Alabama History and Demographics

From its long history as a linchpin of the pre-Civil War segregated South, its economy dependent on plantation agriculture, and later famous as the birthplace of the Civil Rights movement, Alabama has emerged as a new center for industry, high-technology research and education.

In 1954, Rosa Parks was famously arrested for sitting in the "white section" of a Montgomery bus, an incident that ultimately led Martin Luther King, Jr. and his followers to challenge racial inequalities throughout the South. Yet despite Alabama Governor George Wallace's 1963 promise of "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever," less than 40 years later Alabama could boast the highest percentage of black elected officials in the nation - 17.2 % in 2001 compared to a black population of 26%.

Alabama Economy and Real Estate Information

The state that once owed its economy to King Cotton now claims automobiles as its top export, worth $2.1 billion in 2004 and employing nearly 45,000 workers. Alabama turns out thousands of Mercedes Benz, Hyundai, Honda and Toyota vehicles annually along its Interstates 20-59 industrial corridor between Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, and many other manufacturing and affiliated companies have also located here since the 1980s.

In addition, Alabama is home to a growing science and technology industry, notably NASA's U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, and the top-notch medical research programs of the University of Alabama at Birmingham. UAB's departments of cell biology and surgery were ranked first and second nationally in award of research grants by the National Institutes of Health, and its AIDS treatment program was recognized as fourth best by U.S. News and World Report's annual survey.

This recent growth in high paying jobs in the northern half of the state has resulted in a strong real estate market, with house prices and sales in the Huntsville and Birmingham metro areas rising in 2006, bucking the national trend.

Agriculture no longer dominates Alabama's economy, but its so-called "Black Belt," so named for its rich soil, continues to play a vital role. Thirty percent of the land area is still farmland, with cotton, peanuts and sweet potatoes among its leading crops, as well as chicken and pork. Tourism also brings millions of dollars into Alabama's economy annually. Visitors are lured to the state by beach resorts along the balmy Gulf of Mexico, the history and architecture of the Port of Mobile, and Alabama's world-famous Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, described as the "largest golf course construction project ever attempted." The Trail consists of 10 courses and a total of 432 holes all over the state, and is consistently rated a top golf destination.