Jackson County Alabama map | County Boundary and Places

The Jackson County Alabama map is most useful when Scottsboro is treated as the center of a Tennessee River valley system rather than simply the county seat. U.S. 72 follows the low east-west corridor toward Huntsville and Chattanooga, Alabama 35 climbs south onto Sand Mountain, Bridgeport and Stevenson face the Tennessee–Georgia border zone, and Skyline, Hytop, and Pisgah occupy higher plateau country. The county’s unusually large size makes relief and river crossings as important as mileage.

Quick Facts

The U.S. Census Bureau estimates 54,281 residents as of July 1, 2025, up 3.3 percent from the 2020 estimates base of 52,569. The 2020 census counted 52,579 residents. Growth is modest, but the county is no longer shrinking in the latest estimate and remains positioned between the Huntsville and Chattanooga travel spheres.

Jackson County contains 1,078.02 square miles of land with a 2020 density of only 48.8 people per square mile. That combination of large area and low density produces long rural distances between communities, with settlement concentrated in river valleys, highway corridors, and a limited number of plateau towns.

What the Map Shows

Scottsboro is the county seat and the main commercial center. U.S. 72 crosses the city on the east-west Tennessee Valley route, while Alabama 35 turns south and climbs toward Sand Mountain and DeKalb County. The city therefore sits where a relatively low river corridor meets a major mountain-crossing route.

Bridgeport and Stevenson anchor the northeast. Tennessee and Georgia are both nearby, and U.S. 72 follows the same broad valley toward Chattanooga. Their orientation is more border- and rail-corridor focused than the central Scottsboro area even though all three cities share the Tennessee River geography.

Section and Dutton lie south of Scottsboro on Sand Mountain. They appear close to the river city on a flat map, but the elevation change is substantial and Alabama 35 is the key route connecting the valley floor with the plateau.

Skyline, Hytop, and Pisgah represent higher northern and northeastern country. Roads curve along plateau edges and narrow valleys, so local travel is less direct than in the U.S. 72 corridor. These communities are useful markers for the Cumberland Plateau side of the county.

Hollywood, Langston, Paint Rock, and Woodville help orient the river and western valley side. The Paint Rock River enters the Tennessee system in western Jackson County and is associated with broad lowlands and floodplain habitat near the Madison County direction.

The map labels 13 places: Bridgeport, Dutton, Hollywood, Hytop, Langston, Paint Rock, Pisgah, Pleasant Groves, Scottsboro, Section, Skyline, Stevenson, and Woodville. Grouping them into the Scottsboro river center, northeastern border corridor, Sand Mountain communities, and northern plateau communities gives those labels a clearer geographic purpose.

County Layout and Location

Jackson County fills Alabama’s northeastern corner. Tennessee is to the north, Georgia and DeKalb County are to the east, DeKalb and Marshall counties are to the south, and Madison County is to the west. County history material notes that most of the land drains to the Tennessee River, making the river system the county’s main unifying physical feature.

U.S. 72 is the primary long-distance east-west route. It follows the low valley toward Huntsville in the west and Stevenson, Bridgeport, and Chattanooga in the east. Because it avoids the steepest plateau crossings, it carries a very different regional role from the north-south mountain roads.

Alabama 35 connects Scottsboro with Section and the DeKalb County/Fort Payne direction. Its importance comes from topography: it climbs out of the Tennessee Valley onto Sand Mountain, linking two parts of the county that are close horizontally but separated vertically.

Alabama 117 serves the Stevenson and Tennessee-border side, while Alabama 71, 79, and 65 reach other plateau and rural corridors. Jackson County’s size and relief mean that each state route tends to serve a particular valley, ridge, or plateau connection rather than forming a uniform grid.

ALDOT’s published Jackson County functional-classification map is dated May 2013. It combines U.S. and state highways with county roads, rail lines, waterways, and municipal boundaries, providing a more detailed view of road hierarchy than the simplified article map.

The Tennessee River broadens through much of the county into Guntersville Reservoir. Bridge locations, long coves, and steep approaches to higher ground concentrate road access at a limited set of points, so the water system actively shapes the transportation network.

Local Context

Jackson County was created on December 13, 1819, from land acquired from the Cherokee and was named for Andrew Jackson. Sauta Cave was designated as the temporary seat of justice, Bellefonte served as county seat from 1821 to 1859, and county government then moved to Scottsboro.

