Alabaster, Alabama
19 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1890 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Alabaster-Helena census division. It lies in ZIP code area 35007. The Survey maps it on the Alabaster quadrangle. 33,284 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 502 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresAlabaster grew from 30,352 to 33,284 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 30,352 | |
| 2020 | 33,284 | +2,932 (+10%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
9 surveys from 19 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1890 USGS Bessemer quadrangle1:125000
- 1892 USGS Bessemer quadrangle1:125000, 2 printings
- 1910 USGS Montevallo quadrangle1:62500, 4 printings
- 1953 USGS Birmingham quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1956 USGS Birmingham quadrangle1:250000
- 1957 USGS Birmingham quadrangle1:250000
- 1975 USGS Montevallo NE quadrangle1:24000
- 1980 USGS Alabaster quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1984 USGS Birmingham South quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
126 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 126 fires within 5 miles of Alabaster between 1994 and 2020, burning about 1,459 acres in total. 3 started naturally. 42 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Arson/incendiarism | 42 |
| Debris and open burning | 37 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 13 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 12 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 10 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 4 |
| Smoking | 3 |
| Natural | 3 |
| Other causes | 1 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 September 1995 | Debris and open burning | 2.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 7 September 1995 | Debris and open burning | 60 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 6 September 1997 | Debris and open burning | 3.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 6 September 1995 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 5 September 2007 | Arson/incendiarism | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 24 September 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 20 September 1999 | Arson/incendiarism | 3.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
| 17 September 1998 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Alabama Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 20 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 20 workings within 5 miles of Alabaster: 7 past producers, 6 producers, 4 unknowns, 3 prospects. 6 still produce. What was taken out: Iron, Barium-Barite, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Calcium. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabaster Lime Plant | Calcium | Past Producer | ||
| Landmark Quarry & Lime Mill | Calcium | Producer | ||
| Longview Mine & Lime Plant | Calcium | Producer | ||
| Helena Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Scotrock Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Verlie Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Verlie Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| A M Leonard Prospect | Barium-Barite | Prospect | ||
| C B Naish Mine | Barium-Barite | Past Producer | ||
| C V Moore Prospect | Barium-Barite | Unknown |
Storms near this place
35 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Alabaster in 35 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 17 hail, 15 thunderstorm wind, 2 flash flood, 1 lightning. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2005 | Lightning | Alabaster | $90,000 | no account filed |
| May 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $20,000 | no account filed |
| August 1996 | Hail | Alabaster | $15,000 | no account filed |
| June 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $13,000 | Several trees were blown down in the southwest part of Shelby County. Trees and street signs were blown down along CR 17 and along SR 119 in Alabaster. A few trees were blown down along CR 10 in Montevallo and temporarily blocked the roadway. |
| May 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $10,000 | A few trees were blown down and a service station received some minor roof damage on SR 119. |
| July 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $10,000 | no account filed |
| July 1996 | Hail | Alabaster | $8,000 | no account filed |
| August 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $6,000 | Numerous trees and power lines were down across the city of Alabaster. |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $5,000 | Several trees and power lines were knocked down in Alabaster and in Montevallo. |
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $5,000 | no account filed |
| January 1997 | Hail | Alabaster | $5,000 | no account filed |
| August 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $5,000 | no account filed |
| February 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $2,000 | Trees were blown down on CR 17 between CR 44 and CR 58. |
| July 1997 | Hail | Alabaster | $2,000 | no account filed |
| July 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $2,000 | no account filed |
| April 2005 | Hail | Alabaster | $1,000 | Nickel size hail fell in Alabaster. |
| March 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $500 | A tree was downed on Fulton Springs Rd. |
| May 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $500 | Trees were blown down at 1st Street South and Old Highway 31, in Alabaster. |
| January 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | $500 | A single tree was blown down on US-31, near the Instructional Service Center. |
| March 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | - | Several trees uprooted in the city of Alabaster. |
| May 2006 | Flash Flood | Alabaster | - | Flash flooding was reported on Highway 17, in the Maylene Community. |
| August 2006 | Flash Flood | Alabaster | - | CR-17, near the intersection of CR-44, was flooded and temporarily closed. |
| April 2004 | Hail | Alabaster | - | Penny size hail was observed from Alabaster to Calera. The hail fell at the National Weather Service Office located at the Shelby County Airport for about 7 minutes. The hail briefly covered the sidewalks. |
| May 2004 | Hail | Alabaster | - | Penny size hail was observed in Alabaster. Numerous branches were also snapped off during the storm. |
| June 2000 | Hail | Alabaster | - | Dime size hail was reported in the Alabaster area and in some locations it covered the ground. |
| July 1998 | Hail | Alabaster | - | Dime size hail was reported in Alabaster. |
| June 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Alabaster | - | Hail from one-half to three-quarters of an inch fell at Helena and Alabaster in west-central Shelby County. Nickel-size hail fell at Siluria immediately east of Alabaster. Four large trees up to two feet in diameter were downed in the Scottsdale Subdivision of Alabaster. Wind gusted to 54 mph at the National Weather Service Forecast Office at the Shelby County airport on the south side of Alabaster. |
| April 1994 | Hail | Alabaster | - | Storm spotters reported three-quarter inch hail in Alabaster. |
| June 1994 | Hail | Alabaster | - | Quarter-size hail was observed at the National Weather Service Forecast Office at the Shelby County Airport on the south side of Alabaster. |
| June 2009 | Hail | Alabaster | - | no account filed |
| May 2008 | Hail | Alabaster | - | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Alabaster | - | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Alabaster | - | no account filed |
| April 2006 | Hail | Alabaster | - | no account filed |
| May 2001 | Hail | Alabaster | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scottrock | 0.6 miles | 27 | |
| Siluria | 1.1 miles | 19 | |
| Valley Forge | 1.2 miles | 27 | |
| Navajo Hills | 1.3 miles | 27 | |
| Hardy | 1.4 miles | 27 | |
| Kingwood | 1.4 miles | 27 | |
| Navajo Pines | 1.4 miles | 27 | |
| Port South | 1.6 miles | 27 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Alabaster | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q79936 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 112965. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.








