Huntsville Location

Huntsville Seal

Huntsville, Alabama

Huntsville is the county seat of Madison County, Alabama. As of the 2000 census, the population of Huntsville was 164,570. As of 2005 Census Estimates the Huntsville Metropolitan Area had a popoulation of 368,661. Huntsville is included in the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area, which, in 2004, had a total population of 510,088.

Geography

Huntsville is located at 34°42' North, 86°35' West (34.7, -86.6)GR1.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 451.8 km² (174.4 mi²). 450.8 km² (174.1 mi²) of it is land and 1.0 km² (0.4 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.22% water.

Huntsville is located in the Tennessee River Valley. Several mesas and large hills partially surround the city. These mesas are associated with the Cumberland Plateau, and are locally called "mountains." Monte Sano (Italian for "Mountain of Health") is the most notable, and is east of the city along with Burritt, Huntsville and Green Mountains. Others are Wade Mountain to the north, Rainbow Mountain to the west, and Weeden and Madkin Mountains on the Redstone Arsenal in the south. Brindlee Mountain is visible in the south across the Tennessee River.

As with other areas along the Cumberland Plateau, the land around Huntsville is karst in nature. Huntsville was founded around Big Spring, which is a typical karst spring, and many caves perforate the limestone bedrock underneath the city, as is common in karst areas. The headquarters of the National Speleological Society are located in Huntsville.

Climate

Huntsville experiences warm summers and mild winters, with average high temperatures ranging from 89.0 °F (31.6 C) in the summer to 49.0°F (9.4 C) during winter. Some years, Huntsville experiences tornadoes , and the area is sometimes known as "tornado alley". Significant tornado events include the Super Outbreak in 1974, the more recent Huntsville, Alabama Tornado in 1989 that killed 21 and injured almost 500, and the Anderson Hills Tornado that killed one and caused extensive damage in 1995. Since Huntsville is nearly 300 miles (480 km) inland, hurricanes are rarely experienced here with their full force; however, many weakened tropical storms cross the area after a U.S. Gulf Coast landfall. Snow is rare in Huntsville, but there have been some anomalies, like the 1963 New Years Day snowstorm, when 17 inches fell within 24 hours. However, as of the winter of 2005-06, Huntsville has gone 10 years without any significant snowfall (<4 inches).

Demographics

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 158,216 people living within the city limits. There are 66,742 households and 41,713 families residing in the city. The population density was 351.0/km² (909.0/mi²). There were 73,670 housing units at an average density of 163.4/km² (423.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 64.47% White, 30.21% Black or African American, 0.54% Native American, 2.22% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 1.84% from two or more races. 2.04% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Huntsville, Alabama Demographic Distribution

Huntsville, Alabama Sex Ratio & Income Distribution

Median Age = 37
Sex Ratio F:M = 100:92.8
Sex Ratio age 18+ F:M = 100:89.7
Median Income = 41,074
Family Median Income = 52,202
Male Median Income = 40,003
Female Median Income = 26,085
Per capita Income = 24,015
Percent Below poverty = 12.8
Age < 18 Below Poverty = 18.7
Age 65+ Below Poverty = 9.0

Politics and Government

The current mayor of Huntsville is Loretta Spencer, who was elected in 1996 and is the first female mayor of the city. The city has a five-member/district City Council. The current members are: District 1 (Northwest)- Richard Showers, Sr.; District 2 (East)- Mark Russell (President); District 3 (Southeast)- Sandra Moon; District 4 (Southwest)- Bill Kling; District 5 (West)- Glenn Watson. Council elections are "staggered", meaning that Districts 2,3 and 4 will have elections in August 2006, while Districts 1 and 5 will have elections simultaneously with mayoral elections in 2008.

There are also many boards and commissions run by the city, controlling everything from schools and planning to museums and downtown development.

Economy

Huntsville's main economic influence is derived from aerospace and military technology. Redstone Arsenal, Cummings Research Park(CRP), and NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center comprise the main hubs for the area's technology-driven economy. CRP is the second largest research park in the United States and the fourth largest in the world, and is over 38 years old. Huntsville is also home for commercial technology companies such as the network access company ADTRAN and computer graphics company Intergraph. Forty-two Fortune 500 companies have operations in Huntsville.

