Silas

Silas is located in southern Choctaw County, in the southwest part of the state on the Alabama-Mississippi border. It has a mayor-city council form of government.

History

Bladon Springs State Park Silas was names for early settler Silas Shoemaker, who would become the first postmaster in 1890. Prior to 1880, only four families lived in the area; between them they ran a cotton gin, a sawmill, and a dry-goods store. In 1911, the Alabama, Tennessee, and Northern Railroad built a line through the area, and the center of the town shifted closer to the railroad.

As the town expanded, residents began to organize and build churches as well as a one-room schoolhouse around 1888. In 1920, a second school was built to accommodate the growing population. Roads within and leading to and from town were paved between 1935 and 1942. Silas incorporated in May 1946. A garment factory opened in 1950 and at one time employed 200 people. The city hall was built in 1959, a fire station was built in the early 1970s, and the town’s first policeman hired in 1972.

Demographics

According to 2020 Census estimates, Silas recorded a population of 459. Of that number, 70.4 percent of respondents identified themselves as white, 29.2 percent as African American, and 0.4 percent as American Indian. The town’s median household income was $43,971, and the per capita income was $23,554.

Employment

According to 2020 Census estimates, the workforce in Silas was divided among the following industrial categories:

  • Educational services and health care and social assistance (34.4 percent)
  • Construction (18.5 percent)
  • Retail trade (12.1 percent)
  • Transportation and warehousing, and utilities (10.8 percent)
  • Manufacturing (8.3 percent)
  • Public administration (5.7 percent)
  • Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation and food services (5.1 percent)
  • Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services (3.8 percent)
  • Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and extraction (0.6 percent)
  • Wholesale trade (0.6 percent)

Education

Students in Silas attend Choctaw County schools; no public schools are located within the town limits.

Transportation

U.S. Highway 84 runs east-west through Silas, and State Highway 17 runs north-south through town.

Events and Places of Interest

The Tombigbee River Jam is held annually in Silas in October; it features live music, food and crafts vendors, and a Catfish Rodeo and Cook-off. Bladon Springs State Park contains four minerals springs and offers camping, picnicking, and playground areas across 357 acres.

Additional Resources

Alokoli: The Choctaw County Bicentennial Book. n.p.: Choctaw County Bicentennial Commission, 1976.

Choctaw County Heritage Book Committee. Heritage of Choctaw County, Alabama. Clanton, Ala.: Heritage Publishing Consultants, Inc., 2001.

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