Back Montgomery, Alabama Afrikaans ሞንትጎመሪ፣ አላባማ Amharic Montgomery (Alabama) AN Muntgumni (Alabama) ANG مونتغومري Arabic مونتجومرى (مونتجومرى) ARZ Montgomery (Alabama) AST Montqomeri (Alabama) Azerbaijani مانتقامئری، آلاباما AZB Montgomery, Alabama BAR
Montgomery | |
|---|---|
Montgomery along the Alabama River Commerce Street, downtown | |
 Flag  Seal  Logo | |
| Nickname(s): "The Gump", "Birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement", "Cradle of the Confederacy" | |
| Motto: "Capital of Dreams"[1] | |
 Interactive map of Montgomery | |
  Montgomery Location within Alabama  Montgomery Location within the United States | |
| Coordinates: 32°22′3″N 86°18′0″W / 32.36750°N 86.30000°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alabama |
| County | Montgomery |
| Incorporated | December 3, 1819[2][3] |
| Named for | Richard Montgomery |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–Council |
| • Mayor | Steven L. Reed (D) |
| • City Council | District 1 – Ed Grimes District 2 – Julie T. Beard District 3 – Marche Johnson District 4 – Franetta Riley District 5 – Cornelius Calhoun District 6 – Oronde Mitchell District 7 – Andrew Szymanski District 8 – Glen O. Pruitt, Jr. District 9 – Charles W. Jinright |
| Area | |
| • Capital City | 162.27 sq mi (420.28 km2) |
| • Land | 159.86 sq mi (414.03 km2) |
| • Water | 2.41 sq mi (6.25 km2) |
| Elevation | 240 ft (73 m) |
| Population | |
| • Capital City | 200,603 |
| • Estimate (2022)[7] | 196,986 |
| • Rank | US: 128th AL: 3rd |
| • Density | 1,232/sq mi (475.8/km2) |
| • Urban | 254,348 (US: 159th) |
| • Urban density | 1,752.9/sq mi (676.8/km2) |
| • Metro | 385,460 (US: 142nd) |
| • Metro density | 142.0/sq mi (54.83/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC–6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC–5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Codes | ZIP Codes[8] |
| Area code | 334 |
| FIPS code | 01-51000 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0165344[5] |
| Website | montgomeryal.gov |
Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County.[9] Named for Continental Army Major General Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. The population was 200,603 at the 2020 census.[6] It is the third-most populous city in the state after Huntsville and Birmingham, and is the 128th most populous in the United States. The Montgomery Metropolitan Statistical Area's population in 2022 was 385,460; it is the fourth largest in the state and 142nd among United States metropolitan areas.
The city was incorporated in 1819 as a merger of two towns situated along the Alabama River. It replaced Tuscaloosa as the state capital in 1846, representing the shift of power to the south-central area of Alabama with the growth of cotton as a commodity crop of the Black Belt and the rise of Mobile as a mercantile port on the Gulf Coast. In February 1861, Montgomery was chosen the first capital of the Confederate States of America, which it remained until the Confederate seat of government moved to Richmond, Virginia, in May of that year. In the middle of the 20th century, Montgomery was a major center of events and protests in the Civil Rights Movement,[10] including the Montgomery bus boycott and the Selma to Montgomery marches.
In addition to housing many Alabama government agencies, Montgomery has a large military presence, due to Maxwell Air Force Base. It has three public universities (Alabama State University, Troy University (Montgomery campus), and Auburn University at Montgomery), two private post-secondary institutions (Faulkner University and Huntingdon College), high-tech manufacturing (particularly Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama), and many cultural attractions, such as the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice.
Montgomery has also been recognized nationally for its downtown revitalization and new urbanism projects. It was one of the first cities in the nation to implement SmartCode Zoning.
- ^ "City of Montgomery: Capital of Dreams Video". Montgomeryal.gov. Archived from the original on June 25, 2014. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
al-legislative-incorporation-1819was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Municipalities of Alabama Incorporation Dates" (PDF). Alabama League of Municipalities. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 25, 2024. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
- ^ "2023 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on November 15, 2023. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Montgomery, Alabama
- ^ a b "Explore Census Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
USCensusEst2022was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Zip Code Lookup". USPS. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ Beito, David (May 2, 2009) Something is Rotten in Montgomery Archived June 19, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, LewRockwell.com