History · Cottonwood

Cottonwood’s post office opened in 1873, and 13% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 32% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1969 on and the census since 1910.

1873first post office

0on the National Register

13%homes built before 1940

2famous people

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Quick answers

How Cottonwood began

When was Cottonwood founded?

1873

The Cottonwood post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Sealy Springs (1937), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 352 in 19102020 census: 1,048153 years

How historic is Cottonwood?

More historic than 32% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓

Founding year: the first Cottonwood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

History grade

What drives Cottonwood’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cottonwood is more historic than 32% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cottonwood’s overall grade.

Founding era1873, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC⁺Homes built before 194012.6% of homes (±7.1) · typical AL town 3.2% · U.S. 8.4%B⁻National RegisterNo listings counted · typical AL town 2.7 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C⁻

All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 32%

NewerOlder

Alabama towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Alabama town has 2.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Cottonwood’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (26% of Alabama towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.1 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Cottonwood’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Cottonwood are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.

★ What stands out · Help out

Start Cottonwood’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Cottonwood’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

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The story so far

Cottonwood, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Cottonwood yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Cottonwood is a town in Houston County, Alabama, United States. One source said the town incorporated in 1901, although the 1910 U.S. census stated 1903. It is part of the Dothan, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, Cottonwood had a population of 1,048. The area was heavily damaged by an EF2 tornado on January 9, 2024. One person was killed and five others were injured.

Its first post office opened in 1873. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 1,289 to 1,048 (-19%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Cottonwood, 1873 to 1969

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

19th century
1873Post officeThe Cottonwood post office opens
20th century
1935Born hereEmmett Ripley Cox is born here
1937Post officeThe Sealy Springs post office opens
1957Post officeThe Sealy Springs post office closes
1961Born herePete Coachman is born here
1969On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey

By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.

Add from your album

On the map

Cottonwood on the map, 1969 to 1980

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Cottonwood. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

1969Cottonwood sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Cottonwood.

People over time

Cottonwood, census by census

Between 293 and 1,385 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Cottonwood’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Cottonwood

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →

Emmett Ripley CoxUnited States federal judge · b. 1935

Pete CoachmanAmerican baseball player · b. 1961

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and old corners

Cottonwood’s post office has been open since 1873. Another post office, Sealy Springs, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Cottonwood

1873–today

Sealy Springs

1937–1957

18701950today

Hamlets and corners on the map

Sealy Springs

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Cottonwood’s history

What year was Cottonwood founded?

The Cottonwood post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Cottonwood rank for history?

Cottonwood is more historic than 32% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Cottonwood?

13% of Cottonwood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.1 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 1973.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →

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Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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