Enterprise, Alabama
Encyclopedia
Enterprise is a city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...

 in the southeastern part of Coffee
Coffee County, Alabama
Coffee County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of General John Coffee. As of 2010 the population was 49,948. Its county seats are Elba and Enterprise....

 and Dale
Dale County, Alabama
Dale County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of General Samuel Dale. As of the 2010 census the population was 50,251...

 Counties in the southeastern part of Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

 in the Southern
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...

 United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was estimated to be 25,909 in the year 2009.

Enterprise is famous for the Boll Weevil Monument
Boll Weevil Monument
The Boll Weevil Monument in downtown Enterprise, Alabama, United States is a prominent landmark and tribute erected by the citizens of Enterprise in 1919 to show their appreciation to an insect, the boll weevil, for its profound influence on the area's agriculture and economy...

, a large monument of a woman holding a Boll Weevil
Boll weevil
The boll weevil is a beetle measuring an average length of six millimeters, which feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central America, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s,...

, which is located in the town square. The city erected the statue because the destruction of the cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

 crop had led to agricultural diversity, starting with peanut
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...

s and more prosperity than had ever come from cotton alone. It is said to be the only statue to an insect pest in the world. Enterprise is also right outside of Fort Rucker
Fort Rucker
Fort Rucker is a U.S. Army post located mostly in Dale County, Alabama, United States. It was named for a Civil War officer, Confederate General Edmund Rucker. The post is the primary flight training base for Army Aviation and is home to the United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence and...

, an Army base which is the home of Army Aviation.

Also, Enterprise is home to the Enterprise branch of the Enterprise-Ozark Community College
Enterprise-Ozark Community College
Enterprise-Ozark Community College was created by the Alabama State Board of Education in February 2003 by reorganizing Enterprise State Junior College to include the Alabama Aviation Centers at Ozark and Mobile...

. The aviation branch is located in Ozark, Alabama
Ozark, Alabama
Ozark is a city in and the county seat of Dale County, Alabama, United States. In 1990 the city population was 12,922. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city was 15,119....

. Enterprise-Ozark is a Micropolitan Statistical Area
Enterprise-Ozark micropolitan area
The Enterprise–Ozark Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in southeastern Alabama, anchored by the cities of Enterprise and Ozark...

 that, combined with the Dothan Metropolitan Statistical Area
Dothan metropolitan area
The Dothan Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of three counties in southeastern Alabama, anchored by the city of Dothan...

, form the Dothan-Enterprise-Ozark Combined Statistical Area.

Founding to the Boll Weevil Monument

The founder of Enterprise, John Henry Carmichael, first settled there in 1881. Carmichael opened a store, which attracted more settlers to the area, and by the next year a post office was relocated from the settlement of Drake Eye to the north to Enterprise. In 1896, with 250 people having settled there, the city of Enterprise incorporated. Soon afterward, the Alabama Midland Railway
Alabama Midland Railway
The Alabama Midland Railway was incorporated in Alabama and Georgia in 1887, and built a line from Bainbridge, Georgia to a point near Montgomery, Alabama. The route was completed in 1890...

 came to Enterprise, bringing with it opportunities for commerce and growth. By 1906, ten years after the city incorporated, its population had grown to 3,750.

The way of life in Enterprise came under threat in 1915. An infestation of boll weevil
Boll weevil
The boll weevil is a beetle measuring an average length of six millimeters, which feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central America, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s,...

s had found its way into the region's cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

 crops, resulting in the destruction of most of the cotton in Coffee County. Facing economic ruin, the nearly bankrupt area farmers were forced to diversify, planting peanut
Peanut
The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...

s and other crops in an effort to lessen the damage and recoup some of the losses inflicted upon them by the invading insect.

Two years later, Coffee County found itself the leading producer of peanuts in the nation. Enterprise was able not only to stave off disaster, but found their economy renewed by a thriving new crop base. In appreciation, the people of Enterprise erected a monument in the center of downtown to what the monument describes as their "herald of prosperity", the boll weevil. The Boll Weevil Monument
Boll Weevil Monument
The Boll Weevil Monument in downtown Enterprise, Alabama, United States is a prominent landmark and tribute erected by the citizens of Enterprise in 1919 to show their appreciation to an insect, the boll weevil, for its profound influence on the area's agriculture and economy...

 was dedicated on December 11, 1919, standing as a reminder of how the city adjusted in the face of adversity, and the only monument to an agricultural pest in the world.

March 2007 tornado

In the early afternoon of Thursday, March 1, 2007, Enterprise was hit by a devastating tornado (rated EF4
Enhanced Fujita Scale
The Enhanced Fujita Scale rates the strength of tornadoes in the United States based on the damage they cause.Implemented in place of the Fujita scale introduced in 1971 by Ted Fujita, it began operational use on February 1, 2007. The scale has the same basic design as the original Fujita scale:...

