Huntsville, Alabama
Huntsville | |
|---|---|
|
Seal Logo | |
| Nickname: Rocket City | |
| Motto: "Star of Alabama" | |
Interactive map of Huntsville | |
Huntsville Location within Alabama Huntsville Location within the United States | |
| Coordinates: 34°41′36″N 86°33′39″W / 34.69333°N 86.56083°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alabama |
| Counties | Madison, Limestone, Morgan, Marshall |
| Established (as Twickenham) | December 23, 1809 |
| Incorporated (town) | December 9, 1811 |
| Incorporated (city) | February 24, 1860 |
| Founded by | LeRoy Pope |
| Named after | John Hunt |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–Council |
| • Mayor | Tommy Battle (R) |
| Area | |
• City | 229.00 sq mi (593.10 km2) |
| • Land | 227.63 sq mi (589.55 km2) |
| • Water | 1.54 sq mi (3.98 km2) |
| Elevation | 577 ft (176 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• City | 215,006 |
• Estimate (2025) | 249,102 |
| • Rank | US: 100th AL: 1st |
| • Density | 1,006/sq mi (388.3/km2) |
| • Urban | 329,066 (US: 122nd) 20,165 (Southeast) |
| • Urban density | 1,532/sq mi (591.6/km2) |
| • Metro | 542,000−560,000 (US: 100th) |
| • Metro density | 378/sq mi (145.9/km2) |
| • Combined | 879,315 (US: 68th) |
| • Combined density | 255.3/sq mi (98.57/km2) |
| Demonym | Huntsvillian |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Codes | 35801–35816, 35824, 35893–35899 |
| Area codes | 256 and 938 |
| FIPS code | 01-37000 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2404746 |
| Website | huntsvilleal.gov |
Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population was 215,006 at the 2020 census, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S., while the Huntsville metropolitan area has an estimated 542,000 residents and is the second-most populous metropolitan area in the state. As of July 1, 2025, the city's population was estimated to be 249,102 – a 15.9% increase since the 2020 Census. This makes it among the top 20 fastest growing cities in the US. Huntsville is the county seat of Madison County, with portions extending into Limestone County, Marshall County, and Morgan County.
Huntsville is located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, south of the state of Tennessee. It was founded within the Mississippi Territory in 1805 and became an incorporated town in 1811. When Alabama was admitted as a state in 1819, Huntsville was designated for a year as the first capital, before the state capitol was moved to more central settlements. The city developed across nearby hills north of the Tennessee River, adding textile mills in the late nineteenth century.
Major growth in Huntsville took place in the decades following World War II. During the war, the U.S. Army established Redstone Arsenal in the vicinity, with a chemical weapons plant and related facilities. After the war, additional research was conducted at Redstone Arsenal on rockets, followed by adaptations for space exploration. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, the United States Army Aviation and Missile Command, FBI's operational support headquarters and most recently the United States Space Command, all were sited at Redstone Arsenal.