When was St. Clair County founded?

St. Clair County was founded in 1818, formed from Shelby County, and named after Arthur St. Clair.

What is the county seat of St. Clair County?

The county seat of St. Clair County is Ashville and Pell City.

Is there an online parcel map for St. Clair County?

Yes. St. Clair County publishes a parcel map of 61,241 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.

Has St. Clair County's boundary or name changed?

St. Clair County was created in 1818 from Shelby County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 23 later changes, chiefly involving Jefferson County, Shelby County and Baine County.

Who issues building permits in St. Clair County?

The county's page on building permits: Utility Permit. Inside a city or town, ask that city first.

Is my lot in a flood zone?

We do not have flood maps for St. Clair County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

County · code 01115

St. Clair CountyAlabama

St. Clair County is a county in Alabama, established in 1818 and seated in Ashville and Pell City.

Founded1818
County seatAshville and Pell City
Named forArthur St. Clair
Land area632 sq mi + 22 sq mi water
Population91,103 2020 Census
Parcels mapped61,241 checked 15 October 2026

Open the free map Click any parcel in St. Clair County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated 19 October 2026

Census outline · seat marked

History

Formed in 1818 from Shelby County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

St. Clair County was created by Alabama Territory from Shelby County on November 20, 1818. The county was named after Arthur St. Clair. St. Clair County experienced significant boundary changes over the following decades, losing land to the creation of Jefferson, Calhoun, Randolph, and Talladega counties, and exchanging territory with Jefferson and Shelby counties.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; the 5 that matter most are shown first.

1818
St. Clair County created St. Clair created by Alabama Territory from Shelby.
from Shelby
20 November 1818 · Ala. Terr. Acts 1818, 2d sess., secs. 1-2/pp. 18-19
1819
Lost territory St. Clair lost to creation of Jefferson.
to Jefferson
13 December 1819 · Ala. Rpts., 215:640; Ala. Acts 1819, 1st sess., sec. 9/p. 52
1820
Lost territory Non-County Area 8 attached to St. Clair lost to creation of Non-County Area 11; Non-County Area 11 was detached from St. Clair, attached to Cotaco (now Morgan).
to Cotacoto Morgan
20 December 1820 · Ala. Acts 1820, 2d sess., p. 76; Toulmin, Digest, ch. 8/p. 171
1821
Exchanged territory St. Clair exchanged with Jefferson.
with Jefferson
1 April 1821 · Ala. Acts 1820, 2d sess., p. 90
1823
Lost territory St. Clair lost to Jefferson.
to Jefferson
19 December 1823 · Ala. Acts 1823, 5th sess., p. 85

Show all 24 changes (19 more)

