Citronelle, Alabama

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{More citations needed|date=October 2023}}
{{short description|City in the United States}}
{{distinguish|Citronella (disambiguation){{!}}Citronella}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Citronelle, Alabama
|settlement_type          = [[City]]
|nickname                 = "The Best Kept Secret in Southern Alabama"
|image_skyline            = 
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = 
|image_flag               = Flag of Citronelle, Alabama.png
|image_seal               = Seal of Citronelle, Alabama.png
|image_map                = File:Mobile County Alabama Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Citronelle Highlighted 0115064.svg
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location in Mobile County, Alabama
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Alabama|County]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_name1        = [[Alabama]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Mobile County, Alabama|Mobile]]
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = Mayor
|leader_name              = Jason Stringer
|established_date         = 
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2021">{{cite web|title=2021 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2021_Gazetteer/2021_gaz_place_01.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=April 19, 2022}}</ref>
|area_total_km2           = 67.65
|area_total_sq_mi         = 26.12
|area_land_km2            = 66.94
|area_land_sq_mi          = 25.84
|area_water_km2           = 0.71
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.28
|elevation_ft             = 312
|elevation_m              = 95
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = <ref name="Census 2020">{{Cite web| url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=&g=1600000US0115064&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P1| title=Citronelle city, Alabama: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171)| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau| access-date=April 19, 2022}}</ref>
|population_total         = 3946
|population_metro         = 
|population_density_km2   = 58.95
|population_density_sq_mi = 152.68
|timezone                 = [[Central Time Zone (North America)|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = -6
|coordinates              = {{coord|31|5|33|N|88|14|39|W|display=inline,title}}
|timezone_DST             = CDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -5
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 36522
|area_code                = [[Area code 251|251]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 01-15064
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 0116155
|footnotes                = 
|website                  = {{URL|www.cityofcitronelle.com}}
|pop_est_as_of = 
|pop_est_footnotes = 
|population_est = 
|unit_pref = Imperial
}}
'''Citronelle''' is a city on the northern border of [[Mobile County, Alabama|Mobile County]], [[Alabama]], United States. At the [[2020 United States Census|2020 census]], the population was 3,946.<ref name="Census 2020"/> It is included in the Mobile [[metropolitan statistical area]] and is about {{convert|34|mi}} north of [[Mobile, Alabama|Mobile]].

==History==
The area was inhabited by [[indigenous peoples of the Americas|indigenous peoples]] for thousands of years. By the time of European contact, the historic [[Choctaw]] and [[Muscogee|Creek]] people hunted in the area.

The first known European explorers of this area were French in the 18th century. They learned that the land had healing herbs and mineral springs. The area was settled in 1811 and established as a jurisdiction (incorporated) in 1892. The name "Citronelle" is French and is derived from the [[Cymbopogon|citronella plant]]. In the late 19th century, the town became a popular resort destination because of the climate, herbs, and healing waters. Many hotels were built to accommodate the surge of visitors.

On May 4, 1865, one of the last significant [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] armies was surrendered by Lieutenant General [[Richard Taylor (Confederate general)|Richard Taylor]] under the "Surrender Oak". This was the third in the series of five major surrenders of armies that ended the war. The two previous surrenders occurred at [[Appomattox Court House National Historical Park|Appomattox Court House]], Virginia, between Confederate General [[Robert E. Lee]] and US General [[Ulysses S. Grant]]; and the second and largest at [[Bennett Place]] near [[Durham, North Carolina]] between US General [[William T. Sherman]] and Confederate General [[Joseph E. Johnston]].

A living history/reenactment of the surrender occurs each year in Citronelle. The historic "Surrender Oak" no longer stands, as it was destroyed by a hurricane in 1902.

