Alabama's Black Belt is a region of the state and part of the larger Black Belt Region of the Southern United States, which stretches from Texas to Maryland. Alabama (formally the State of Alabama;) is a State located in the southern region of the United States of America. The Black Belt is a region of the United States. Although the term originally describes the prairies and dark Soil of central Alabama and northeast The Southern United States &mdashcommonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South &mdashconstitutes a large distinctive Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. The term referred originally to the region underlain by a thin layer of rich, black topsoil developed atop the chalk of the Selma Group, a geologic unit dating to the Cretaceous Period. Topsoil is the upper outermost layer of soil usually the top 2 to 8 inches Chalk (ʧɔːk is a soft white porous Sedimentary rock, a form of Limestone composed of the Mineral Calcite. A geological unit is a volume of rock or ice of identifiable origin and age range that is defined by the distinctive and dominant easily mapped and recognizable The Cretaceous (kriːˈteɪʃəs, usually abbreviated 'K' for its German translation "Kreide" is a geologic period and system, reaching from the end of The soils have been developing continuously at least since the Pliocene Epoch. The Pliocene epoch (spelled Pleiocene in some older texts is the period in the Geologic timescale that extends Because the underlying chalk is nearly impermeable to groundwater, the black soils tend to dry out during the summer. Groundwater is Water located beneath the Ground surface in Soil pore spaces and in the Fractures of lithologic formations The natural vegetation of the chalk belt consisted mainly of oak-hickory forest interspersed with shortgrass prairie, while the sandy ridges flanking the chalk belt supported pine forest.
For lack of a reliable source of water, the earliest settlers avoided farming the black soil until the discovery that deep artesian wells could be drilled to supply people, livestock, and crops. See Great Artesian Basin for the water source in Australia An artesian aquifer is a confined aquifer containing Groundwater Beginning in the 1830s, cotton plantations became Alabama's greatest source of wealth. Fundamentally a plantation is usually a large Farm or estate, especially in a tropical or semitropical country on which Cotton, Tobacco Before the American Civil War, these plantations were worked by African American slaves and the region attained its highest density of population, giving the Black Belt great importance in the state legislature. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa As a social-economic system slavery is a legal institution under which a Person (called "a slave" is compelled to work for another
The Black Belt's largest city, Montgomery, became the capital of Alabama in 1846. Because Alabama was geographically central to the slave states, Montgomery was also the original capital of the Confederate States of America. The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 The region's distance from the front lines during the American Civil War saved it from much of the ravages of war. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Many of the Greek Revival mansions of the plantation owners are still present, as are some of the accompanying slave quarters. The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries predominantly in northern Europe and the United States Gaineswood in Demopolis and Magnolia Grove in Greensboro, Alabama are among those that can be visited by tourists today. Gaineswood is a Plantation house in Demopolis, Alabama, United States. Demopolis is the largest city in Marengo County, Alabama, United States. Greensboro is a city in Hale County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 2731
Although the infestation of the cotton crop by the boll weevil destroyed much of this system around 1910, the effects of a cotton economy remain evident. The boll weevil ( Anthonomus grandis) is a Beetle measuring an average length of six Millimeters which feeds on Cotton buds and flowers Descendents of freed slaves remain on the land, and make up the largest proportion of the population in most Black Belt counties. Thus, the term "Black Belt" is understood today as a demographic characterization as much as a geologic one.
Some of the most important events of the American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968) occurred in the Black Belt, including Rosa Parks' refusal to give up her bus seat, which led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott; the Selma to Montgomery marches; and voter registration reform, focusing in Selma, Alabama, allowing African Americans to vote (see Voting Rights Act). The American Civil Rights Movement (1955–1968 refers to the reform movements in the United States aimed at abolishing racial discrimination against African Rosa Louise McCauley Parks (February 4 1913 – October 24 2005 was an African American Civil rights activist whom the U The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a political and social protest campaign started in 1955 in Montgomery Alabama, intended to oppose The Selma to Montgomery marches, which included Bloody Sunday, were three marches that marked the Political and emotional peak of the American civil rights Selma is a city in and the County seat of Dallas County, Alabama, United States, located on the banks of the Alabama River. Background See also [[Disfranchisement after the Civil War]] The 13th Amendment, ratified in 1865 after the Civil War, abolished and prohibited
Today, Alabama's Black Belt includes some of the poorest counties in the United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Along with high rates of poverty, the area is typified by declining populations, a primarily agricultural landscape with low-density settlement, high unemployment, poor access to education and medical care, substandard housing and high rates of crime.
