Cardiff Alabama

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Cardiff Alabama

Cardiff is a town in Jefferson County located at on Five Mile Creek, a tributary of the Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River west of Gardendale. The town officially incorporated in January 1900, when it boasted more than 560 residents, several stores, two blacksmith shops, and a saloon.

Cardiff Alabama History

Coal mining was the historical basis of the economy. The town, for years the smallest incorporated town in the State of Alabama, declined along with the decline of underground coal mining and the rise of strip mining. Cardiff’s downtown burned on July 20, 1919, causing a general downturn in the town’s fortunes. The area also was hit with a series of mine strikes at the same time, so most of the businesses did not rebuild. By 1930, the population had dropped to 146.

Cardiff Alabama Transportation

County Highway 71 runs north-south through the town. Five Mile Creek forms the southern border of the town. Interstate 22 that connects Birmingham, Jefferson County, with Memphis, Tennessee, is located just south of the town. The Norfolk Southern Railway operates a line that runs through its southern edge.

Cardiff Alabama Demographics

At the 2010 census the population was 55, placing it as the least populated incorporated area in Jefferson County. The racial makeup of the town was 93.90% White and 6.10% Black or African American.

 Cardiff is now but a spot in the road with 20–30 people, and, covered with kudzu. Cardiff is becoming a ghost town.