Gardendale

History

A large farm settlement near the area today known as Gardendale was settled around 1825. Some years later, other settlers began to move into the community commonly known as Jugtown, a name given to the area based on the presence of a large jug and churn factory that operated in the area. Some years later, Hettie Thomason Cargo, a school teacher, would lead a campaign to change the name of the community after being embarrassed to admit she was from "Jugtown" at a regional teachers' meeting. In 1906, the name Gardendale was selected, and in 1955, the City of Gardendale was officially incorporated. Today, with more than 16,000 residents (estimated), the city of Gardendale has grown to include more than 400 businesses, 4 schools, and 24 churches.

In 1996, the Olympic torch run passed through the city during the weeks leading up to the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta. Before Interstate 65 was constructed, the main route between Nashville, Tennessee and Birmingham, Alabama was U.S. Route 31. Prior to being built as a four-lane road, U.S. 31 was a twisting two-lane road that is still largely visible today. From the north end of Gardendale, it is now Snow Rogers Road, North Road, Moncrief Road, and then Main Street southward through the city to the Fultondale city limit where it becomes Stouts Road. In the fall of 2008, new signs were placed along the original route of Stouts Road through Gardendale denoting its historical significance as a stagecoach route between Tennessee and Birmingham during the 19th century. The first traffic signals in the city were located along U.S. 31 at Tarrant Road, Fieldstown Road, and Moncrief Road as well as Tarrant Road at Pineywood Road. A new signal at the intersection of Fieldstown Road and Main Street near city hall replaced a blinking signal shortly thereafter. Fieldstown Road was a narrow two lane road from U.S. 31 westward until Interstate 65 was built and then Fieldstown Road was re-routed onto the new road in the mid-1980s. An abundance of traffic signals have been erected in the city since those early days. In approximately 1970, the city installed street lights along U.S. 31 from the Fultondale city limits northward to the Moncrief Road intersection. The technology at that time was for blue vapor lights. Today, nearly 40 years later those same blue vapor lights still exist with some being replaced with the more modern bulbs near major intersections. Since 1980, Gardendale has annexed considerable amounts of land on the north, east, and west sides. Much of the eastern area is uninhabited. The western annexation is centered along Fieldstown Road. Most of the newest residential development has been in this area and along Shady Grove Road south of Fieldstown Road. The northern annexation has centered along US 31 and extends nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) farther north than 1980. The city has a working historical society, established January 23, 2006, that is working to record the history of the Gardendale area. They have a museum that is open to the public on Thursdays and Saturdays. It contains a variety of photographs, documents, and other historical memorabilia from Gardendale.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Gardendale had a population of 16,044. The median age was 42.2 years. 21.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 86.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 82.0 males age 18 and over.

92.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 7.2% lived in rural areas.

There were 6,508 households in Gardendale, including 3,790 families. Of these, 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.3% were married-couple households, 13.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 31.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 6,854 housing units, of which 5.0% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.9%.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 13,893 people, 5,670 households, and 3,979 families residing in the city. The population density was 746.1 inhabitants per square mile (288.1/km2). There were 6,040 housing units at an average density of 337.4 per square mile (130.3/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 88.4% White, 8.6% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.2% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. 1.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,670 households, out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.1% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.92.