Scottsboro was named for Robert T. Scott and remains the county’s administrative and commercial center. Yet Jackson County is too large and topographically varied to function as one simple Scottsboro-centered commuter shed. The northeastern border towns, southern mountain communities, and northern plateau settlements retain distinct orientations.

Guntersville Lake is an impoundment of the Tennessee River created by Guntersville Dam. Outdoor Alabama lists about 69,100 acres of water surface and a length of roughly 75 miles, while TVA places the reservoir in Jackson and Marshall counties in Alabama and Marion County in Tennessee.

Construction of Guntersville Dam began in 1935 and was completed in 1939. TVA manages the reservoir for navigation, flood control, power generation, and recreation. In Jackson County, the most visible map effect is the broad water corridor around Scottsboro, Langston, and neighboring coves.

The Paint Rock River is a major western tributary of the Tennessee River. Outdoor Alabama identifies its lower Jackson County reach at the Tennessee confluence and notes the river’s long-standing navigable status. It provides a useful natural boundary between the broad western lowlands and the higher interior terrain.

Russell Cave National Monument lies west of Bridgeport in the northeastern plateau-and-valley country. The National Park Service describes the site as preserving evidence from roughly 12,000 years of human use, one of the most complete prehistoric cultural records in the Southeast.

The cave’s setting also explains why the location matters geographically. Limestone shelter, a reliable spring, and access to the Tennessee River valley supplied water, game, and raw materials over thousands of years. Russell Cave therefore connects Jackson County’s rugged modern terrain with a very long record of human adaptation to that terrain.

Jackson County ultimately combines several landscapes within one boundary: the Tennessee River valley, the Guntersville reservoir shoreline, Sand Mountain, the Cumberland Plateau, and a two-state border zone. Road function and community orientation change each time the map crosses one of those physical zones.

Ways to Use This Map

Start with Scottsboro and draw U.S. 72 east-west through the Tennessee Valley. Then add Alabama 35 south toward Section and Sand Mountain. Those two routes immediately separate the low river corridor from the plateau communities.

For water geography, follow the Tennessee River as it widens into Guntersville Lake. Add the Paint Rock River from the west and note how Scottsboro, Hollywood, Langston, and other communities occupy shorelines, valleys, and crossings rather than a regular inland grid.

For the northeastern county, group Bridgeport, Stevenson, and Russell Cave with the Tennessee–Georgia border setting. Then treat Section and Dutton as Sand Mountain communities and Skyline, Hytop, and Pisgah as higher northern plateau references.

• Use Scottsboro and U.S. 72 as the central east-west valley framework.
• Group Bridgeport and Stevenson with the Tennessee–Georgia border and Chattanooga-facing corridor.
• Read Section and Dutton as Sand Mountain communities above the river valley.
• Use Skyline, Hytop, and Pisgah to orient the northern Cumberland Plateau.
• Trace the Tennessee River, Guntersville Lake, and Paint Rock River as the water system shaping settlement and crossings.

FAQ

Are Guntersville Lake and the Tennessee River separate water systems in Jackson County?

No. Guntersville Lake is the reservoir formed on the Tennessee River by Guntersville Dam. The broad water around Scottsboro, Langston, and nearby coves is the Tennessee River in its impounded form, so the river and lake should be read as one continuous system.

Why can Scottsboro and Section feel farther apart than the map suggests?

Scottsboro lies in the Tennessee River valley, while Section is on Sand Mountain. Alabama 35 connects them, but the road must climb a substantial elevation change over a short horizontal distance. In Jackson County, relief often matters as much as straight-line distance.

Related Alabama County Maps

• Jefferson County Map | Birmingham, Bessemer, and 49 Places
• Lamar County Map | U.S. 278, Mississippi Border, and Six Places
• Lauderdale County Map | Florence, Tennessee River, and 10 Places
• Lawrence County Map | Moulton, Wheeler Lake, and Six Places

Sources

• U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts
• Jackson County official history
• Jackson County official municipality list
• ALDOT Highway Functional Classification Maps
• TVA Guntersville Reservoir information
• Outdoor Alabama: Lake Guntersville
• Outdoor Alabama: Paint Rock River
• National Park Service: Russell Cave National Monument