In 2005, Forbes Magazine named the Huntsville-Decatur Metro Area as the best place for engineering in the nation, and 6th best overall in the nation.

Retail

Huntsville is fast becoming a regional retail center. There are many strip malls and "power centers" throughout the city. Huntsville has two malls- Madison Square, built in 1984, and Parkway Place, built in 2002. An upscale lifestyle center, Bridge Street Town Centre, is under construction in CRP and is scheduled to be complete in 2007.

Utilities

Electricity, water and natural gas are all provided in Huntsville by Huntsville Utilities. HU gets its power from the Tennessee Valley Authority, or TVA for short. TVA has two plants that provide electricity to the Huntsville area- Browns Ferry Nuclear Power Plant in Limestone County and Guntersville Dam in Marshall County. A third, Bellefonte Nuclear Power Plant in Jackson County, was built in the 1980's but was never activated. Due to the rapid growth of the region, TVA has plans to eventually activate the plant.

Telephone service in Huntsville is provided by BellSouth. Huntsville has 3 cable providers, which is rare for a city its size. They are Comcast, Knology, and Mediacom (outlying areas).

Transportation

Huntsville is served by several U.S. Highways, including 72, 231, 431 and an Interstate highway spur, I-565, that links the two cities of Huntsville and Decatur to I-65. Alabama Highway 53 also connects the city with I-65 in Ardmore, Tennessee.

Public Transit

Public transit in Huntsville is run by the city's Department of Parking and Public Transit. The Huntsville Shuttle runs 11 fixed routes around the city, mainly around downtown. There is also a Tourist Trolley that makes stops at the US Space and Rocket Center and University Drive, one of the city's main shopping areas. The city also runs HandiRide, an on-call transit system for the handicapped, and RideShare, a county-wide carpooling program.

Railroads

Huntsville has only one active commercial rail line, run by Norfolk Southern, which runs from Memphis, TN to Chattanooga. Another rail line was used until recently by HMCRA (Huntsville-Madison County Railroad Authority). The line branches off from the Norfolk Southern line downtown and runs to Ditto Landing on the Tennessee River. The line is being considered as a future light rail line.

The North Alabama Railroad Museum in Chase maintains a line once owned by the Louisville and Nashville Railway. The museum runs weekend tourist rides along a short track in Northeast Madison County.

Ports

The inland Port of Huntsville combines the Huntsville International Airport, International Intermodal Center and Jetplex Industrial Park. The intermodal terminal transfers truck and train cargo. The port has on-site U.S. Customs and USDA inspectors and is Foreign Trade Zone No. 83.

Huntsville International Airport is served by several regional and national carriers and offers non-stop flights to many airports across the Eastern U.S. However, Huntsville International gets its name because of its reputation as a cargo transport hub. Many delivery companies have hubs in Huntsville, making delivery flights to Europe, Asia, and Mexico.

The Tennessee River is Huntsville's southern boundary, and is underutilized as a method of cargo transport.

Media and Communications

Newspapers

The Huntsville Times has been Huntsville's only daily newspaper since 1996, when the Huntsville News closed. Before then, the News was the morning paper, and the Times was the afternoon paper. After the News closed, the Times remained an afternoon paper until 2004.

A few free alternative newspapers are available in Huntsville. The Valley Planet covers entertainment in the Huntsville area. Speakin' Out News is a weekly newspaper focused on African Americans. El Reportero is a Spanish-language language newspaper for North Alabama.

Radio

Huntsville is the 115th largest radio market according to Arbitron. Huntsville also receives several radio stations from Birmingham and Nashville.

