Located in the southeast part of the state, Clayton has been the county seat of Barbour County since 1834. Clayton has a mayor-council form of government.
History


By the 1870s, the city of Eufaula had far outpaced Clayton in population growth and commercial importance, and several Eufaula citizens soon began lobbying to have the county seat removed to their city. In 1879, Clayton and Eufaula citizens instead compromised and agreed to build an additional courthouse in Eufaula. Under the arrangement, criminal and civil matters arising in the eastern half of the county were heard in Eufaula, while those in the western half were heard in Clayton. The unique arrangement still stands. The first telegraph line was run from Clayton to Eufaula in 1881, and the first telephone line in 1895.
Demographics
Clayton's population according to 2016 Census estimates was 2,936. Of that number, 60.0 percent identified themselves as African American, 38.6 as white, and 1.6 percent as Hispanic, 0.6 percent as Native American, and 0.4 percent as two or more races. The city's median household income was $25,532, and per capita income was $10,677.
Employment
According to 2016 Census estimates, the workforce in Clayton was divided among the following industrial categories:
- Manufacturing (24.5 percent)
- Public administration (18.2 percent)
- Educational services, and health care and social assistance (17.7 percent)
- Arts, entertainment, recreation, and accommodation and food services (12.0 percent)
- Retail trade (8.3 percent)
- Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and extractive (8.0 percent)
- Construction (4.0 percent)
- Transportation and warehousing and utilities (3.1 percent)
- Professional, scientific, management, and administrative and waste management services (2.6 percent)
- Other services, except public administration (1.2 percent)
- Finance, insurance, and real estate, rental, and leasing (0.2 percent)
- Wholesale trade (0.2 percent)
Education
Clayton is located in the Barbour County public school district and has one elementary school and one high school.
Transportation
Clayton was connected by rail to Eufaula and Ozark in the 1880s when the Central of Georgia was organized in the town. Clayton today is served by County Road 30.
Events and Places of Interest

Additional Resources
Dorman, Lewy. History of Barbour County, Alabama. Eufaula, Ala.: Barbour County Genealogy and Local History Society and Friends of the Library Genealogical Society, 2006.
Heritage of Barbour County. Clanton, Ala.: Heritage Publishing Company, 2001.
Walker, Anne Kendrick. Backtracking in Barbour County: A Narrative of the Last Alabama Frontier. Richmond, Va.: Dietz Press, 1941.