Hueytown

The city of Hueytown is located in southwestern Jefferson County in the central part of Alabama, just southwest of Birmingham. It has a mayor-city council form of government. Author Howell Hubert Vines was a long-time resident of Hueytown. The Allison family and Neil Bonnett, well-known race car drivers, all were headquartered in Hueytown at the peak of their careers.

White settlers first came to the area where Hueytown is now located around 1816, with the Brown family being the first to establish a land claim. Other families, including the Hueys for which the town is named, quickly followed suit. The local economy remained largely agricultural until the nearby city of Birmingham began to expand as the iron and steel industry burgeoned.

The first church in Hueytown was established in 1875, and the first school in 1902. Referred to initially as Huey and by around 1914 as Hueytown, the area remained one of the largest unincorporated communities in Alabama for many years. The first high school opened in 1921, and the high school football stadium was built with Works Progress Administration labor in 1933; it is still in use today. In 1958, a new high school opened that was designed like a small college campus, with administrative offices and classrooms distributed among five separate buildings, features that were innovative at the time.

The city's first municipal elections were held in January 1960, but these elections were later set aside by a court order after the validity of the town's incorporation was challenged. Hueytown officially incorporated on April 29, 1960, with new elections being held in June 1960.

Construction on a city hall began in 1962, and the facility opened in 1963. The public library opened in 1969 in a hallway of the municipal building, moving into its own facility in 1990. Hueytown celebrated its 50th anniversary as a town in 2010, and in fall 2011, a new high school was opened.

Hueytown's population according to the 2010 Census was 16,105. Of that number, 70 percent identified themselves as white, 17.2 percent as black, 2 percent as Hispanic, 0.5 percent as Asian, 0.3 percent as Native American, and 1 percent as two or more races. The city's median household income was $44,747, and per capita income was $23,580.

The workforce in present-day Hueytown is divided among the following occupational categories:

· Educational services, and health care and social assistance (17.6   percent)
· Manufacturing (14.7 percent)
· Retail trade (14.0 percent)
· Finance, insurance, and real estate, rental, and leasing (9.6 percent)
· Professional, scientific, management, and administrative and waste   management services (8.8 percent)
· Construction (7.4 percent)
· Transportation and warehousing and utilities (6.7 percent)
· Arts, entertainment, recreation, and accommodation and food services   (5.3 percent)
· Public administration (4.0 percent)
· Other services, except public administration (3.7 percent)
· Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and extractive (3.0 percent)
· Wholesale trade (2.7 percent)
· Information (2.5 percent)

Schools in Hueytown are part of the Jefferson County School system; the town has approximately 3,100 students and 190 teachers in two elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. Six private and religious schools in the area serve approximately 935 students. Because the city is located near Birmingham, a number of post-secondary education options are available within 15 miles, including Lawson State Community College, Jefferson State Community College, Samford University, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Interstate 59 is located approximately two miles southeast of the city and may be accessed via several connecting roads; Interstate 59 links to Interstates 20 and 65 in Birmingham approximately ten miles to the northeast. County Road 46 runs roughly north-south through the city.

The city holds several annual events, including a 5K-10K race in October and a Christmas Parade on the second Saturday in December. The Hueytown Arena each year hosts a number of events sponsored by the Mid-State Horseman’s Association.

Baseball and softball facilities host Dixie Youth Association games. The city has two large municipal parks with softball fields, tennis courts, soccer fields, football fields, and basketball courts, as well as several smaller neighborhood parks. Three community centers and two senior centers also are part of city facilities.

Virginia Mines, which opened in 1902, was one of the earliest coal mines in the area; several of the mine's original buildings still stand, and the site is listed on the Alabama Register of Historic Places. Bethlehem Methodist Church was established in 1818, making it one of the oldest churches in Jefferson County.

Additional Resources

Jefferson County Heritage Book Committee. The Heritage of Jefferson County. Clanton, Ala.: Heritage Publishing Consultants, 2002.