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Heflin, Alabama

17 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1900 and the latest in 2001. It stands in the Heflin census division. It lies in ZIP code area 36264. It stands on Rocky Branch. The Survey maps it on the Heflin quadrangle. 3,431 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 961 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Heflin within Cleburne County

On record in Heflin

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 3 records

Population over time

14 figures

Heflin grew from 383 to 3,431 between 1890 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.

YearPeople Change
1890383
1900460+77 (+20%)
1910839+379 (+82%)
19201,026+187 (+22%)
19301,232+206 (+20%)
19401,684+452 (+37%)
19501,982+298 (+18%)
19602,400+418 (+21%)
19702,872+472 (+20%)
19803,014+142 (+5%)
19902,906-108 (-4%)
20003,002+96 (+3%)
20103,480+478 (+16%)
20203,431-49 (-1%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 17 printed sheets

Matched 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.

Fires near this place

220 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 220 fires within 5 miles of Heflin between 1992 and 2020, burning about 3,606 acres in total. 8 started naturally. 104 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/incendiarism104
Debris and open burning61
Missing data/not specified/undetermined14
Equipment and vehicle use12
Railroad operations and maintenance11
Natural8
Recreation and ceremony7
Misuse of fire by a minor2
Smoking1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
8 September 2016Arson/incendiarism25 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20160908-17
28 September 2000Arson/incendiarismunder an acreNational Forests in AlabamaTRAILHEAD
28 September 1993Arson/incendiarismunder an acreNational Forests in Alabamanot named
26 September 2016Arson/incendiarism2.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20160926-5
26 September 1999Arson/incendiarismunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
26 September 1999Arson/incendiarism5.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
24 September 2005Arson/incendiarism5.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
24 September 1999Arson/incendiarism2.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Cleburne County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 12 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 12 workings within 5 miles of Heflin: 6 past producers, 3 unknowns, 1 prospect, 1 plant. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Iron, Mica, Gold, Manganese. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Anna Howe Mine Crutchfield/ValdorGoldPast ProducerVein
Henderson DepositManganesePast Producer1953
Heflin MillMicaPlant
Pat Ayers No. 5 ProspectMicaProspect
Schefner No. 2 MineMicaPast Producer
Iron City MinesIronPast ProducerGoethite, Magnetite
Pentegrass Or Dunn BedsIronPast ProducerResidual
UnnamedIronUnknown
UnnamedIronUnknown
UnnamedIronUnknown

Every working recorded in Cleburne County

Storms near this place

37 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Heflin in 37 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 18 thunderstorm wind, 11 hail, 3 flash flood, 2 tornado. The reports record 1 injury. 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
May 2003Flash FloodHeflin1 hurt, $8,000Cleburne County Emergency Medical Service personnel along with volunteer firemen from Hollis, Heflin, and Micaville and an Alabama State Trooper worked to rescue an unidentified male after the car he attempted to drive trough floodwaters was washed into a ditch and almost submerged. The man attempted to drive through floodwaters from the Tallapoosa River covering a portion of CR 36 when the swift current pushed the car into a ditch where it caught on some trees.
May 2008Tornado (EF1)Heflin$1,750,000The tornado touched down along the Talladega Scenic Drive just south of US Highway 78. It then moved along a slightly curved path until it crossed CR-79, and then tracked almost due east as it produced its most concentrated damage near SR-9. The tornado lifted near the end of Brockford Road in the vicinity of Shadow Lane, on the east side of the city of Heflin. Hundreds of trees were either snapped off or uprooted along the path. Eight homes were destroyed, and more than 40 others received significant damage.
March 1994HailHeflin$500,000Hail slightly larger than golf ball-size was reported at Heflin. A number of trees were downed by wind. Damage in Heflin began on U.S. Highway 78 West and crossed through town.
February 2008Thunderstorm WindHeflin$200,000Numerous trees and power lines were blown down across the northern portion of the county. At least 10 buildings had roof damage due to downed trees, and at least 3 buildings had roofs completely blown off. Several mobile homes in a mobile home park suffered varying degrees of damage to underpinning, roofs, and structure.
May 2003LightningHeflin$48,000Lightning was believed responsible for fires at three houses in and east of Heflin.
September 1996Tornado (F0)Heflin$45,000no account filed
July 2005Thunderstorm WindHeflin$37,000A large interstate light pole fell on a traveling vehicle on the entrance ramp to Interstate 20 Exit 199. The occupants of the vehicle were uninjured. Several trees and one billboard were blown down in the Heflin area.
June 2005Thunderstorm WindHeflin$19,000Numerous trees and power lines were blown down south of Heflin along the Tallapoosa River. Several trees fell onto State Highway 9, County Road 12, County Road 36 and in the Beason Mill community.
November 2004Thunderstorm WindHeflin$17,000One home sustained moderate wind damage in the Abernathy Community near Exit 210 on Interstate 20.
March 2005Thunderstorm WindHeflin$14,000Several power lines were blown down in the city of Heflin.
May 1998HailHeflin$10,000Golf ball size hail was reported in Heflin.
July 2005Flash FloodHeflin$7,000County Road 42 and County Road 43 were flooded and temporarily closed.
November 2010Thunderstorm WindHeflin$4,000Trees and a power pole were blown down along Bells Mill Road, near Cherokee County High School.
November 2010Thunderstorm WindHeflin$3,000Several trees were blown down near the intersection of US-78 and AL-281, west of Heflin.
March 2000Thunderstorm WindHeflin$3,000Trees and power lines were knocked down in Heflin.
February 2011Thunderstorm WindHeflin$2,000Several trees were blown down along Perryman Bridge Rd and Evans Bridge Rd, between Heflin and Interstate 20.
August 2000Thunderstorm WindHeflin$2,000Trees were blown down and dime size hail was reported in Heflin.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindHeflin$1,000A tree was blown down, and some metal roofing was damaged, in Heflin.
April 2005HailHeflin$1,000Nickel size hail was reported near Heflin.
March 2026Thunderstorm WindHeflin-Trees were downed in numerous locations around Heflin.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindHeflin-A couple trees were downed in the Heflin area.
November 2025Thunderstorm WindHeflin-Social media reports and photographs of roofing blown off a small office building in Heflin and of several trees and limbs downed around the area.
August 2023Thunderstorm WindHeflin-Trees uprooted along County Road 66 and Ross Street in Heflin.
August 2023Thunderstorm WindHeflin-Several trees uprooted across Heflin.
May 2021HailHeflin-Half dollar size hail reported in Heflin.
June 2015Thunderstorm WindHeflin-Several trees uprooted and a power line downed on Oxford Street in the city of Heflin.
January 2013Flash FloodHeflin-At least six inches of water had flooded US Highway 78 at Alabama Highway 9.
May 2013Heavy RainHeflin-Approximately two inches of rainfall across the area led to water covering portions of U.S. Highway 78 northeast of Heflin.
April 2011Thunderstorm WindHeflin-Trees were blown down in and around Heflin.
February 2005HailHeflin-Quarter size hail was reported near Heflin.
May 2000Funnel CloudHeflin-A rotating thunderstorm produced a funnel cloud just southwest of Heflin.
June 1999HailHeflin-One inch diameter hail was reported by a pilot about 7 miles northeast of Heflin.
April 1998HailHeflin-Dime size hail was reported in Heflin.
May 1998HailHeflin-Dime size hail was reported in Hollis Crossroads.
March 2018HailHeflin-no account filed
June 2008HailHeflin-no account filed
June 2006HailHeflin-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Cleburne County

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 PlaceDistance Sheets
Cleburne2.2 miles19
Belltown3.3 miles17
Gold Hill5.3 miles17
Edwardsville5.8 miles17
Arbacoochee (historical)6.3 miles17
Bell Mills6.4 miles14
Five Points6.7 miles17
Ai7.4 miles15

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 HeflinAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q79671The 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 159746. 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.