FM Stations:

WAYH 88.1 / 99.5 Christian contemporary
WLRH 89.3 NPR- Run by the University of Alabama in Huntsville
WOCG 90.1 Gospel- Run by Oakwood College
WJAB 90.9 Jazz- Run by Alabama A&M University
WHRP 93.3 Urban
WRTT 95.1 Rock
WRSA 96.9 Adult Contemporary
WAHR 99.1 Adult Contemporary
WDRM 102.1 Country- Licensed in Decatur
WEUP 103.1 Urban
WZYP 104.3 Top 40- Licensed in Athens
WTAK 106.1 Classic Rock

AM Stations:

WUMP 730 Sports
WVNN 770 News/Talk
WHOS 800/WBHP 1230 News/Talk
WDLJ 1000 Gospel
WKAC 1080 Oldies- Licensed in Athens
WTKI 1450 Sports (ESPN)
WLOR 1550 Gospel
WEUP 1600 Gospel

Television

The Huntsville DMA serves 15 counties in North Alabama and 6 counties in Southern Middle Tennessee.

TV Stations:

WTZT 11 Independent (Athens)
WHDF 15/DT 14 UPN (Florence)
WHNT 19/DT 59 CBS
WHIQ 25/DT 24 PBS/Alabama Public Television
WAAY 31/DT 32 ABC
W38BQ 38 3ABN
WAFF 48/DT 49 NBC
WZDX 54/DT 41 FOX
WYAM 56 Worship/Praise (Decatur)

Education

K-12 Education

The majority of K-12 students in Huntsville attend Huntsville City Schools. Nearly 25,000 students attend Huntsville City Schools. There are 29 elementary schools, 12 middle schools, and 7 high schools. Included in those numbers are 2 magnet elementary schools (The Academy for Academics and Arts and the Academy for Science and Foreign Language), 1 magnet middle school (Williams Technology), and 2 magnet high schools (New Century Technology and Lee). A number of private, parochial, and religious schools also serve students ages pre-K-12.

Higher Education

Huntsville's home-based higher education institutions include:

Alabama A&M University
The University of Alabama in Huntsville
Oakwood College, and
J.F. Drake State Technical College.

Numerous colleges and universities have satellite locations or extensions in Huntsville; included are the

Huntsville Regional Medical Campus of the University of Alabama in Birmingham School of Medicine
Calhoun Community College's two sites (Calhoun Cummings Research Park Campus - CRP Website, & Calhoun Redstone Arsenal Campus - Redstone Arsenal Website);
Athens State University
Georgia Institute of Technology's two sites
Faulkner University
Columbia College
Virginia College
Florida Institute of Technology, and
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

One of two local hospitals, Huntsville Hospital also has an accredited school of radiologic technology.

Attractions

Museums

• U.S. Space & Rocket Center is home to the U.S. Space Camp and Aviation Challenge programs as well the only Saturn V rocket designated a National Historic Landmark.
  
• Alabama Constitution Village features eight reconstructed Federal style buildings, with living-museums displays downtown.
  
• Burritt Museum and Park located on Monte Sano Mountain, is a regional history museum featuring a 1930's mansion, nature trails, scenic overlooks and more.
  
• Clay House Museum is an antebellum home built ca. 1853 and showcases decorative styles up to 1950 and an outstanding collection of Noritake Porcelain.
  
• Early Works Museum is a child friendly interactive museum in downtown Huntsville.
  
• Harrison Brothers Hardware Store established in 1879, is the oldest operating hardware store in Alabama. Though now owned and operated by the Historic Huntsville Foundation, it is still a working store, and part museum featuring skilled craftsmen who voluteer to run the store and answer questions.
  
• Huntsville Museum of Art in Big Spring International Park offers permanent displays, traveling exhibitions, and educational programs for children and adults.
  
• Sci-Quest is an interactive premiere hands-on museum for early childhood education, aged four through sixth grade.
  

Parks

• Monte Sano State Park [26] has over 2,000 acres (8 km²) and features hiking and bicycling trails, rustic cabins built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, campsites, full RV hook-ups, and a recently reconstructed lodge.
• Huntsville-Madison County Botanical Garden features educational programs, woodland paths, broad grassy meadows and stunning floral collections.
• Land Trust of Huntsville is a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of the natural heritage of the area, and has preserved more than 2,300 acres (9 km²) of open space, wildflower areas, natural springs, and local caves in Madison County, including 600+ acres (2.4 km²) on Monte Sano Mountain.

