The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area, also known as Greater Birmingham, is a metropolitan area

United States metropolitan area

In the United States a metropolitan statistical area is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are not legally incorporated as a city or town would be, nor are they legal administrative divisions like...

 composed of seven counties in central Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

 centered around its primary city of Birmingham

Birmingham, Alabama

Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...

. The population of this metropolitan area as of the 2009 census estimate was about 1,131,070. Thus is the 48th largest metropolitan area in the United States according to the U.S. Census 2000. Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area is part of the Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area

Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area

The Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman, AL CSA sometimes known as Greater Birmingham, is made up of 8 counties in Central Alabama....

.

List of the counties and their county seats

• Bibb
  Bibb County, Alabama
  Bibb County is a county in the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of William W. Bibb, the first Governor of Alabama. As of 2010 the population was 22,915. The county seat is Centreville...
  
   (Centreville
  Centreville, Alabama
  Centreville is a city in Bibb County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 2,466. The city is the county seat of Bibb County.-Geography:According to the U.S...
  
  )
• Blount
  Blount County, Alabama
  Blount County is a county located in the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 57,322. Its county seat is Oneonta.Blount County is a dry county.-History:...
  
   (Oneonta
  Oneonta, Alabama
  Oneonta is a city in Blount County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 5,576. The city is the county seat of Blount County...
  
  )
• Chilton
  Chilton County, Alabama
  -2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*84.1% White*9.7% Black*0.4% Native American*0.3% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.2% Two or more races*7.8% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
  
   (Clanton
  Clanton, Alabama
  Clanton is a city in Chilton County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area. At the 2000 census the population was 7,800. The city is the county seat of Chilton County.-History:...
  
  )
• Jefferson
  Jefferson County, Alabama
  Jefferson County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Alabama, with its county seat being located in Birmingham.As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Jefferson County was 658,466...
  
   ( Birmingham
  Birmingham, Alabama
  Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
  
  )
• St. Clair
  St. Clair County, Alabama
  St. Clair County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama.It is a part of the Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area. Its name is in honor of General Arthur St...
  
   (Pell City
  Pell City, Alabama
  Pell City is a city in St. Clair County, Alabama, United States. The city is the county seat of St. Clair County along with Ashville. At the 2000 census the population was 9,565. At the 2010 census, the city-limit population jumped to 12,695. -Geography:...
  
   and Ashville
  Ashville, Alabama
  Ashville is a city in St. Clair County, Alabama, United States part of the Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman Combined Statistical Area. Its population was 2,260 at the 2000 census, at which time it was a town. This town is the county seat of St. Clair County along with Pell City. According to the 2005 U.S....
  
  )
• Shelby
  Shelby County, Alabama
  Shelby County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama and a part of the Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area. It is named in honor of Isaac Shelby, Governor of Kentucky. The county seat of Shelby County is Columbiana. As of 2010 U.S. Census the population was 195,085. Shelby...
  
   ( Columbiana
  Columbiana, Alabama
  Columbiana is a city in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 4,197. The city is the county seat of Shelby County.-History:...
  
  )
• Walker
  Walker County, Alabama
  Walker County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama.Its name is in honor of John Williams Walker, a member of the United States Senate. As of 2010 the population was 67,023...
  
   ( Jasper
  Jasper, Alabama
  Jasper is a city in Walker County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 14,659. As of 2011 the population had was 13,857. The city is the county seat of Walker County, and once ranked among the world's leading producers of coal....
  
  )

Cities and Towns within the Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan area

• Alabaster
  Alabaster, Alabama
  Alabaster is a city and southern suburb of Birmingham in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 22,619. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 27,517. At the 2010 census the population was 30,352. Alabaster is still a growing...
  
  
• Bessemer
  Bessemer, Alabama
  Bessemer is a city outside of Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States eight miles west of Hoover. The population was 29,672 at the 2000 Census, but by the 2009 U.S...
  
