Alabama County Names Alabama became a state in 1819; before then, it was a part of the Mississippi Territory County Name Date Established Origin of Name County Seat Autauga November 21, 1818 American Indian Village of Atagi Prattville Baine, see Etowah December 7, 1866 Gen. David W. Baine, CSA Gadsden Baldwin December 21, 1809 Sen. Abraham Baldwin/GA Bay Minette Baker, see Chilton December 30, 1868 Alfred Baker Grantville Barbour December 18, 1832 Gov. James Barbour/VA Clayton Benton, see Calhoun December 18, 1832 U.S. Sen. Thomas Hart Benton/MO Jacksonville Bibb February 7, 1818 Gov. William W. Bibb Centreville Blount February 6, 1818 Gov. Willie G. Blount/TN Oneonta Bullock December 5, 1866 Col. Edward C. Bullock Union Springs Butler December 13, 1819 Capt. William Butler/Creek Wars Greenville Cahawba, see Bibb February 7, 1818 Cahawba River, from the Choctaw for "water above" Cahawba Calhoun December 18, 1832 Sen. John C. Calhoun/SC Anniston Chambers December 18, 1832 Sen. Henry C. Chambers/AL Lafayette Cherokee January 9, 1836 American Indian Tribe Centre Chilton December 30, 1868 Confederate Cong. Wm. P. Chilton Clanton Choctaw December 29, 1847 American Indian Tribe Butler Clarke December 10, 1812 Gen. John Clarke/GA Grove Hill Clay December 7, 1866 Sen. Henry Clay/KY Ashland Cleburne December 6, 1866 Major Gen. Patrick Cleburne/AR Heflin Coffee December 29, 1841 Gen. John Coffee Elba Colbert February 6, 1867 Chiefs George & Levi Colbert Tuscumbia Conecuh February 13, 1818 American Indian word Evergreen Coosa December 18, 1832 Town of Alabama Indians Rockford Cotaco; see Morgan February 8, 1818 Cotaco Creek Somerville Covington December 17, 1821 Brig. Gen. Leonard Covington/MD Andalusia Crenshaw November 30, 1866 Judge Anderson Crenshaw Luverne Cullman January 24, 1877 Johann G. Cullmann Cullman Dale December 22, 1824 Gen. Samuel Dale Ozark Dallas February 9, 1818 A.J. Dallas, US Sec. of Treasury/PA Selma Decatur December 7, 1821 Commodore Stephen Decatur Woodville DeKalb January 9, 1836 Major Gen. Baron DeKalb/Am. Rev. Fort Payne Elmore February 15, 1866 Gen. John A. Elmore Wetumpka Escambia December 10, 1868 American Indian name/river Brewton Etowah December 7, 1866 Cherokee Indian name Gadsden Fayette December 20, 1824 Marquis de LaFayette Fayette Franklin February 6, 1818 Benjamin Franklin Russellville Geneva December 26, 1868 Geneva, Switzerland Geneva Greene December 13, 1819 Gen. Nathaniel Greene/GA Eutaw Hale January 30, 1867 Col. Stephen F. Hale Greensboro Hancock, see Winston February 12, 1850 Gov. John Hancock/MA Double Springs Henry December 13, 1819 Gov. Patrick Henry/VA Abbeville Houston February 9, 1903 Gov. George S. Houston Dothan Jackson December 13, 1819 Gen. Andrew Jackson Scottsboro Jefferson December 13, 1819 Pres. Thomas Jefferson Birmingham Jones, see Lamar February 4, 1867 E. P. Jones/Fayette County Vernon Lamar February 4, 1867 Sen. L.Q.C. Lamar/MS Vernon Lauderdale February 6, 1818 Col. James Lauderdale/TN Florence Lawrence February 6, 1818 Capt. J. Lawrence, USN/VT Moulton Lee December 5, 1866 Gen. Robert E. Lee Opelika Limestone February 6, 1818 Limestone Creek Athens Lowndes January 20, 1830 Cong. William Lowndes/SC Hayneville Macon December 18, 1832 Sen. Nathaniel Macon/NC Tuskegee Madison December 13, 1808 Pres. James Madison Huntsville Marengo February 6, 1818 French battlefield Linden Marion February 13, 1818 Gen. Francis Marion/SC Hamilton Marshall January 9, 1836 Chief Justice John Marshall Guntersville Mobile December 18, 1812 Named for Maubila Indians Mobile Monroe June 29, 1815 Pres. James Monroe Monroeville Montgomery December 6, 1816 Major L.P. Montgomery/TN Montgomery Morgan February 6, 1818 Gen. Daniel Morgan/VA Decatur Perry December 13, 1819 Commodore O.H. Perry/RI Marion Pickens December 20, 1820 Gen. Andrew Pickens/SC Carrollton Pike December 17, 1821 Gen. Zebulon M. Pike/NJ Troy Randolph December 18, 1832 Sen. John Randolph/VA Wedowee Russell December 18, 1832 Col. Gilbert C. Russell/Creek Wars Phenix City Sanford, see Lamar February 4, 1867 H. C. Sanford/Cherokee County Vernon St. Clair November 20, 1818 Gen. Arthur St. Clair/PA Ashville Shelby February 7, 1818 Gov. Isaac Shelby/KY Columbiana Sumter December 18, 1832 Gen. Thomas Sumter/SC Livingston Talladega December 18, 1832 Town of Creek Indians Talladega Tallapoosa December 18, 1832 American Indian name Dadeville Tuscaloosa February 6, 1818 Chief Tuscaloosa Tuscaloosa Walker December 26, 1823 Sen. John W. Walker Jasper Washington June 4, 1800 Pres. George Washington Chatom Wilcox December 13, 1819 Lt. J.M. Wilcox/Creek Wars Camden Winston February 12, 1850 Gov. John A. Winston Double Springs "Extinct Counties" Baine County This county was discontinued in 1867, and the land incorporated into Etowah County in 1868. Baker County This county was created in 1868. The name was changed to Chilton County in 1874. Benton County Created in 1832, its name was changed to Calhoun County on 29 January 1858. Cabela County This county was created in 1818. The name was changed to Bibb County two years later. Cotaco County Created in 1818 and named for a local Indian chief, it was renamed Morgan County in 1821 Hancock County Formed in 1850, it's name was changed to Winston in 1858. Jones County - This county was created on 4 February 1867. It was abolished on 3 November 1867. Almost a year later, on 8 October 1868, Sanford County was created from what had been Jones County. In 1877, the name was changed to Lamar County Sanford County Established on 8 October 1868, Sanford County was created from what had been Jones County. In 1877, the name was changed to Lamar County SOURCES: Alabama Department of Archives and History. Alabama State Emblems, n.d. Alabama Department of Archives and History. Official and Statistical Register, 1979. Rogers, William Warren et al. Alabama: The History of a Deep South State, 1994.