On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Emerald Mountain is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #170 of 187 in Alabama. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Emerald Mountain’s overall grade.
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 Emerald Mountain’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 two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.2 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Emerald Mountain’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Emerald Mountain
BillingsleaOld BinghamPeter HillWares Quarter
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
The story so far
Emerald Mountain, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Emerald Mountain yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Emerald Mountain is a census-designated place in Elmore County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2020 census, Emerald Mountain had a population of 3,310. It is a planned community with an Architectural Review Board and a Homeowners Association of which membership is mandatory. Community facilities include a tennis center, equestrian center and golf club.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 2,561 to 3,310 (+29%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Emerald Mountain, 1878 to 1958
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Emerald Mountain. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1958Mount Meigs sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Emerald Mountain.
Famous people
Famous people close to Emerald Mountain
Nobody well known was born in Emerald Mountain itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Emerald Mountain is more historic than 3% of U.S. towns, #170 of 187 in Alabama. 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 Emerald Mountain?
0.0% of Emerald Mountain’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 3.2% for an Alabama town; the median home was built in 2005.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
