Etowah County, Alabama

Etowah County was created on December 7, 1866 from parts of Cherokee and DeKalb counties and was first named Baine County for Confederate general David W. Baine [1]. The state abolished that county the next year and re-established it as Etowah a year later. The name was once believed to mean “edible tree” in Cherokee, but the more likely origin is italwa, meaning “town” in Muskogean languages. The seat is Gadsden, and the 2020 estimate was 102,721 residents across 542 square miles.

History

Gadsden’s first steamboat landing came on July 4, 1845, when Capt. James Lafferty piloted a steamboat to the area. In 1903 William Patrick Lay built his first hydroelectric plant on Big Wills Creek and organized Alabama Power Company in 1906. During World War II the Gadsden Ordnance Plant produced more than 16 million shells, and in 1942 the U.S. took over 36,300 acres for Camp Sibert, Alabama’s first Chemical Warfare Center [1].

Industry

Rolling terrain limited agriculture, so the county became an industrial center. Coosa Furnace, built in 1845, was the first iron furnace. Dwight Manufacturing’s Alabama City mill opened in 1895 and employed 2,600 people at its peak in 1953. Goodyear built a plant in Gadsden in 1929 that closed in 2020, and Republic Steel closed in 2000. In 2020 education and health care employed 24.0 percent of workers and manufacturing 17.4 percent [1].

Education and attractions

The county has Etowah County, Attalla and Gadsden school systems, and Gadsden State Community College is a two-year public college. Attractions include Noccalula Falls, the Silver Lakes golf course on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, H. Neely Henry Lake and the Etowah Heritage Museum. The World’s Longest Yard Sale begins in Gadsden each August [1]. See Rivers of Alabama.

Formation and name

The legislature created Etowah County on December 7, 1866, from parts of Cherokee and DeKalb counties, first as Baine County for Confederate general David W. Baine. It was abolished the next year and re-established a year later as Etowah. The name was once thought to mean edible tree in Cherokee but more likely comes from the Muskogean italwa, meaning town. Gadsden, the seat, had about 35,224 residents; the county covers about 542 square miles and had 102,721 residents in 2020.[2]

History and industry

Gadsden grew after a steamboat reached the Coosa River in 1845. In World War II the Gadsden Ordnance Plant produced more than 16 million shells and Camp Sibert served as a chemical warfare training center. Hilly terrain limited farming, so the county became an industrial center: Goodyear’s Gadsden plant opened in 1929 and closed in 2020, and Republic Steel closed in 2000.[2]

Geography

The county lies on the Cumberland Plateau, with the Coosa River crossing its eastern half. Alabama Power’s H. Neely Henry Dam, completed in 1966, created a lake in the south. Sand Mountain and Lookout Mountain both lie within the county; Noccalula Falls in Gadsden is a 90-foot waterfall, and the World’s Longest Yard Sale runs along the Lookout Mountain Parkway.[2]

FAQs

When was it created? December 7, 1866.

What is the seat? Gadsden.

Sources

1. Encyclopedia of Alabama: Etowah County
2. Encyclopedia of Alabama: Etowah County

Editorially reviewed by Specialty Digest Editorial TeamLast reviewed November 10, 2026Researched and drafted with AI assistanceReport an issue