Festivals

• Big Spring Jam is an annual three-day music festival held on the last full weekend of September in and around Big Spring International Park in downtown Huntsville. It features a diversity of music including rock, country, Christian, kid-friendly, and oldies.
• Panoply of the Arts is an annual springtime arts festival held at Big Spring International Park.

Golf Courses

• Hampton Cove holds one of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Course Trails, named after Hampton Cove, featuring three 18 hole courses - two championship and one par three.
• The Becky Pierce Municipal Golf Course, or Muni, off Airport Road in south Huntsville is the city's only public golf course.

Libraries

• The Huntsville Madison County Public Library founded in 1818, is Alabama's oldest continually operating library system with 12 branches throughout the county including one bookmobile. The Main Library Archives contains a wealth of historical resources, including displays of photographic collections and artifacts, has Alabama's highest materials circulation rate, and features daily public programs.

Performing Arts

• Huntsville Symphony Orchestra is Alabama's oldest, continuously-operating professional symphony orchestra, featuring high quality performances of classical, pops and family concerts, and extensive music education programs serving public schools.
• Theatre Huntsville performs plays year round in the Von Braun Center Playhouse.
• Plays are also performed at the 85-seat Renaissance Theatre in Lincoln Village north of downtown.

Other

• The National Speleological Society is headquartered in Huntsville on Cave Street.
• The Von Braun Astronomical Society has two observatories and a planetarium on 10 acres (40,000 m²) in Monte Sano State Park.

Sports

Huntsville Stars - AA Baseball for Milwaukee Brewers
Huntsville Speedway - NASCAR sanctioned stockcar racing
Huntsville Havoc - Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL)
Tennessee Valley Vipers - Arena Football League (AFL)

Notable Residents/Famous Natives

• Kyndel Brown, WNBA Most Valuable Player, 2000
• Kenneth Darby, star running back for the University of Alabama
• Erik DeBolt, International Pop Star
• Homer Hickam, Author
• Alex Hice, Olympic Water Polo gold medalist, 2004
• Bo Bice, American Idol Runner-Up
• Tallulah Bankhead, Famous Actress; Bankhead Parkway is named after her father
• David B. Birney, Union Army general and son of James G. Birney.
• James G. Birney, Southern abolitionist leader and presidential candidate of the Liberty Party (anti-slavery) in 1840 and 1845.
• William Birney, Union Army general and son of James G. Birney.
• Thomas T. Crittenden, Union Army general.
• Dr. Jan Davis, former Astronaut; among crew on three Space Shuttle missions in 1992,1994 and 1997.
• Bobby Eaton, professional wrestler, one half of the Midnight Express with Dennis Condrey & Stan Lane, also teamed with Arn Anderson, Chris Benoit, Steve Keirn, Koko Ware & George Gulas.
• Andrew Jackson Hamilton, appointed Union military governor of Texas (with rank of general) by Abraham Lincoln (1862) and appointed Reconstruction governor of Texas by Andrew Johnson (1865-66).
• Jimmy Key, former MLB All-Star pitcher with the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees.
• Rev. Dr. Joseph Lowery, respectfully dubbed the "dean of the Civil Rights Movement" by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a Huntsville native, and co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
• John Hunt Morgan, general in the army of the Confederate States of America.
• Edward Asbury O'Neal, governor of Alabama 1882-86. Appointed general in the army of the Confederate States of America, but commission never delivered.
• John Stallworth, former Pittsburgh Steelers player and 2002 inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
• Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia founder.
• Leroy Pope Walker, first Secretary of War of the Confederate States of America and briefly a brigadier general in the Confederate Army.
• David M. Pope, musician, producer, writer.
• Jones M. Withers, major general in the army of the Confederate States of America.
• Sex Clark Five, an alternative rock band.
• Cully Hamner, comic book artist.
• Bryan Shelton, professional tennis player
• John S. Hendricks, founder and chairman of the Discovery Channel.
• Russel Erskine, chairman of the Studebaker Corp.
• Margaret Hoelzer, 2004 Olympic swimmer
• Mark McGwire, Career home run champ, got his start with the Huntsville Stars.
• Sean Hannity, Fox News reporter, got his start at WVNN.
• John Piersma, 1996 Olympic Swimmer.
• Nick Torres, Cassino (band)

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