Bessemer, AL

Significant City History The city was founded in 1887 by Henry F. Debardeleben, who was considered a pioneer industrialist that had a plan to build a city literally from the ground up. By 1911 ore mining, iron smelting & the manufacture of iron and coke were the chief industries of Bessemer. Famous people Diana Ross, Bo Jackson, Neil Bonnett, Virginia Hill City State Population Year Founded Bessemer AL 28,416 1887 Elevation Industry % Unemploy Avg. Income 1,432 feet Mining 4.0% $30,614 Ethnic Groups % of Population Average Age Pop. Density Black 69% 37 727 per sq mile White 29% Hispanic 1% Asian 1% Avg Max Mean Temp Avg Max Mean Temp Avg Min Mean Temp Avg Min Mean Temp July 1961 July 2000 Jan 1961 Jan 2000 89 94.5 28.3 41 Avg July Precip Avg July Precip Avg Jan Precip Avg Jan Precip July 1961 July 2000 Jan 1961 Jan 2000 10.1 3.1 1.5 7.4 Current Avg % of Sunny Days Precip (Yearly) 5.2 54% State Ranking Total Carbon Total Carbon Resid. Carbon C02 Footprint Output Per Person Output Bessemer Output Bessemer (most consumption) Metric Tons of Metric Tons of Metric Tons of CO2 Per Year CO2 Per Year CO2 Per Year 15th 30.58 868,961 86,669