In 1955, oil was discovered in the area. Today Citronelle is known as the oil capital of Alabama.<!-- ! Give some stats or other information; what is an annual yield? Why is the population still so small if this is the oil capital? --><ref>[http://citronellechamber.com/chamber_of_commerce/history.htm Citronelle: History], Citronelle Chamber of Commerce  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020603172538/http://citronellechamber.com/chamber_of_commerce/history.htm |date=June 3, 2002 }}</ref>

==Geology==
Citronelle developed on what is known as the Citronelle Dome, a salt dome formation that is still rising, as shown by the radial drainage of streams away from the center. In 1955 oil was discovered in this geologic structure at a greater depth than had previously been considered as feasible. The Citronelle Dome was developed as among the first of many "deep" oil fields. The discovery well yielded oil from the [[Glen Rose Formation]] at a depth of {{convert|10879|ft}}.<ref>{{cite book| last1=Eaves| first1=Everett| editor1-last=Braunstein| editor1-first=Jules| title=Citronelle Oil Field, Mobile County, Alabama, in North American Oil and Gas Fields| date=1976| publisher=American Association of Petroleum Geologists| location=Tulsa| isbn=0891813004| pages=259–275}}</ref>

"Citronelle Dome is a giant salt-cored [[anticline]] in the eastern [[Mississippi]] Interior Salt Basin of southwest Alabama. The [[elliptic dome|dome]] forms an elliptical structural closure containing multiple opportunities for [[enhanced oil recovery]] (EOR) and saline reservoir [[Carbon sequestration|CO2 sequestration]]. Citronelle Oil Field, located on the crest of the dome, has produced more than {{convert|169|e6oilbbl|e6m3|abbr=off|lk=on|sigfig=2}} of 42-46° [[American Petroleum Institute]] (API) gravity oil from the Lower Cretaceous Donovan Sand."<ref>[http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2009SE/finalprogram/abstract_154650.htm  HILLS, Denise J.1; KOPASKA-MERKEL, David C.1; PASHIN, Jack2; WALSH, Peter M.3; and ESPOSITO, Richard A.4; GEOLOGIC CHARACTERIZATION SUPPORTING ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY PILOT, CITRONELLE OIL FIELD, SOUTHWEST ALABAMA], Geological Society of America, paper presented March 12–13, 2009, Southeastern Section Conference, accessed November 3, 2009</ref><!-- This paragraph needs to be paraphrased and content combined with that in the preceding paragraph - too much duplication here -->

==Geography==
Citronelle is located in northern Mobile County at {{Coord|31.092653|-88.244315|type:city_region:US|format=dms|display=inline}}.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref> The northern border of the city is at the [[Washington County, Alabama|Washington County]] line. [[U.S. Route 45 in Alabama|U.S. Route 45]] runs from north to south through the city, to the west of the downtown area. Via US 45, downtown Mobile is {{convert|34|mi}} to the south, and [[State Line, Mississippi]] is {{convert|30|mi}} to the northwest.

According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the city of Citronelle has a total area of {{convert|26.1|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|25.8|sqmi|km2}} are land and {{convert|0.3|sqmi|km2}}, or 1.06%, are water.<ref name="CenPopGazetteer2021"/>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1850= 250
|1880= 169
|1900= 696
|1910= 935
|1920= 932
|1930= 1082
|1940= 1057
|1950= 1350
|1960= 1918
|1970= 1935
|1980= 2841
|1990= 3671
|2000= 3659
|2010= 3905
|2020= 3946
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=U.S. Decennial Census|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 6, 2013}}</ref><br />2013 Estimate<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/popest/data/cities/totals/2013/SUB-EST2013-3.html|title=Annual Estimates of the Resident Population: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2013|access-date=June 3, 2014}}</ref>
}}

===2020 census===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Citronelle racial composition<ref>{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US0115064&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=December 14, 2021|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!Race
!Num.
!Perc.
|-
|[[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
|2,592
|65.69%
|-
|[[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
|782
|19.82%
|-
|[[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
|232
|5.88%
|-
|[[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]
|13
|0.33%
|-
|[[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]]
|1
|0.03%
|-
|[[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
|260
|6.59%
|-
|[[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
|66
|1.67%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 3,946 people, 1,412 households, and 1,021 families residing in the city.