In Alabama, the heart of the Black Belt is centered in western part of the state between the Appalachian foothills and the coastal plain. The Appalachian Mountains ( often called the Appalachians, are a vast system of mountains in eastern North America. The list of counties comprising the Black Belt is often dependent on the context but historically includes Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Choctaw, Crenshaw, Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Russell, Sumter, and Wilcox. Barbour County Alabama is a County of the US state of Alabama. Bullock County Alabama is a County of the US state of Alabama. Butler County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Captain William Butler, who was born in Virginia and Choctaw County is a County of the US state of Alabama. It is named for the Choctaw tribe of American Indians, though most of those Crenshaw County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of a judge Anderson Crenshaw Dallas County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of United States Secretary of the Treasury Alexander J Greene County is the least populous county in the US state of Alabama. Hale County is a County of the US state of Alabama. It is named in honor of Confederate Colonel Stephen F Lowndes County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of William Lowndes a member of the United States Congress Macon County is a county in the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Nathaniel Macon a member of the United States Senate from Marengo County is a County of the US state of Alabama. It is named in honor of a battlefield near Turin, Italy, where the Montgomery County is a County in the US state of Alabama. It was named in honor of Lemuel P Perry County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, of Rhode Island, Pickens County is a County of the US state of Alabama. As of 2000 the population was 20949 Pike County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of General Zebulon Pike, of New Jersey, an explorer who Russell County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Colonel Gilbert C Sumter County is a County of the US state of Alabama.Its name is in honor of General Thomas Sumter of South Carolina. Wilcox County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Lieutenant J By this definition, Alabama's Black Belt had 727,762 residents in 2000, or 16. 3% of the state's population.
Sometimes the region is extended into the southern coastal plain to include Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia, Monroe, and Washington Counties. Clarke County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of General John Clarke of Georgia. Conecuh County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is believed to be derived from a Creek Indian term meaning "land of cane Escambia County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is said to be from the name of a river in an American Indian language (see Monroe County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of James Monroe, fifth President of the United States Washington County is a County of the US state of Alabama. The county was named in honor of George Washington, first President of the United Though Montgomery County meets both the soil and demographic traits of the Black Belt. Montgomery County is a County in the US state of Alabama. It was named in honor of Lemuel P it is often excluded because of its significant urban development. Urbanizationn (also spelled urbanisation) is the physical growth of Urban areas into rural or natural land as a result of population in-migration to an existing Lamar does not meet the soil traits but is often included due to its lack of enterprise. Lamar County is a County of the US state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar, member of the United
In recent electoral maps, the Black Belt has appeared as a "Blue Belt" because of its strong support for the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. With the exception of parts of the city of Birmingham, the outline of Alabama's 7th congressional district roughly matches the western Black Belt region. Birmingham (ˈbɝmɪŋhæm is the largest City in the US state of Alabama and is the County seat of Jefferson County. Alabama's Seventh Congressional District is a US Congressional district in Alabama, which elects a representative to the United States House of Representatives Artur Davis currently represents that district in the United States House of Representatives. Artur Genestre Davis (born October 9 1967) is an American politician who has been a Democratic member of the United States House of The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate.
See also
References
- Tullos, Allen. Alabama became a State of the United States of America in 1819 The Black Belt is a region of the United States. Although the term originally describes the prairies and dark Soil of central Alabama and northeast "The Black Belt" Southern Spaces, (April 19, 2004)
- Rogers, William Warren, and Robert David Ward, Leah Rawls Atkins, and Wayne Flynt. Alabama: The History of a Deep South State. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 1994. ISBN 0-8173-0714-1
- Phillips, Doug (2004) "Alabama Black Belt". Discovering Alabama Teacher's Guide.
External links
- Black Belt Fact Book, presented by the University of Alabama Institute for Rural Health Research
- Birmingham News special report on Alabama's Black Belt
- Black Belt Community Foundation
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