Calhoun

Formed December 18, 1832 (38^th county)

Calhoun County (116,444), Anniston (21,562), Oxford (22,084)

The clock tower of the red brick courthouse stands out in this county seat.  The 1900 structure was remodeled in 1930.  The building is located on 12^th Street between Gurnee and Noble, three blocks west of United States Highway 431.  J. W. Golucke is the designer of this Neo-Classical building.  A Hall of Records augments the courthouse.  The county for named for South Carolina Senator John C. Calhoun.  Anniston was named for the wife of a railroad president.  Oxford is named for a creek crossing for livestock.  Calhoun County was created on December 18, 1832 from St. Clair County as the 38^th county and named Benton County.  It was renamed in 1858.  Jacksonville was the first county seat.  It moved to Anniston in 1900. 

Calhoun County government consists of a sheriff, revenue commissioner, and coroner (executive).  It has 5 commissioners (legislative.)  Six Circuit Judges serve Calhoun and Cleburne counties and Three District Judges, a Probate Judge, a County Judge, a District Attorney, and a County Clerk serve Calhoun County (judicial.)  The county is located in northeast Alabama east of Birmingham, Alabama and west of Atlanta, Georgia.  The center of the county is 6.6 miles North of Anniston nearer Weaver.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Cherokee, Cleburne, Talladega, St. Clair, and Etowah counties.  Anniston is in the south of the county and Oxford is just to its south.  Anniston is the county seat and Oxford is the largest city.  Anniston is 18.5% and Oxford is 19.0% of the county population.  The county seat is pronounced ANN-I-STON. 

The county has an area of 605.9 square miles.  It ranks 51 out of 67 in size.  It ranks 10 out of 67 in population in the state.  It has a density of 191.1 persons per square mile making it 10 out of 67 in the state.  Calhoun County has 54.8% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 20 enters from Cleburne County to the east and exits into Talladega County to the west.  United States Highway 78 parallels Interstate Highway 20 from Cleburne County into Talladega County.  United States Highway 278 crosses the extreme north coming from Cherokee County and going west into Etowah County.  United States Highway 431 enters from Etowah in the north and joins United States Highway 78 going southeast into Cleburne County.  The Coosa River forms the western border.  The county has numerous jogs and juts with no descript shape.  The county is in the Anniston-Oxford Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Oxford