) during the February–March 2007 Tornado Outbreak. The tornado caused nine deaths, injured over 121 others, and left severe damage in the city estimated at nearly $307,000,000, becoming the worst disaster in Enterprise history. The worst damage occurred at Enterprise High School
Enterprise High School (Alabama)
Enterprise High School is a 6A public high school at 500 East Watts Street in Enterprise, Coffee County, Alabama, USA, in the Enterprise City School District. The school houses grades 10-12.-Desegregation:...

, where eight students died after a hallway roof collapsed. A quarter mile (400 m) wide swath through the downtown area was devastated, with at least 370 houses damaged or destroyed. The National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...

 was called into the city, and a dusk-to-dawn curfew was implemented immediately after the disaster. President Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

, who arrived the morning of Saturday, March 3, declared the county a disaster area. An AmeriCorps team was sent to the city to help organize and participate in disaster relief.

As of June 2008 the Hillcrest Elementary School which was destroyed during the tornado was being rebuilt at the same site as the Enterprise High School
Enterprise High School (Alabama)
Enterprise High School is a 6A public high school at 500 East Watts Street in Enterprise, Coffee County, Alabama, USA, in the Enterprise City School District. The school houses grades 10-12.-Desegregation:...

. The high school was to be relocated to the west end of the Boll Weevil Circle. It was due to be rebuilt by the 2010-11 school year at a cost of over $80,000,000. It has been rebuilt and reopened on August 23, 2010.

Demographics

As of the U.S. Census in 2000, there were 21,178 people, 8,533 households, and 5,973 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 684.2 people per square mile (264.2/km2). There were 9,641 housing units at an average density of 311.5 per square mile (120.3/km2). The racial makeup
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

 of the city was 71.62% White
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...

, 22.95% Black or African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...

, 0.48% Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

, 1.60% Asian
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...

, 0.16% Pacific Islander
Pacific Islander American
Pacific Islander Americans, also known as Oceanian Americans, are residents of the United States with original ancestry from Oceania. They represent the smallest racial group counted in the United States census of 2000. They numbered 874,000 people or 0.3 percent of the United States population...

, 1.27% from other races, and 1.92% from two or more races
Multiracial
The terms multiracial and mixed-race describe people whose ancestries come from multiple races. Unlike the term biracial, which often is only used to refer to having parents or grandparents of two different races, the term multiracial may encompass biracial people but can also include people with...

. Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

 or Latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...

 of any race were 3.88% of the population.

There were 8,533 household
Household
The household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....

s out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.0% were non-families. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.

The median income for a household
Median household income
The median household income is commonly used to generate data about geographic areas and divides households into two equal segments with the first half of households earning less than the median household income and the other half earning more...

 in the city was $37,661, and the median income for a family was $45,510. Males had a median income of $37,131 versus $20,560 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the city was $20,493. About 10.7% of families and 13.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.0% of those under age 18 and 11.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Enterprise is served by Enterprise City Schools
Enterprise City Schools
The Enterprise City School District is a public school district based in the city of Enterprise, Alabama .-Junior High Schools:*Grades 8-9**Dauphin Junior High School**Enterprise Junior High School*Grade 7**Coppinville Junior High School...

. Enterprise is also home to Enterprise–Ozark Community College, (also known as Enterprise State Junior College). A two-year college, the Enterprise campus is home to the Boll Weevils.

Entertainment

Enterprise is home to the Southern Broadway Theater Company which is establised for the purpose of delivering stage performances to the southern region of the United States. Southern Broadway's season consists of several large scale productions on the stage of the Enterprise Performing Arts Center with dinner theaters in between in the historic Hildreth Brother's Building on Main Street. Visit the theater's website at http://www.southernbroadway.com for more details.

Music

A composition for symphonic band by Rob Grice "Force Majeure" (published in 2009 by Birch Island Music Press (ASCAP) is dedicated to Enterprise, Alabama High School "03-01-2007 - We Shall Never Forget". The piece was featured by The North Star Wind Symphony in concert on March 11, 2010, Brack May Ph.D. Conductor, at the Lone Star College-North Harris campus.
The song "Your Guardian Angel
Your Guardian Angel
"Your Guardian Angel" is a single by the band The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. There are two different versions - a mostly acoustic version found on their first major-label album, Don't You Fake It, and a completely acoustic version on their demo album. It is the third single released by the band, with...

" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus is an American rock band that formed in Middleburg, Florida.-Early years :Originating in Florida, childhood friends Ronnie Winter, Thomas Amason, and Duke Kitchens started the band while attending an AP music theory class, in 2003...

 is dedicated to the eight students who lost their lives in this incident. A concert was held for the students who had died in the tornado in which they played "Your Guardian Angel
Your Guardian Angel
"Your Guardian Angel" is a single by the band The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. There are two different versions - a mostly acoustic version found on their first major-label album, Don't You Fake It, and a completely acoustic version on their demo album. It is the third single released by the band, with...

