Madison County has a rich history. Established in 1808 by the governor of the Mississippi Territory, it was named in honor of James Madison. Although the remnants of the Cumberland Plateau are evident in the east with Keel, Monte Sano and Green Mountains, the lands to the west are level and loamy. This county produced more cotton than any other county in the state, and cotton mills soon developed. Today the population is highly involved in space technology related to Marshall Space Center and national defense connected to Redstone Arsenal. Historic districts include Twickenham, Old Town, and Five Points. Other towns in the county include Gurley, Madison, New Hope, Hazel Green, Meridianville, Toney and Triana.
HMCHS Resources
Huntsville History Collection
The Huntsville History Collection is an internet portal that provides information about the history and historic architecture of Huntsville and Madison County. It is a work in progress and is expected to grow over the next few years. Some of that growth will come from planned additions by the Huntsville Madison County Public Library, the Collection Webmaster and other contributors of materials.
HOPE – History Outreach Program for Educators
These are education resources and are available for use by anyone (teachers, students, parents, scholars) who is interested in history of Huntsville and Madison County.
General History
Madison County History
Old files found in one of the Lawler homesite trunks revealed a handwritten historical research paper written by Ruby W. Lawler during her tenure as a Chairwoman for the Program Committee of the Gurley Historical Society
John Hunt of Huntsville, Alabama (audio recording)
An interesting 31 minute audio recording about the “Founder of Huntsville – John Hunt” given by Huntsville historian David Byers. It’s a new perspective based on his critical historical research.
Community-Driven Research
Huntsville Revisited
Home to a wide range of unique artifacts, photos, and stories of the places and families that make up the fabric of our history, Huntsville Revisited has become one of the most talked about cultural attractions in the area. The history museum is located at the H.C. Blake Art & History Center.
Huntsville Rewound
A Valuable Source of Contemporary Huntsville History
Research Institutions
Huntsville-Madison County Public Library
Special Collections Department (formerly Heritage Room)
2nd Floor, 915 Monroe St
Huntsville, AL 35801
(256) 532-5969
specialcollections@hmcpl.org
Excellent resource for all thing local history and genealogy.
University of Alabama Huntsville
University Archives & Special Collections
(256) 824-6523
Alabama A&M University
State Black Archives
(256) 372-5846
University Archives & Special Collections
(256) 3724717
Oakwood University
University Archives & Special Collections
(256) 726-7247
Fayetteville-Lincoln County Public Library
(931) 433-3286
Genealogy Trails
(volunteer-driven genealogy resources; not affiliated with HMCHS or HMCPL)
Welcome to Madison County, Alabama Genealogy and History: Volunteers Dedicated to Free Genealogy
Historic Preservation
Burritt on the Mountain
Their mission is to enhance lives and build community through educational, artistic, and recreational experiences while preserving our heritage, land, and historic structures.
Historic Huntsville Foundation
(256) 539-0097
Founded in 1974, it is an educational organization dedicated to the preservation of the architecturally and historically significant sites and structures in Huntsville and Madison County, Alabama.
City of Huntsville
The City of Huntsville’s Main Website
Five Points Historic District
Five Points is a community within a community, where the past blends with the present, and has a character that gives its residents a shared sense of history and connection with a “spirit of place.”
Madison Station Historical Preservation Society
The city of Madison was founded as a railroad depot town soon after the completion of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad in 1856. The first town lot was sold by James Clemens (father of U. S. Senator Jeremiah Clemens and a distant cousin of Samuel Langhorne Clemens, aka “Mark Twain”) in February of 1857 to George Washington Martin, the town’s first merchant.
Maple Hill Cemetery
The Cemetery Department responsible for the historic preservation of nine City of Huntsville cemeteries.
The Marshall Space Flight Center
For more than six decades, NASA and the nation have relied on Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, to deliver its most vital propulsion systems and hardware, flagship launch vehicles, world-class space systems, state-of-the-art engineering technologies and cutting-edge science and research projects and solutions.
North Alabama Railroad Museum
At the North Alabama Railroad Museum, located in Chase, Alabama, just east of Huntsville, you will find a facility reflecting a love of trains and a desire to preserve railroad history.