Ruthven, Alabama

Ruthven is a ghost town in Wilcox County, Alabama. Ruthven is named in honor of Ruthven, a division of Lincolnshire.[1] It was formerly a lumber town in the early 20th century, and was incorporated in 1924. It was located about 3 1/2 miles southwest of Pine Apple on Bear Creek along the Selma to Flomaton branch of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, what is now County Road 2. In 1930, it had 523 residents, making it the second largest town in Wilcox County after the county seat of Camden. Shortly afterwards, the town either disincorporated or lost its charter and rapidly declined. Very little exists of the town today as most of its buildings were dismantled. A post office was also located at Ruthven for a time.

Ruthven, Alabama
Ghost town
Ruthven, Alabama Location within the state of Alabama Show map of Alabama Ruthven, Alabama Ruthven, Alabama (the United States) Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 31°51′13″N 87°01′47″W
Country	United States
State	Alabama
County	Wilcox
Elevation	230 ft (70 m)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code(s)	334

Nearby to Ruthven was the community of Schuster, which was once the location of the Wilcox Mineral Springs Resort.[2]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1930	523		—
U.S. Decennial Census[3]

Ruthven appeared on the U.S. Census of 1930 as an incorporated community. It disincorporated or lost its charter at some point later in the decade.

Geography

Ruthven is located at 31.8534850°N 87.0297059°W / 31.8534850; -87.0297059 and has an elevation of 230 feet (70 m).[4]

References

1. Foscue, Virginia O. (1989). Place Names in Alabama. University of Alabama Press. p. 121. ISBN 978-0-8173-0410-2.
2. Sulzby, James Frederick (1960-01-01). Historic Alabama Hotels and Resorts. University of Alabama Press. ISBN 9780817353094.
3. "U.S. Decennial Census". Census.gov. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
4. "GNIS Detail - Rutthven". geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2016-04-11.