"by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus is an American rock band that formed in Middleburg, Florida.-Early years :Originating in Florida, childhood friends Ronnie Winter, Thomas Amason, and Duke Kitchens started the band while attending an AP music theory class, in 2003...

 and many others. They also held the concert to raise money for the new highschool that was built.Young Rapper D-KO was born there.But he made Raspee Recordz in Dothan, Alabama
Dothan, Alabama
Dothan is a city located in the southeastern corner of the US state of Alabama, situated approximately west of the Georgia state line and north of Florida. It is the seat of Houston County, with portions extending into nearby Dale County and Henry County...


BamaJam

Enterprise was home of Verizon Wireless BamaJam Music Festival
Music festival
A music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...

 featuring over 30 acts on 4 stages in 3 days. Attendance saw as many as 100,000 each night. In 2008, headliners included Hank Williams Jr., ZZ Top
ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...

, Lynyrd Skynyrd
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band prominent in spreading Southern Rock during the 1970s.Originally formed as the "Noble Five" in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964, the band rose to worldwide recognition on the basis of its driving live performances and signature tune, Freebird...

, Trace Adkins
Trace Adkins
Tracy Darrell "Trace" Adkins is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1996 with the album Dreamin' Out Loud, released on Capitol Records Nashville. Since then, Adkins has released seven more studio albums and two Greatest Hits compilations...

, and in 2009, headliners included Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift is an American country pop singer-songwriter, musician and actress.In 2006, she released her debut single "Tim McGraw", then her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America...

, Blake Shelton
Blake Shelton
Blake Tollison Shelton is an American country music artist. In 2001, he made his debut with the single "Austin". Released as the lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" went on to spend five weeks at Number One on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts...

, Charlie Daniels
Charlie Daniels
Charles Edward "Charlie" Daniels is an American musician known for his contributions to country and southern rock music. He is known primarily for his number one country hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and multiple other songs he has performed and written. Daniels has been active as a singer...

, Alan Jackson
Alan Jackson
Alan Eugene Jackson is an American country music singer, known for blending traditional honky tonk and mainstream country sounds and penning many of his own hits. He has recorded 13 studio albums, 3 Greatest Hits albums, 2 Holiday albums, 1 Gospel album and several compilations, all on the Arista...

, Brooks and Dunn, The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes
The Black Crowes are an American rock band formed in 1989. Their discography includes nine studio albums, four live albums and several charting singles. The band was signed to Def American Recordings in 1989 by producer George Drakoulias and released their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, the...

, Kid Rock
Kid Rock
Robert James "Bob" Ritchie , known by his stage name Kid Rock, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and rapper with five Grammy Awards nominations...

 and many many more.

Notable Residents and Natives

  • Jamey Johnson
    Jamey Johnson
    Jamey Johnson is an American Grammy Award nominated country music artist. Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single "The Dollar," the title track to his 2006 album The Dollar...

     was born in Enterprise.
  • Mark Wilkerson
    Mark Wilkerson
    Mark Wilkerson is the lead singer and guitarist for rock band Course of Nature.Wilkerson co-wrote the song "It's Not Over" which was released as a single and as the opening track on the eponymous album by Daughtry...

    , lead singer of Course Of Nature and husband of Melissa Joan Hart
    Melissa Joan Hart
    Melissa Joan Catherine Hart is an American actress, writer, television director, television producer, singer and businesswoman...

    .
  • Michael McDowell
    Michael McDowell (author)
    Michael McEachern McDowell was an American novelist and screenwriter. He received a B.A. and an M.A. from Harvard College and a Ph.D in English from Brandeis University in 1978...

    , screenwriter
  • George Jones
    George Jones
    George Glenn Jones is an American country music singer known for his long list of hit records, his distinctive voice and phrasing, and his marriage to Tammy Wynette....

    , Country Music Legend, widely known as "The Possum," owns a residence in Enterprise.
  • Aud Tuten
    Aud Tuten
    Audley Kendrick Tuten was a professional ice hockey player who played 39 games in the National Hockey League. Born in Enterprise, Alabama, he played for the Chicago Black Hawks.- External links :*...

    , former NHL player with the Chicago Black Hawks (1941–43)
  • Ben Paschal
    Ben Paschal
    Benjamin Edwin "Ben" Paschal was an American baseball outfielder who played eight seasons in Major League Baseball from 1915 to 1929, mostly for the New York Yankees...

    , reserve outfielder for the 1927 Yankees
  • Cedric Smith, former NFL running back

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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