Salem, Alabama
Encyclopedia
Salem is an unincorporated community
east-centrally located in Lee County
, Alabama
, United States
. It lies along U.S. Highway 280 between Opelika
and Phenix City
. It is part of the Auburn Metropolitan Area
.
in 1865, and then saw its charter become inactive in the following decades. Today, Salem is a small community of a few hundred.
By the late 20th century Salem was the location of Lee County's only covered bridge, the Salem-Shotwell Covered Bridge
. A symbol of the area, the bridge was destroyed by a fallen tree following a storm in 2005. It was rebuilt in 2007 at Opelika Municipal Park in nearby Opelika.
tornado
touched down in Salem, destroying Salem Chapel AME church, several homes, and part of Wacoochee Junior High School. It Also destroyed the Anglican, Church of the Resurrection, ACA Mission located right in the middle of down town Salem. The Church was completed in 2008 in the building that most people knew as the old McLain Museum. This building had been used for several other businesses over many years it stood and will be a great void in the Salem area. The tornado ran east-northeast across part of U.S. Highway 280
, which runs through the small community, before lifting up two miles to the east. There were no fatalities and no major injuries reported.
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
east-centrally located in Lee County
Lee County, Alabama
Lee County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is named in honor of Robert E. Lee, commanding general of the Confederate Army. As of 2010 the population was 140,247. It is part of the Auburn, Alabama Metropolitan Area. The county seat is Opelika, and the largest city is Auburn...
, 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...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It lies along U.S. Highway 280 between Opelika
Opelika, Alabama
Opelika is a city in and the county seat of Lee County in the east central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. According to 2010 Census, the population of Opelika was 26,477...
and Phenix City
Phenix City, Alabama
Phenix City is a city and the county seat in Russell County in the U.S. state of Alabama. Portions of Lee County are addressed as Phenix City, 36870 ZIP code, for the sole purpose that Smiths Station does not have full incorporation to annex the area...
. It is part of the Auburn Metropolitan Area
Auburn Metropolitan Area
The Auburn Metropolitan Area—officially the Auburn-Opelika, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area—is a metro area in east-central Alabama with a 2009 population of 135,883. It was the 19th fastest growing metro area in the United States between 1990 and 2000...
.
History
Salem was first settled in 1835, and grew rapidly for the next two decades. Salem incorporated in 1846 and quickly became one of the area's largest cities. However, a fire which engulfed the town in 1854 and the subsequent Civil War resulted in the collapse of the town's government, and rapid depopulation. Salem lost a bid to be the county seat of the newly formed Lee CountyLee County, Alabama
Lee County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. It is named in honor of Robert E. Lee, commanding general of the Confederate Army. As of 2010 the population was 140,247. It is part of the Auburn, Alabama Metropolitan Area. The county seat is Opelika, and the largest city is Auburn...
in 1865, and then saw its charter become inactive in the following decades. Today, Salem is a small community of a few hundred.
By the late 20th century Salem was the location of Lee County's only covered bridge, the Salem-Shotwell Covered Bridge
Salem-Shotwell Covered Bridge
The Salem-Shotwell Covered Bridge, also known as the Pea Ridge Covered Bridge, is a locally owned wooden covered bridge that spans Rocky Brook in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is located halfway down Park Road at Opelika Municipal Park, which is off North 5th Street in the city of Opelika...
. A symbol of the area, the bridge was destroyed by a fallen tree following a storm in 2005. It was rebuilt in 2007 at Opelika Municipal Park in nearby Opelika.
Tornado of 2009
On Saturday February 28, 2009, around 8:30 AM, an EF2Enhanced 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:...
tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
touched down in Salem, destroying Salem Chapel AME church, several homes, and part of Wacoochee Junior High School. It Also destroyed the Anglican, Church of the Resurrection, ACA Mission located right in the middle of down town Salem. The Church was completed in 2008 in the building that most people knew as the old McLain Museum. This building had been used for several other businesses over many years it stood and will be a great void in the Salem area. The tornado ran east-northeast across part of U.S. Highway 280
U.S. Route 280
U.S. Route 280 is a spur of U.S. Highway 80. It currently runs for 392 miles from Blichton, Georgia at U.S. Highway 80 to Birmingham, Alabama at I-20/I-59. For much of its route, U.S. 280 travels through rural areas and smaller cities in southern Georgia and east central Alabama. Once the...
, which runs through the small community, before lifting up two miles to the east. There were no fatalities and no major injuries reported.