1732History
In 1732, they recorded the site of present-day Selma as Écor Bienville.
1820Government
Selma was incorporated in 1820.
1865Civil Rights
==== Battle of Selma ====
On March 30, 1865, Union General James H.
1866Military
=== Post-war period ===
Selma became the seat of Dallas County in 1866 and the county courthouse was built there.
1877Architecture
As in other southern states, white Democrats regained political power in the mid-1870s after suppressing black voting through violence and fraud; Reconstruction officially ended...
1889Education
Daniel Payne College, an institution of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, operated in Selma from 1889 to 1922.
1892Crime
In February 1892, Willy Webb was put in the jail in Selma after police arrested him in Waynesville.
1893Disaster
In June 1893, a lynch mob numbering 100 men seized "a black man named Daniel Edwards from the Selma jail, hanged him from a tree, and fired multiple rounds into his body" for al...
1904Government
It was established as a Carnegie library in 1904, receiving matching funds for construction.
1920Culture
In 1920 the east-west Highway 80 was designated as part of the Jefferson Davis Memorial Highway.
1922Education
Concordia College Alabama, a private Lutheran university, operated in Selma from 1922 to 2018.
1944Government
Allwright (1944) ended the use of white primaries by the Democratic Party, the Alabama state legislature passed a law giving voting registrars more authority to challenge prospe...
1963Civil Rights
In early 1963, Bernard Lafayette and Colia Lafayette of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) began organizing in Selma alongside local civil rights leaders Sam, ...
1964History
In the summer of 1964, a sweeping injunction issued by local judge James Hare barred any gathering of three or more people under sponsorship of SNCC, SCLC or DCVL, or with the i...
1965Civil Rights
In modern times, the city is best known for the 1960s civil rights movement and the Selma to Montgomery marches, beginning with "Bloody Sunday" in March 1965, when unarmed peace...
1966Civil Rights
By March 1966, a year after the Selma-to-Montgomery marches, nearly 11,000 black people had registered to vote in Selma, where 12,000 white people were registered.
1968Culture
1968's The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter was filmed in Selma.
1977History
In 1977 US 80 was named Givhan Parkway in honor of the long-serving state senator Walter C.
1994Civil Rights
The 1994 film employed many of the people of Selma as extras, including local high school marching bands.
1996Civil Rights
In 1996 it was designated as part of the 'National Civil Rights Trail' by President Bill Clinton and is administered by the National Park Service.
1999Civil Rights
Selma was featured in the 1999 Disney television movie Selma, Lord, Selma for its historical significance in the Civil Rights Movement on "Bloody Sunday".
2000History
=== 2000 census ===
As of the 2000 census, there were 20,512 people, 8,196 households, and 5,343 families besiding in the city.
2008History
== References ==
== Further reading ==
Holthouse, David (Winter 2008).
2010History
=== 2010 census ===
As of the 2010 census, there were 20,872 people, 8,086 households, and _ families residing in the city.
2012History
It was torn down in 2012, reflecting the continuing controversy about him.
2015Civil Rights
Teague, Matthew (March 6, 2015).
2017History
Forner, Karlyn (2017).
2018History
Retrieved January 2, 2018.
2020History
=== 2020 census ===
As of the 2020 census, there were 17,971 people, 7,568 households, and 4,574 families residing in the city.
2023Disaster
=== Twenty-first century ===
On January 12, 2023, Selma was hit by a large and destructive EF2 tornado.