===2010 census===
As of 2010 Citronelle had a population of 3,905.  The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 70.7% white, 20.2% black or African American, 4.9% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 1.5% from some other race, 2.2% reporting two or more races and 2.6% Hispanic or Latino from any race.<ref>2010 population by place by race or Hispanic and Latino origin for Alabama report from the US Census</ref>

===2000 census===
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref> of 2000, there were 3,659 people, 1,318 households, and 1,009 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|149.9|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 1,441 housing units at an average density of {{convert|59.0|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 76.96% [[Race (United States Census)|White]], 18.61% [[Race (United States Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 2.76% [[Race (United States Census)|Native American]], 0.14% [[Race (United States Census)|Asian]], 0.03% [[Race (United States Census)|Pacific Islander]], 0.25% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 1.26% from two or more races. 0.82% of the population were [[Race (United States Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Race (United States Census)|Latino]] of any race.

There were 1,318 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.2% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.4% were non-families. 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.19.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.3% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $31,739, and the median income for a family was $39,922. Males had a median income of $32,200 versus $19,702 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city was $16,455. About 12.0% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 19.1% of those age 65 or over.

==Education==
The city is served by the [[Mobile County Public School System]] and has the following public schools:<ref>"[https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st01_al/place/p0115064_citronelle/DC10BLK_P0115064_000.pdf 2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP (INDEX): Citronelle city, AL]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on November 28, 2018. Pages: [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st01_al/place/p0115064_citronelle/DC10BLK_P0115064_001.pdf 1], [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st01_al/place/p0115064_citronelle/DC10BLK_P0115064_002.pdf 2], [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st01_al/place/p0115064_citronelle/DC10BLK_P0115064_003.pdf 3], [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st01_al/place/p0115064_citronelle/DC10BLK_P0115064_004.pdf 4], and [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st01_al/place/p0115064_citronelle/DC10BLK_P0115064_005.pdf 5].</ref> McDavid-Jones Elementary School (K-5),<ref>"[http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MCPSS/MobileCounty/Departments/DocumentsCategories/Documents/McDavid-Jone%20Elementary.pdf McDavid-Jones]{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}." [[Mobile County Public School System]]. Retrieved on November 27, 2018.</ref> Lott Middle School (6-8),<ref>"[http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MCPSS/MobileCounty/Departments/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Lott%20Middle.pdf Lott Middle]{{Dead link|date=December 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}." [[Mobile County Public School System]]. Retrieved on November 27, 2018.</ref> and [[Citronelle High School]] (9-12).<ref>"[http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MCPSS/MobileCounty/Departments/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Citronelle%20High%20School.pdf Citronelle High School Attendance Zone] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210725055213/http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MCPSS/MobileCounty/Departments/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Citronelle%20High%20School.pdf |date=2021-07-25 }}." [[Mobile County Public School System]]. Retrieved on November 27, 2018.</ref>

==Notable people==
* [[Bama Rowell]], former professional baseball player, was born and raised here. Living in Citronelle throughout his adult life, he played for the [[Boston Braves (baseball)|Boston Braves]] and the [[Philadelphia Phillies]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mobilebaymag.com/Mobile-Bay/April-2016/Citronelles-Wonderboy|title=Citronelle's Wonderboy|work=Mobile Bay Magazine|date=April 2016|access-date=October 3, 2019}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Alabama}}
*[[2016 Citronelle homicides]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|cityofcitronelle.com}}
*[http://www.citronellehps.org/ Citronelle Historical Preservation Society]

{{Mobile County, Alabama}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:1811 establishments in Mississippi Territory]]
[[Category:Cities in Alabama]]
[[Category:Cities in Mobile County, Alabama]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1811]]