Arab

Arab, Alabama
—  City  —
Location in Marshall County and the state of Alabama
Coordinates: 34°19′40″N 86°29′55″W / 34.32778°N 86.49861°W / 34.32778; -86.49861
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Counties	Marshall, Cullman
Government
- Type	City
- Mayor	Gary W. Beam
Area
- Total	12.9 sq mi (33.3 km2)
- Land	12.8 sq mi (33.1 km2)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation	1,089 ft (332 m)
Population (2007)[1]
- Total	7,691
- Density	556.1/sq mi (215.4/km2)
Time zone	Central (CST) (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP code	35016
Area code(s)	256
FIPS code	01-02116
GNIS feature ID	0113194
Website	http://www.arabcity.org Official Web Site

Arab (pronounced /ˈeɪræəb/) is a city in Marshall County, Alabama in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Alabama, located ten miles from Guntersville Lake and Guntersville Dam, and is included in the Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 7,174. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 7,498. [1]

History

The name of the town was an unintentional misspelling by the US Postal Service, in 1882, of the city's intended name, taken from Arad Thompson, the son of the founder and first postmaster Stephen Tuttle Thompson. Two other proper names for the town were sent to the US Postal Service for consideration: "Ink" and "Bird". Arab was incorporated 1892.^[2]

Geography

Arab is located on top of Brindlee Mountain at 34°19′40″N 86°29′55″W / 34.32778°N 86.49861°W / 34.32778; -86.49861 (34.327863, -86.498613)^[3].

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.9 square miles (33.3 km²), of which, 12.8 square miles (33.1 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.62%) is water.

Elevation: 1,100 feet (340 m)

Utilities

Electricity service in Arab is provided through Arab Electric Cooperative, which buys power through Tennessee Valley Authority. Water service in Arab is provided through Arab Water Works, which gets water from Browns Creek in Guntersville Lake.^[4] Natural gas is also provided in Arab through Marshall County Gas District, which is based out of Guntersville.

Government

Arab, Alabama has a mayor-council form of city government consisting of 5 council members and a mayor. City elections occur every four years, coinciding with the presidential elections. Council seats are at-large and are not associated with districts.

Demographics

As of the census^[5] of 2000, there were 7,174 people, 3,012 households, and 2,075 families residing in the city. The population density was 561.8 people per square mile (216.9/km²). There were 3,223 housing units at an average density of 252.4/sq mi (97.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.29% White, 0.18% Black or African American, 0.49% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.17% from other races, and 0.49% from two or more races. 0.66% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,012 households out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $36,716, and the median income for a family was $45,761. Males had a median income of $32,425 versus $24,265 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,035. About 8.2% of families and 10.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.5% of those under age 18 and 14.9% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

• U.S. Highway 231
• Alabama State Route 69

Notable natives

• Jill King, country music artist
• Monica Potter, actress (not native to Arab)
• Nall Hollis, Artist (not native to Arab)
• Henry Cho, comedian (not native to Arab, but his wife is and he mentions Arab frequently in his stand-up routines)

References

External links

• Official City Website
• Arab Chamber of Commerce
• History of Arab

• Arab, Alabama is at coordinates 34°19′40″N 86°29′55″W / 34.327863°N 86.498613°W / 34.327863; -86.498613 (Arab, Alabama)Coordinates: 34°19′40″N 86°29′55″W / 34.327863°N 86.498613°W / 34.327863; -86.498613 (Arab, Alabama)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Cullman County, Alabama County seat: Cullman Cities Arab‡ | Cullman | Hanceville Towns Baileyton | Colony | Dodge City | Fairview | Garden City‡ | Good Hope | Holly Pond | South Vinemont | West Point Unincorporated communities Arkadelphia | Battleground | Berlin | Bremen | Crane Hill Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Marshall County, Alabama County seat: Guntersville Cities Albertville | Arab‡ | Boaz‡ | Guntersville Towns Douglas | Grant | Sardis City‡ | Union Grove Unincorporated communities Asbury | Horton Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties