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 Hartselle/Morgan County: Community Profile

Headlines
Hartselle was published in a national guidebook as one of the 100 Best Small Towns in America, by author Norman Crampton. Hartselle can also be found in the book - The 50 Best Small Southern Towns, written by Gerald W. Sweitzer and Kathy M. Fields. Hartselle is listed as the 18th fastest growing city in the state of Alabama. Rand McNally’s 2006 The Best of the Road names Hartselle as one of the greatest places to visit along a route.



Local Economy
Hartselle has a strong local economy driven by growth in the retail and housing sector. Our retail sector continues to grow with the support of our citizens. The industrial sector of our local economy remains steady.

Hartselle is centrally located in Morgan County. Morgan County and the six surrounding counties experienced over 22% of the State of Alabama’s total population growth from 1990 to 2000. In 2004 Morgan County led the state in capital investment and jobs created.

CITY OF HARTSELLE ALABAMA
Number of Employees as of December 8, 2005
Company Name
Product
Shifts
# of Employees
Copeland Corp. H.V.A.C. Compressors 3 Shifts
500 - 1000
Cerro Wire Elec. Wire and Cable 3 Shifts
270
Holm Industries Refrigeration Parts 3 Shifts
80
Jeld-Wen Residential Doors 3 Shifts
106
Baker Industries Wood Products 3 Shifts
250
Hartselle Medical Center 3 Shifts
187
City of Hartselle 3 Shifts
112
Hartselle City Schools 1 Shift
389
WalMart 3 Shifts
300


Local Government

A Mayor - Council form of government, governs the city of Hartselle. The Mayor handles the day-to-day operations of the city and the Council serves as the legislative body of the city. The Council President sets the agendas and resides over bi-monthly council meetings.

Mayor Dwight Tankersley, 256-773-2535

Kenny Thompson, Council President

Councilmen: Mark Mizell, Bill Drake, Bill Smelser and Samie Wiley

Demographics/Statistics
Location:

Latitude: 34:26:43.576 Longitude: -86:55:54.771

Hartselle is located in Morgan County 10 miles South of Decatur and 25 miles Southwest of Huntsville

Nearby Metro Areas:

Atlanta 217 miles 3 1/2 hours
Birmingham 71 miles 1 hour
Montgomery 161 miles 2 1/2 hours
Nashville 126 miles 2 hours
Huntsville 34 miles 25 minutes

Demographics:

City of Hartselle
Morgan County
Population
12,866
113,211
Median Age
37.4
36.6
Race
White
92.9%
85.1%
Black
5.2%
11.2%
Asian
0.3%
0.4%
Other
1.6%
3.3%
Education
% High school degree
79.9%
76.3%
% College degree
19.1%
18.4%
% Foreign Born
1.5%
2.7%
Median Family Income
$47,685
$45,827
Median Home Value
$88,700
$86,600
Mean Travel Time to Work
23.5
23.3 min.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau (www.census.gov)


Climate:

The annual mean temperature in Hartselle is 60.6 degrees: 40.2 degrees in January and 79.3 degrees in July.

Available Jobs
The job market in Hartselle is stable and consists mainly of general labor, light industrial, and clerical positions. The retail and restaurant sector have positions available throughout the year, while the school systems openings are normally at the end of the school year.

The immediate region around Hartselle offers significant employment opportunities for skilled and unskilled trades, professional and administrative positions in diversified manufacturing, aerospace and Department of Defense work forces. Commuting to these many job sites is relatively quick and safe as accommodated by a well - maintained and comprehensive highway network.



Local Events
February - Black History Month display at the historic depot. Information, class projects and displays regarding famous Black Alabamians, and Black Americans are supplied by our local school children and on display from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. for everyone to view. FREE

March – Youth Art Month display at the historic depot. Artwork in various mediums is supplied by our local school children and on display from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. for everyone to view. FREE

May – Wings of Thunder Annual Charity Ride – A relatively new event, this motorcycle rally and poker run is an opportunity to ride through beautiful scenic areas in and around Hartselle. A new charity is chosen each year as the recipient of funds raised from this event. If you don’t ride but love to look you’ll enjoy this event, the motorcycle games, vendors and musical entertainment on the stage.

– Guided Walking Tour of Historic Downtown Hartselle begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday of the

Memorial Day weekend and continues each Saturday through the July 4th weekend. Hartselle has one of the largest contiguous groups of buildings in Alabama, which is listed in the National Historic Register.

May - September – Music in the Park – Various styles of music fills the air in historic downtown Hartselle as the E.A.R.T.H. Park gazebo becomes home to Thursday night concerts. The concert series begins at 7 p.m. and continues each Thursday through the Depot Days Festival in September.

September - Depot Days Festival – An event that has been awarded the recognition of being a Top Twenty Event in the Southeast by the Southeastern Tourism Society. This festival is fun for the whole family. The week begins on Sunday with a community worship service. Monday night is the Down Memory Lane – an event hosted by the Hartselle Historical Society focusing on something new every year. Thursday night is the finale of the Music in the Park series. The performance is always wonderful as special entertainment is brought in for the evening. As Saturday rolls around you’ll enjoy an Art Show, Crafts, 5K Certified & 1 Mile Fun Run, Entertainment on two stages, Food, Rides, Trains, Antique Tractors & Gasoline Engines, Games, a Car, Truck and Motorcycle Show, and a special entertainer like the Paul Bunyan Lumberjack Show. Fun for the whole Family is easy to find at this festival.

November – The first Sunday in November is always Christmas Open House and A Taste of Hartselle. Begin the afternoon by shopping with merchants that open their doors with sales, specials, refreshments, door prizes and bargains galore for Christmas Open House. At the depot local restaurants provide a sampling of their wares for everyone to try.

December – The Hartselle Christmas Parade takes place the first Thursday night in December at 7 p.m. in historic downtown.

The Christmas Tour of Homes, sponsored by the Hartselle Beautification Association, is the first Saturday evening in December, featuring horse-drawn carriages for tours.

Links to any local events calendars

Community Involvement
Hartselle is home to a number of nationwide organizations including Rotary, Civitans, Kiwanis, Lions Club, American Legion and the Red Hat Ladies. Hartselle also offers a number of local organizations to become involved with, Hartselle Area Chamber of Commerce, Hartselle Beautification Association, Hartselle Historical Society, Hartselle Youth Alive, Rainbow Garden Club, The Caring Place and Hartselle Center for the Performing Arts. There are also many organizations on a county/ regional level available such as the United Way, Volunteer Center, American Cancer Society, Hospice of the Valley, Diabetes Association and the Autism Society of Alabama

Religion
Hartselle has many churches in the area from which to choose your new church home. Many of these churches are within the city limits of Hartselle and all are within a 15-mile radius.


Baptist – 30 Catholic – 1 Christian – 5 Church of Christ – 5
Church of God – 5 Episcopal – 1 Lutheran – 1 Methodist – 12
Nazarene – 1 Pentecostal – 1 Presbyterian – 1 Other - 12

Chamber of Commerce of Huntsville/Madison County
225 Church Street, Huntsville, Alabama 35801
Phone: (256) 535-2000 | Toll Free: (866) 854-7551 | Fax: (256) 535-2015 | ltraylor@hsvchamber.org
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