Huntsville, Alabama
| Huntsville, Alabama | |
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| City | |
| City of Huntsville | |
Clockwise from top: Big Spring Park, the Old Times Building, the Madison County Courthouse, the Von Braun Center, and Governors Drive
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| Nickname(s): "Rocket City" | |
| Motto: "Star of Alabama" | |
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 Huntsville, Alabama
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| Coordinates: 34°43′48″N 86°35′6″W / 34.73000°N 86.58500°WCoordinates: 34°43′48″N 86°35′6″W / 34.73000°N 86.58500°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |
 Alabama
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| Counties | Madison, Limestone |
| Established (Twickenham) | December 23, 1809 |
| Incorporated (town) | December 9, 1811 |
| Incorporated (city) | February 24, 1860 |
| Founded by | LeRoy Pope |
| Named for | John Hunt |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–Council |
| • Mayor | Tommy Battle (R) |
| • Council | Huntsville City Council |
| Area | |
| • City | 556.8 km2 (215 sq mi) |
| • Land | 555.8 km2 (214.62 sq mi) |
| • Water | 1.02 km2 (0.38 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 183 m (600 ft) |
| Population | |
| • City | 194,057 |
| • Rank | US: 125th |
| • Density | 334.6/km2 (867/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 286,692 (US: 132nd) |
| • Metro | 441,086 (US: 118th) |
| Demonym(s) | Huntsvillian |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| • Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| ZIP codes | 35756, 35757, 35801–35816, 35824, 35893-35899 |
| Area code(s) | 256, 938 |
| FIPS code | 01-37000 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0151827 |
| Website | City of Huntsville |
Huntsville is a city located primarily in Madison County in the central part of the far northern region of Alabama. Huntsville is the county seat of Madison County. The city extends west into neighboring Limestone County. Huntsville's population was 180,105 as of the 2010 census. Huntsville is the fourth-largest city in Alabama and the largest city in the five-county Huntsville-Decatur-Albertville, AL Combined Statistical Area, which at the 2013 census estimate had a total population of 683,871. The Huntsville Metropolitan Area's population was 417,593 in 2010 to become the 2nd largest in Alabama. Huntsville metro's population reached 441,000 by 2014.
It grew across nearby hills north of the Tennessee River, adding textile mills, then munitions factories, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and the United States Army Aviation and Missile Command nearby at the Redstone Arsenal. The National Trust for Historic Preservation named Huntsville to its "America's Dozen Distinctive Destinations for 2010" list.
The first settlers of the area were Muscogee-speaking people. The Chickasaw traditionally claim to have settled around 1300 after coming east across the Mississippi. A combination of factors, including depopulation due to disease, land disputes between the Choctaw and Cherokee, and pressures from the United States government had largely depopulated the area prior to Revolutionary War veteran John Hunt's arrival and settlement in the land around the Big Spring in 1805. The 1805 Treaty with the Chickasaws and the Cherokee Treaty of Washington of 1806 ceded native claims to the United States Government. The area was subsequently purchased by LeRoy Pope, who named the area Twickenham after the home village of his distant kinsman Alexander Pope.
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Wikipedia