North Alabama
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
North Alabama is a region of the U.S. state of Alabama, generally thought to include these 12 counties: Cherokee, Colbert, DeKalb, Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Marshall, Morgan, and Winston, with a combined population of 953,247, or 20.72% of the state's population at the time.
The anchor city of this region of the state is Huntsville, but other cities of notable size include (in order of population): Decatur, Florence (along with its sister cities Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia), Madison, and Athens.
Decatur and Florence share the moniker of the anchor city for Northwestern Alabama, as they are the largest economic centers north of Birmingham, and west of Huntsville. Most corporations place Decatur as a regional hub for the Northwest Alabama region because Huntsville is located further east. However, historically Florence has been the main cultural center of the NW.
Locals tend to refer to this area as the "Tennessee Valley" in reference to the Tennessee River, which flows through the northernmost part of the state. A section of East Tennessee shares the "Tennessee Valley" moniker.
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[edit] Sub-Regions
[edit] Metropolitan Areas
(In Order Of Population)
- Huntsville-Decatur Combined Statistical Area
- Huntsville Metropolitan Area
- Decatur Metropolitan Area
- The Shoals
[edit] Micropolitan Areas
- Albertville Micropolitan Area
- Fort Payne Micropolitan Area
- Scottsboro Micropolitan Area
[edit] Principal Cities (In order of population)
- Huntsville
- 168,132
- Decatur
- 55,778
- Madison
- 36,824
- Florence
- 36,721
- Athens
- 21,851
[edit] Counties/Cities/Census-Designated Areas
Main Article: List of cities and counties in North Alabama
[edit] Economy
The northern areas of Alabama contain a wide variety of industrial, manufacturing, and hi-tech corporations with large and small operations. Each of the three economic centers in the region (Huntsville, Decatur, Florence) tend to have a distinct form type economic base. The Huntsville area is mostly dominated by hi-tech industries and federal operations such as Boeing and NASA. The Decatur area, in the central part of the region, is dependent mostly on industrial and manufacturing companies located in the city. Industries and manufacturers like General Electric and 3M dominate the landscape. While industry is Decatur's primary economic stronghold, such hi-tech and federal entities like the United Launch Alliance, who produces launch vehicles for NASA and other agencies, and the Tennessee Valley Authority also have roots in the area. The Florence area, also known as "The Shoals", is also dependent on industry and manufacturing, but also relies heavily on agriculture.
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