1818
St. Clair County created St. Clair created by Alabama Territory from Shelby.
from Shelby
20 November 1818 · Ala. Terr. Acts 1818, 2d sess., secs. 1-2/pp. 18-19
1819
Lost territory St. Clair lost to creation of Jefferson.
to Jefferson
13 December 1819 · Ala. Rpts., 215:640; Ala. Acts 1819, 1st sess., sec. 9/p. 52
1819
Changed Non-County Area 8 belonging to the Cherokee Indians was attached to St. Clair. 17 December 1819 · Ala. Acts 1819, 1st sess., p. 34
1820
Lost territory Non-County Area 8 attached to St. Clair lost to creation of Non-County Area 11; Non-County Area 11 was detached from St. Clair, attached to Cotaco (now Morgan).
to Cotacoto Morgan
20 December 1820 · Ala. Acts 1820, 2d sess., p. 76; Toulmin, Digest, ch. 8/p. 171
1821
Exchanged territory St. Clair exchanged with Jefferson.
with Jefferson
1 April 1821 · Ala. Acts 1820, 2d sess., p. 90
1823
Lost territory St. Clair lost to Jefferson.
to Jefferson
19 December 1823 · Ala. Acts 1823, 5th sess., p. 85
1828
Changed St. Clair given concurrent jurisdiction with Autauga and Shelby over Non-County Area 14.
Autauga Shelby
9 January 1828 · Ala. Acts 1827, 9th sess., p. 30
1829
Gained territory St. Clair gained part of Non-County Area 14 that had been concurrently attached to St. Clair, Autauga, and Shelby. Non-County Area 8 remained attached to St. Clair.
from Autauga from Shelby
29 January 1829 · Ala. Acts 1828, 10th sess., p. 65
1831
Exchanged territory St. Clair exchanged with Shelby.
with Shelby
15 January 1831 · Ala. Acts 1830, 12th sess., p. 30
1832
Gained territory St. Clair gained all of attached Non-County Area 8 and gained part of Non-County Area 13 attached to Jackson.
from Jackson
21 January 1832 · Ala. Acts 1831, 13th sess., p. 35
1832
Lost territory St. Clair lost to creation of Benton (now Calhoun), Randolph, and Talladega.
to Benton to Calhoun to Randolphto Talladega
18 December 1832 · Ala. Acts 1832, ann. sess., no. 11/p. 9
1834
Lost territory St. Clair lost to Jackson.
to Jackson
14 January 1834 · Ala. Acts 1833, ann. sess., no. 26/p. 14
1834
Changed Part of St. Clair was attached to Benton (now Calhoun).
BentonCalhoun
30 December 1834 · Ala. Acts 1834, ann. sess., no. 7/p. 5; repeated as no. 156/p. 148
1836
Lost territory St. Clair lost to creation of De Kalb and Cherokee; the loss to Cherokee included the part that was attached to Benton (now Calhoun).
to De Kalb to Cherokeeto Bentonto Calhoun
9 January 1836 · Ala. Acts 1835, ann. sess., no. 179/p. 170
1866
Lost territory St. Clair lost to creation of Baine (extinct).
to Baine
7 December 1866 · Ala. Acts 1866, reg. sess., no. 92, sec. 1/p. 76
1867
Changed Legislature authorized a change in the boundaries of St. Clair with Baine (extinct) and Blount.
BaineBlount
19 February 1867 · Ala. Acts 1866, reg. sess., no. 566/p. 615
1867
Gained territory St. Clair gained part of Baine (extinct); Baine eliminated.
from Baine
3 December 1867 · Ala. Acts 1868, Ord. of St. Conv. [1867], no. 27/p. 178
1868
Lost territory St. Clair lost to creation of Etowah.
to Etowah
1 December 1868 · Ala. Acts 1868, reg. sess., no. 20, sec. 1/p. 359
1868
Gained territory St. Clair gained small area from Etowah to accommodate local property owner.
from Etowah
17 December 1868 · Ala. Acts 1868, reg. sess., no. 62/p. 417
1870
Gained territory St. Clair gained from Etowah.
from Etowah
7 February 1870 · Ala. Acts 1869, reg. sess., no. 74/p. 65
1887
Gained territory St. Clair gained from Blount.
from Blount
11 February 1887 · Ala. Acts 1886, bien. sess., no. 283/p. 689
1899
Exchanged territory St. Clair exchanged with Shelby.
with Shelby
7 February 1899 · Ala. Acts 1898, bien. sess., loc., no. 320/p. 679
1915
Exchanged territory St. Clair exchanged with Jefferson.
with Jefferson
10 September 1915 · Ala. Acts 1915, quad. sess., loc., no. 423/p. 322
1915
Exchanged territory St. Clair exchanged with Jefferson.
with Jefferson
28 September 1915 · Ala. Acts 1915, quad. sess., loc., no. 800/p. 490)

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in St. Clair

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Parcels Good enough

Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 61,241 parcels from St. Clair County. Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
checked 15 October 2026
Address points Missing

No public address points layer found for St. Clair County yet.
Buildings Reference

Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026

Official: from the office that keeps the record
Good enough: a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback: a guide only; check the official record
Missing: nothing public found yet

People and land

St. Clair by the Census

Population

91,103 2020 Census count

Housing units

37,775 2020 Census count

Land area

632 square miles

Water area

22 square miles

People per sq mi

144 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Who to ask before you build, dig or sell

Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.

Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.

Records

Assessor and property recordsfrom stclairco.com · checked 13 October 2026
Clerk of court: deeds and plats
Circuit Clerk - Ashville
from stclairco.com · checked 13 October 2026

Permits

Utility Permitfrom stclairco.com
Pistol Permit Application or Renewalfrom stclairco.com

County government

County government
The official website of St. Clair County.
stclairco.com

See your own lot on these maps

Open St. Clair County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.

Open the free map no sign-in Pro early access

Questions

Common questions about St. Clair County

When was St. Clair County founded?: St. Clair County was founded in 1818, formed from Shelby County, and named after Arthur St. Clair.
What is the county seat of St. Clair County?: The county seat of St. Clair County is Ashville and Pell City.
Is there an online parcel map for St. Clair County?: Yes. St. Clair County publishes a parcel map of 61,241 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has St. Clair County's boundary or name changed?: St. Clair County was created in 1818 from Shelby County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 23 later changes, chiefly involving Jefferson County, Shelby County and Baine County.
Who issues building permits in St. Clair County?: The county's page on building permits: Utility Permit. Inside a city or town, ask that city first.
Is my lot in a flood zone?: We do not have flood maps for St. Clair County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby