BlockBefore

Shorter, Alabama

9 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1981. It stands in the Shorter-Hardaway census division. It lies in ZIP code area 36075. The Survey maps it on the Shorter quadrangle. 385 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 367 feet above sea level.

Shorter within Macon County

Population over time

2 figures

Shorter fell from 474 to 385 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.

YearPeople Change
2010474
2020385-89 (-19%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 9 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

175 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 175 fires within 5 miles of Shorter between 1994 and 2020, burning about 2,704 acres in total. None started naturally. 38 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
Debris and open burning56
Arson/incendiarism38
Missing data/not specified/undetermined37
Smoking22
Recreation and ceremony10
Equipment and vehicle use7
Railroad operations and maintenance3
Other causes1
Misuse of fire by a minor1

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
9 September 2010Arson/incendiarism3.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
30 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined6.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20160930-1
30 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undetermined3.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20160930-13
29 September 2003Debris and open burning5.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
25 September 2010Equipment and vehicle use2.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
25 September 2004Smokingunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
19 September 2008Equipment and vehicle use5.0 acresAlabama Forestry CommissionCO ROAD 7, AL
18 September 2010Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Macon County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 10 workings within 5 miles of Shorter: 8 producers, 1 unknown, 1 past producer. 8 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Titanium, Metal, Zirconium, Kyanite, REE. 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
Shorter PitsSand and Gravel, Construction, Titanium, Metal, Zirconium, Kyanite, REEProducerPlacer
B. & W. Shorter MineSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Calloway PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Milstead PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Milstead QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducerUnconsolidated Sediments
Mitylene QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducerUnconsolidated Sediments
Shorter MineSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Shorter QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducerUnconsolidated Sediments
Shorters Station QuarrySand and Gravel, ConstructionProducerUnconsolidated Sediments
Ward PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Macon County

Storms near this place

25 since 1996

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Shorter in 25 storm reports between 1996 and 2024: 9 thunderstorm wind, 9 hail, 5 tornado, 1 lightning. 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
March 1996Thunderstorm WindShorter1 hurt, $50,000no account filed
May 2009Flash FloodShorter$100,000Flash flooding caused numerous roads to become impassable. High water was reported on several city and county roads, in and around the city of Tuskegee.
April 2003HailShorter$50,000The hail storm moved across much of western and southern Macon County. Hail up to the size of golf balls was reported along the path. The hail may have been larger in surrounding rural areas.
March 2005HailShorter$18,000no account filed
July 2005Tornado (F0)Shorter$18,000no account filed
December 2000Tornado (F0)Shorter$15,000An F0 tornado touched down near the intersection of CR 30 and CR 9, just off Hooks Road. Three homes sustained damage mainly in the form of blown out windows and roof damage. Several trees were also snapped off or blown over along the path. Two outbuildings were destroyed at the homes and two satellite dishes were also destroyed. Beginning: 32 24.642/85 52.256 Ending: 32 24.966/85 51.693
March 2005HailShorter$11,000Golf ball size hail was reported along Interstate 85 northeastward to near Notasulga.
June 2003Thunderstorm WindShorter$5,000A few trees and fences were blown down in Shorter. Marble size hail also accompanied this storm.
March 2000HailShorter$4,000Pea to golfball size hail fell in western Macon County near Shorter.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindShorter$3,000Three utility poles were snapped off on CR 9 between Shorter and Milstead.
November 2011Thunderstorm WindShorter$2,000Several trees were reported down near Shorter.
April 2008Thunderstorm WindShorter$2,000A few trees were blown down in Shorter.
August 2002Thunderstorm WindShorter$2,000no account filed
August 2002HailShorter$2,000no account filed
December 2024Tornado (EF0)Shorter-A tornado began over an inaccessible area north of County Road 2 and south of Old Federal Road. Several trees were uprooted or limbs were snapped around a couple homes and a church as the tornado crossed Old Federal Road and U.S. 80. The church also sustained minor siding damage. More trees were uprooted as the tornado crossed Redland Road and Cross Keys Road, where the most substantial area of tree damage occurred just north of Deborah Cannon Wolfe School. The damage extent decreased substantially crossing County Road 30, with small trees and tree limbs downed. A few more tree limbs were downed along County Road 9 as the tornado track ended. Maximum winds were estimated at 75 mph.
January 2023Tornado (EF0)Shorter-National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed damage in western Macon County and determined that it was consistent with an EF0 tornado, with maximum winds near 70 mph. This brief tornado began in an inaccessible area southwest of Deer Run Trail, in the town of Shorter. It caused minor tree damage and damage to some outbuildings along Deer Run Trail, also knocking over a couple basketball goals. It quickly dissipated after crossing Deer Run Trail. A brief TDS was observed on MXX radar.
August 2023Thunderstorm WindShorter-Multiple trees uprooted in western Macon County, including the Shorter area.
April 2021HailShorter-Golf ball size hail reported in the town of Shorter.
May 2021Tornado (EF0)Shorter-National Weather Service meteorologists surveyed damage in western Macon County and determined that it was consistent with an EF0 tornado, with maximum winds near 80 mph. Observable damage was apparent along Crosskeys Road at Chubahatchee Creek where multiple softwood trees were uprooted. Most of the path was in an inaccessible wooded area. In all, radar evidence suggests the tornado was brief in duration.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindShorter-Several trees uprooted along Highway 80 in the town of Shorter.
December 2012Thunderstorm WindShorter-Two trees and one powerline were downed in the town of Shorter.
November 2006HailShorter-Reported on I-85, near the racetrack in Shorter.
August 2005HailShorter-Penny size hail was reported in and around Shorter.
August 2005HailShorter-Dime to penny size hail was observed along Interstate 85 at the Montgomery and Macon County line.
August 2002LightningShorter-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Macon 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
Calebee1.8 miles9
La Place3.1 miles9
Goodwyn3.1 miles9
Milstead3.5 miles9
Tysonville4.3 miles9
Cross Keys4.4 miles9
Hornady5.6 miles9
Talasse (historical)6.8 miles9

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 ShorterAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q67960The 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 126817. 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.