  
• Calera
  Calera, Alabama
  Calera is a city in Chilton and Shelby counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is the location of Birmingham's Shelby County Airport. Its population was 3,158 at the 2000 census, but as of 2010 the population had nearly quadrupled to 11,620 making it the fastest growing city in...
  
  
• Center Point
  Center Point, Alabama
  Center Point is a newly incorporated city and a former census-designated place in northeastern Birmingham, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 22,784. However, after its incorporation in 2002, the city's boundaries are much smaller than those of the CDP. As of July 1,...
  
  
• Clay
  Clay, Alabama
  Clay is a city in northeastern Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area. Local government is run by a mayor and city council. Before incorporation on June 6, 2000, it was a census-designated place...
  
  
• Columbiana
  Columbiana, Alabama
  Columbiana is a city in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 4,197. The city is the county seat of Shelby County.-History:...
  
  
• Ensley
• Fairfield
  Fairfield, Alabama
  Fairfield is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Birmingham–Hoover Metropolitan Area. The population was 12,381 at the 2000 census. As of 2006, the Census estimates the population to be 11,547.-History:...
  
  
• Fultondale
  Fultondale, Alabama
  Fultondale is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States and a northern suburb of Birmingham. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 6,595 and, as of 2006, was estimated to be 6,905. Fultondale was a relatively stagnant community until the last decade...
  
  
• Gardendale
  Gardendale, Alabama
  Gardendale is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States, and a northern suburb of Birmingham. The population was 11,626 at the 2000 census. 2009 Census estimates propose a population of 13,720.-History:...
  
  
• Helena
  Helena, Alabama
  Helena is a city in Jefferson and Shelby Counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. Helena is considered a suburb of Birmingham and part of the Greater Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan area. It is also one of three cities, along with Alabaster and Pelham, that make up the area known as "North Shelby" or...
  
  
• Homewood
  Homewood, Alabama
  Homewood is a city in southeastern Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. It is a suburb of Birmingham, located on the other side of Red Mountain due south of the city center. It has one of the highest population densities in Alabama. As of 2009 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the...
  
  
• Hoover
  Hoover, Alabama
  Hoover is a city in Jefferson and Shelby Counties in north central Alabama, in the United States. The largest suburb of Birmingham, the population of the city was 62,742 as of the 2000 census and 81,619 in the 2010 census. Hoover is part of the Birmingham-Hoover, AL MSA and is also included in the...
  
  
• Hueytown
  Hueytown, Alabama
  Hueytown is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 16,105.It was the home of the legendary NASCAR Alabama Gang...
  
  
• Irondale
  Irondale, Alabama
  Irondale is a city adjacent to Birmingham, Alabama, United States northeast from Homewood and Mountain Brook. At the 2010 census the population was 12,349. The book Fried Green Tomatoes, by Irondale native Fannie Flagg, is loosely based around the town and the landmark Irondale Cafe, known as The...
  
  
• Jasper
  Jasper, Alabama
  Jasper is a city in Walker County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 14,659. As of 2011 the population had was 13,857. The city is the county seat of Walker County, and once ranked among the world's leading producers of coal....
  
  
• Leeds
  Leeds, Alabama
  Leeds is a tri-county municipality located in Jefferson, St. Clair, and Shelby Counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a suburb of Birmingham. As of the 2009 population estimate, the population of the city is about 11,474.-History:...
  
  
• Lipscomb
  Lipscomb, Alabama
  Lipscomb is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Birmingham–Hoover Metropolitan Area. At the 2000 census the population was 2,458....
  
  
• Mountain Brook
  Mountain Brook, Alabama
  Mountain Brook is a city in southeastern Jefferson County, Alabama, and a suburb of Birmingham. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,821. Mountain Brook is a particularly affluent city within the Birmingham metropolitan area and has appeared in several lists...
  
  
• Pelham
  Pelham, Alabama
  Pelham is a city and suburb of Birmingham in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 14,369, but has grown to 21,352 recorded by the 2010 census. It was named for famed Confederate American Civil War officer John Pelham...
  
