Local city information for Muscle Shoals, AL

Muscle Shoals is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of 2007, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 12,846. The city is included in The Shoals MSA. It is famous for its contributions to American popular music.

Native Indians first inhabited the lands bordered by the Tennessee River. There is no record of when the name Muscle Shoals was first used for the area. However, there are several theories as to where the name originated. One theory is that at one time there were piles of mussel shells found along the shoals of the Tennessee River. Another theory is that the shape of the river looks like the muscle in a man’s arm, hence the name 'Muscle' Shoals. The last theory comes from several booklets that were published before Muscle Shoals incorporated. This theory states: “Muscle Shoals, the Niagara of the South, derives its name from the Indians, who, attempting to navigate upstream, found the task almost impossible because of the strong current.” Thus, also, came the word muscle, symbolic of the strength required to “paddle a canoe up the rapids.” The Shoals area, including Florence, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia, was first known as the Muscle Shoals district.

In the early 1900s, Muscle Shoals was farm land with houses scattered among the cotton fields. In 1918, a year after the United States entered World War I, the building of Wilson Dam began. The United States needed nitrates for ammunition and explosives, prompting President Woodrow Wilson to approve the building of two nitrate plants and a dam to supply needed electricity for those plants. At its peak, the building of Wilson Dam employed more than 18,000 workers, including some from what is now Muscle Shoals. The construction site consisted of 1,700 temporary buildings, 236 permanent buildings, 185 residential units, and 685 miles of electrical cable. There were also 23 mess halls, a school for 850 students, an 85-bed hospital, and 3 barber shops.

In 1921, automotive tycoon Henry Ford, accompanied by Thomas Edison, came to Muscle Shoals with a vision of transforming the area into a metropolis. The instant rumors of Ford’s plan caused a real estate boom, and speculators began buying up land and parceling it out in 25 foot lots. During this time, people from all over the United States bought lots sight unseen. Mr. Ford’s offer to buy Wilson Dam for $5 million was turned down by the United States Congress. (The initial cost of the construction of the dam was $46.5 million.) Instead, Congress, under the influence of Senator George Norris of Nebraska, later formed the Tennessee Valley Authority to develop the dam as well as the entire river valley. This plan was made a part of the New Deal. Although Ford’s plans did not materialize, they did lay the foundation for the city of Muscle Shoals.

As the area became more populated, there came a desire by men of the area to incorporate. On March 7 1923, a petition was presented to the Probate Judge of Colbert County to incorporate the town of Muscle Shoals. The petition was signed by 45 men and women that resided within the boundaries of the proposed area. An election was held on March 31 1923. The inspectors, Lewis Gusmus, George A. Lehbert, and R.H. Huston, gave the final vote count at 361 votes for “Corporation” and 6 votes for “No Corporation.” The list of inhabitants residing within the town of Muscle Shoals, which were enumerated by the above inspectors under a decree entered by N.P. Tompkins, Judge of Probate of Colbert County, included 460 white and 267 colored, making a total of 727 people in Muscle Shoals. The incorporation of the “Town of Muscle Shoals” was made official on April 24, 1923. An order also called for the election of a Mayor and five aldermen. On May 28, 1923, George McBride was elected the first mayor of Muscle Shoals with a total of 26 votes. The aldermen elected were Henry Green, George Harris, Robert Huston, George Vaughn and R.F. Tucker.

During the first 20 years of incorporation, town development was very slow, boasting only 1,113 residents by 1940. By this time, some of the residential property had been sold for taxes and some at the local market value. This change to local ownership opened the way for growth and development of the new city. In the 1950s, under a commission form of government and a recognized area chamber of commerce, an industrial boom began. Reynolds Metals and Union Carbide Metals were quick to convert to peacetime production. Diversification came with Diamond Shamrock, Ford Motor Company, and many others locating in Colbert County.

In the early 1960s, Rick Hall brought FAME Recording Studios to Muscle Shoals. Famous bands and singers, including Aretha Franklin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Osmonds, Mac Davis, and Duane Allman came to Muscle Shoals to record hit songs at FAME. In 1998, it was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage.

The 1990s brought major change to the city of Muscle Shoals. In 1992, Muscle Shoals became the last city in the state of Alabama to abandon the commission form of government for the mayor/council form of government. The city also made significant progress in public works with a new post office, a new city library, a comprehensive flood control plan, a state-of-the-art early warning weather siren system, and a new multimillion-dollar high school. In more recent years, the city has constructed a new fire station and city hall. With such careful city planning, it should have no trouble in maintaining the deserved title of "Metal Building Capital of the World".

List your home on the MLS in Muscle Shoals, Alabama

Copyright © Owners.com 2012. All Rights Reserved.
Privacy • Terms & Conditions • Site Map

Equal Housing Opportunity