Montevallo Alabama

Montevallo Alabama History

Montevallo, Alabama is a city in Shelby County, Alabama. A college town, it is the home of the University of Montevallo, a public liberal arts university with around 3000 students.

The area where Montevallo is now was once controlled by the Creek Indians. After being acquired in 1814 Jesse Wilson claimed a small hill on the northern bank of the Shoal Creek and created a homestead there, making it the oldest settlement in Shelby County. Wilson’s friends and family followed afterwards and also settled in the area, and a settlement known as Wilson’s Hill developed on the site. The settlement’s location at almost the exact center of Alabama meant it was considered one of the potential sites for the University of Alabama. In an attempt to encourage the university to choose the site the settlement changed its name to Montevallo, which is Italian for the hill in the valley.

Montevallo is located at 33°6′18″N 86°51′46″W (33.104927, -86.862817). A plaque on Reynolds Cemetery Road, just off highway 25, in the eastern corner of the town, marks the geographic center of the state of Alabama. Middle Street, formerly known as Main Street, had its name changed in 1899 for this reason, upon the completion of a new state survey.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.7 square miles, of which, 7.6 square miles of it is land and 0.1 square miles of it (0.66%) is water.

Montevallo Alabama Map

Shelby County Alabama Index

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