  
• Pell City
  Pell City, Alabama
  Pell City is a city in St. Clair County, Alabama, United States. The city is the county seat of St. Clair County along with Ashville. At the 2000 census the population was 9,565. At the 2010 census, the city-limit population jumped to 12,695. -Geography:...
  
  
• Pinson
  Pinson, Alabama
  Pinson is a city in Birmingham, Alabama, United States northwest from Center Point. At the 2000 census, the population was 5,033.-Geography:This city is located at .According to the U.S...
  
  
• Pleasant Grove
  Pleasant Grove, Alabama
  Pleasant Grove is a city in Jefferson County, Alabama and suburb of Birmingham. It is part of the Birmingham–Hoover Metropolitan Area. Its nickname is "The Good Neighbor City". At the 2010 census the population was 10,110.-History:...
  
  
• Trussville
  Trussville, Alabama
  Trussville is a city in Jefferson and St. Clair counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population was 19,933 at the 2010 census. Trussville was ranked as number 56 out of 100 in Money Magazines Best Places to Live 2005.-Geography:...
  
  
• Vestavia Hills
  Vestavia Hills, Alabama
  Vestavia Hills is a city in Jefferson and Shelby Counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is a suburb of the city of Birmingham.-History:Vestavia Hills is named for the estate of former Birmingham mayor George B. Ward. It was situated on the crest of Shades Mountain in what is now the northern...
  
  
• Woodstock
  Woodstock, Alabama
  Woodstock is a town in Bibb and Tuscaloosa counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. Formerly known as North Bibb, by referendum in August 2000, the town adopted the name of a long-established local unincorporated community and as of October 1, 2000 is now known officially as "Woodstock"...
  
  

Natural Features

• Red Mountain
• Oak Mountain State Park
  Oak Mountain State Park
  Oak Mountain State Park is Alabama's largest state park at . It is located in Pelham, Alabama and is convenient to Birmingham, Alabama's largest city....
  
  
• Double Oak Mountain
• Black Warrior River
  Black Warrior River
  The Black Warrior River is a waterway in west central Alabama in the southeastern United States. The river rises in the extreme southern edges of the Appalachian Highlands and flows 178 miles to the Tombigbee River, of which the Black Warrior is the primary tributary...
  
  
• Cahaba River
  Cahaba River
  The Cahaba River is the longest free-flowing river in Alabama and is among the most scenic and biologically diverse rivers in the United States. The Cahaba River is a major tributary of the Alabama River and part of the larger Mobile River Basin...
  
  
• Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge
  Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge
  The Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge is a 3,577 acre National Wildlife Refuge located in central Alabama, along the Cahaba River downstream from Birmingham, Alabama. The refuge was established on September 25, 2002. Additional purchases were approved that will potentially increase the size of...
  
  
• Talladega National Forest
  Talladega National Forest
  The Talladega National Forest is located in the U.S. state of Alabama and covers 392,567 acres at the southern edge of the Appalachian Mountains....
  
   (Oakmulgee Division)
• Coosa River
  Coosa River
  The Coosa River is a tributary of the Alabama River in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia. The river is about long altogether.The Coosa River is one of Alabama's most developed rivers...
  
  

Major Roads and Highways

• Interstate 65
  Interstate 65
  Interstate 65 is a major Interstate Highway in the United States. The southern terminus is located at an intersection with Interstate 10 in Mobile, Alabama, and its northern terminus is at an interchange with Interstate 90 , U.S. Route 12, and U.S...
  
  
• Interstate 20
  Interstate 20
  Interstate 20 is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I‑20 runs 1,535 miles from near Kent, Texas, at Interstate 10 to Florence, South Carolina, at Interstate 95...
  
  
• Interstate 59
  Interstate 59
  Interstate 59 is an Interstate Highway in the southern United States. Its southern terminus is near Slidell, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans, at an intersection with Interstate 10 and Interstate 12, its northern terminus is at Wildwood, Georgia, at an intersection with Interstate 24.The road's...
  
