Irondale

	City of Irondale
Incorporated	1887
Population	13,366
Mayor	James Stewart Jr
School district	Jefferson County Schools
Government	Irondale City Council; Irondale Fire Department; Irondale Police Department
Web site	cityofirondaleal.gov
	Locate with Google Maps

Irondale (incorporated in 1887) is a suburban city of 13,366 located on 17.5 square miles east of Birmingham in Jefferson County. The area along Shades Creek was first settled sparsely by farmers. A community of as many as 500 people grew up around Wallace McElwain's Cahaba Iron Works, which was also called "Irondale Furnace", built in 1863 to supply Confederate military needs.

Wilson's Raiders destroyed the furnace in 1865, but McElwain raised investment funding in Cincinnati and was able to rebuild it within a year. The Alabama & Chattanooga Railroad ran lines through the town, and a post office was established for Irondale on June 3, 1872 but was discontinued after only three years because the furnace had shut down again in the aftermath of the financial panic of 1873.

In 1875 Joseph Johnston purchased furnace itself. In 1877 the Alabama & Chattanooga was reorganized as the Alabama Great Southern Railroad. That same year Confederate veteran William Ellard acquired extensive farm and timber property in the vicinity. Much of the area of the community itself was owned by E. N. Montgomery, who built a log cabin on what became 21st Street at 2nd Avenue Northeast. The Georgia Pacific Railway reached Irondale on its way to Birmingham by early 1883, but named the station Brevard. A new post office was established by that name on January 16. The Irondale Cumberland Presbyterian Church was established there by 1886.

Residents of the community continued to refer to it as Irondale. The Ruffner Mines were opened in 1887 bringing more workers and businesses, including the Hood Lumber Company, to the area. Irondale Methodist Church was founded that year. On October 5 a group of 29 residents petitioned for the town to be incorporated. Its limits were described as "one-half mile in every direction from the center, between three oaks standing in said town about midway between the Alabama Great Southern and the Georgia Pacific Railroads and nearly in front of the Hotel Resort." A vote was held on October 17 at which 32 residents voted in favor and 6 against. The town's charter was enacted on October 19.

Two more churches, Mt Hebron Baptist Church and First Baptist Church, were founded in 1891 and 1892, respectively.

The 1900 U.S. Census found 525 residents within the town limits. The Seaboard Railroad extended its line from Birmingham in 1905, soon followed by telephone connections. By 1910, the population of the community was 572. Streetcars began serving the city in 1913, and electricity became available in 1919.

Irondale is served by Jefferson County School system and is home to Shades Valley High School, which relocated from Birmingham in 1996, and now houses the Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School.

The book (later a film) Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, by Irondale native Fannie Flagg, is loosely based around the town and the landmark Irondale Cafe. Irondale is also the location of Catholic radio/television broadcaster EWTN.

Government

The Irondale City Council meets twice a month on Tuesday evenings at Irondale City Hall. Since 2008 the city has been divided into five council districts. The mayor is James Stewart Jr.

Demographics

According to the 2020 U.S. Census Irondale had 13,497 residents in 5,161 households. Of those, 7183 (53.2%) were White and 4,032 (29.9%) were Black or African American. There were 211 Asian residents (1.6%) and 1,565 (11.6%) that were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

As of the census of 2010, there were 12,349 people residing in the city's 5,495 housing units. The population density was 706.8/mi² with housing units at an average density of 314.5/mi². The racial makeup of the city was 56.3% White and 35.4% African American. 7.8% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

In 2000, there were 4,019 households out of which 31.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.9% were non-families. 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $46,203, and the median income for a family was $55,365. Males had a median income of $38,138 versus $30,775 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,251. About 5.7% of families and 9.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.

The Jefferson County Board of Equalization evaluated 3,598 homes in Irondale and determined that their average market value for 2007 was $135,587, a 3.5% increase since 2006.

Historical population

year     pop.    %change

1900 |    525 |          |
1910 |    572 |   +9.0%  |
1920 |    809 |  +41.4%  |
1930 |  1,517 |  +87.5%  |
1940 |  1,486 |   -2.0%  | 
1950 |  1,876 |  +26.2%  | 
1960 |  3,501 |  +86.6%  |
1970 |  3,166 |   -9.6%  |
1980 |  6,510 | +105.6%  |
1990 |  9,454 |  +45.2%  |
2000 |  9,813 |   +3.8%  |
2010 | 12,349 |  +25.8%  |
2020 | 13,497 |   +9.3%  |
2021 | 13,496 |   -0.1%  |
2022 | 13,366 |   -1.0%  |
2023 | 13,526 |   +1.2%  |

References

"Irondale, Alabama" (January 26, 2007) Wikipedia - accessed February 6, 2007
Wilson, Claire M. (March 27, 2023) "Irondale". Encyclopedia of Alabama - accessed October 30, 2024