Sweet Water

Claire Wilson, Auburn University
Sweet Water is located in Marengo County in southwestern Alabama. It has a mayor-council form of government.
History
Sweet Water Gin Company
Sweet Water was first settled in the 1840s and is named for Sweet Water Creek, which runs through the town. The first post office was established in 1868, and the town soon hosted a grist mill and sawmill among other businesses. Like many towns in the Black Belt, the economy centered on cotton production and processing. The Sweet Water Cotton Gin was established in 1870 in the town and continues to produce cotton fiber for the textile industry. In 1912, the Alabama and Northwestern Railroad built a line through the town, and the population increased dramatically, and businesses expanded to include a hotel, mills, stores, a bank, and a school. It was incorporated in 1963.
Demographics
According to 2020 Census estimates, Sweet Water recorded a population of 213. Of that number, 94.8 percent of respondents identified themselves as white and 5.2 percent as African American. The town's median household income was $55,417, and the per capita income was $21,697.
Employment
According to 2020 Census estimates, the workforce in Sweet Water was divided among the following industrial categories:
  • Manufacturing (16.1 percent)
  • Retail trade (16.1 percent)
  • Construction (14.5 percent)
  • Educational services and health care and social assistance (12.9 percent)
  • Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and extraction (9.7 percent)
  • Other services, except public administration (9.7 percent)
  • Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing (8.1 percent)
  • Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation and food services (4.8 percent)
  • Public administration (3.2 percent)
  • Information (1.6 percent)
  • Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services (1.6 percent)
  • Wholesale trade (1.6 percent)
Education
The Marengo County School District oversees one K-12 school in Sweet Water.
Transportation
Sweet Water is bisected north-south by County Road 7 and east-west by State Route 10.
Published:  December 2, 2020   |   Last updated:  February 24, 2023