  
• Interstate 22
  Interstate 22
  Interstate 22 , when it is completed, will follow the U.S. Highway 78 corridor along a 213-mile-long route from Memphis, Tennessee, to Birmingham, Alabama, as an Interstate Highway. Interstate 22 will connect Interstate 240 and Interstate 40 in the northwest with Interstate 65 and Interstate...
  
  
• Interstate 459
  Interstate 459
  Interstate 459 is a bypass highway of Interstate 59 that is an alternate Interstate Highway around the southern sides of Birmingham, Alabama, Bessemer, Alabama, and several other cities and towns in Jefferson County. Interstate 459 lies entirely within Jefferson County, without exception...
  
  
• US Highway 280
  U.S. Route 280
  U.S. Route 280 is a spur of U.S. Highway 80. It currently runs for 392 miles from Blichton, Georgia at U.S. Highway 80 to Birmingham, Alabama at I-20/I-59. For much of its route, U.S. 280 travels through rural areas and smaller cities in southern Georgia and east central Alabama. Once the...
  
  
• US Highway 31
  U.S. Route 31
  U.S. Route 31 is a long north–south highway connecting northern Michigan to southern Alabama, with its northern terminus at Interstate 75 near Mackinaw City, Michigan, and southern terminus at the combined U.S. Route 90 & U.S. Route 98 at Spanish Fort, Alabama...
  
  
• US Highway 78
  U.S. Route 78
  U.S. Highway 78 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 715 miles from Memphis, Tennessee, to Charleston, South Carolina. Between Memphis and Birmingham, Alabama, it is being upgraded to become Interstate 22....
  
  
• US Highway 11
  U.S. Route 11
  U.S. Route 11 is a north–south United States highway extending 1,645 miles across the eastern United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 90 in the Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge in eastern New Orleans, Louisiana. The northern terminus is at the United...
  
  
• US Highway 411
  U.S. Route 411
  U.S. Highway 411 is an alternate parallel-highway associated with U.S. Highway 11. U.S. 411 extends for about 313 miles from U.S. Route 78 in Leeds, Jefferson County, Alabama, to U.S. Highway 25 in Newport, Cocke County, Tennessee. U.S. 411 passes through the northeastern State of Alabama, the...
  
  

Rivers

• Cahaba River
  Cahaba River
  The Cahaba River is the longest free-flowing river in Alabama and is among the most scenic and biologically diverse rivers in the United States. The Cahaba River is a major tributary of the Alabama River and part of the larger Mobile River Basin...
  
  
• Black Warrior River
  Black Warrior River
  The Black Warrior River is a waterway in west central Alabama in the southeastern United States. The river rises in the extreme southern edges of the Appalachian Highlands and flows 178 miles to the Tombigbee River, of which the Black Warrior is the primary tributary...
  
  
• Coosa River
  Coosa River
  The Coosa River is a tributary of the Alabama River in the U.S. states of Alabama and Georgia. The river is about long altogether.The Coosa River is one of Alabama's most developed rivers...
  
  
• Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River
  Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River
  The Locust Fork, in Blount, Etowah, and Marshall counties is one of three major tributaries of the Black Warrior River. The river features several stretches of whitewater, and is popular with canoers and kayakers. In the late 1980s, the Birmingham Water Works proposed damming the river as a...
  
  
• Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River
  Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River
  Mulberry Fork is a tributary of the Black Warrior River, long, in the U.S. state of Alabama. The Mulberry Fork is one of three forks, along with the Locust Fork and the Sipsey Fork, that join to form the Black Warrior...
  
  
• Sipsey Fork of the Black Warrior River
  Sipsey Fork of the Black Warrior River
  The Sipsey Fork of the Black Warrior River is a river located in Alabama, USA, and is formed by the junction of Thompson and Hubbard creeks in the Sipsey Wilderness of Bankhead National Forest. The Sipsey Fork discharges into the Mulberry Fork. The Sipsey Fork below Smith Lake is one of the few...