timeline/index.html
  4. ^ Alabama History Timeline: 10.000 BC to 1491   [Online] http://www.archives.state.al.us/timeline/al1000.html
  5. ^ Native American History   [Online] http://nasa.sdsu.edu/NativeAmericanHistory.html
  6. ^ Chronology of the War of 1812   [Online] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronology_of_the_War_of_1812
  7. ^ Alabama Floods and Droughts; U.S. Geological Survey Water-Supply Paper 2375; National Water Summary 1988-89--Floods and Droughts   [Online] http://md.water.usgs.gov/publications/wsp-2375/al/index.html
Last Update: March 29, 2008

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