Alabama
Permanent URL for this collectionhttps://dspace.firearmsresearchcenter.org/id/frc0001/2963
Alabama
This jurisdictional hub aggregates FRC holdings related to Alabama. It supports research on the state’s firearms history, technology, law, policy, and culture from the territorial period to the present.
- Legal sources: statutes and session laws, administrative code, attorney general opinions, appellate decisions, and select municipal ordinances.
- Historical materials: newspapers, photographs, maps, catalogs, company records, and oral histories tied to Alabama people and places.
- Research outputs: technical reports, academic studies, training manuals, and curated datasets relevant to the state.
Cite the Firearms Research Center and the item’s handle/DOI when using materials. Rights and licensing vary by item.
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Item type:Item, Item type:Item, 2026-10-01 Attribution Test #4(2026-10-01)Item type:Item, Alabama TEST submission(2026)Item type:Item, 1867 Ala. Code 169(1867)§ 434, pt. 10: Tax of $2 on pistols or revolvers in the possession of private persons, excluding dealers, and a tax of $3 on "all bowie knives, or knives of the like description." Non-payment was punishable by seizure and, unless payment was made within 10 days with a penalty of an additional 50%, subject to sale by public auction.Item type:Item, Item type:Item, 1876 Ala. Code 929–30(1871)§ 4406: Prohibited hunting wild hogs with a dog and gun without giving notice to "at least three freeholders in the neighborhood." Violators fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars. § 4407: Prohibited hunting deer by fire and with a gun. Violators fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars.Item type:Item, 1862 Ala. Laws 8(Ala. Statutes, 1862)Wartime tax of 5% on net profits of various businesses, including establishments that produced guns, pistols, pikes, and Bowie knives.Item type:Item, 1886 Ala. Laws 36(1886)Imposed occupational tax of three hundred dollars on dealers of pistols, pistol cartridges, Bowie-knives, and dirksItem type:Item, 1876 Ala. Laws 202(1875)§ 494, pt. 15: Imposed $50 occupational tax on dealers of pistols, Bowie knives, and dirk knives.Item type:Item, 1876 Ala. Code 914(1876)Prohibited assault and battery of another with a cowhide, stick, or whip while in possession of a pistol or other deadly weapon with the intent to intimidate another to prevent the person from defending himself. Violators imprisoned not less than two nor more than twenty years.Item type:Item, Alexander McKinstry, The Code of Ordinances of the City of Mobile, with the Charter, and an Appendix 118 (1859)(1859)§ 124; Prohibited the discharge of any gun, pistol, fowling-piece, or fire-arm.Item type:Item, 1868 Ala. Laws 333(1868)§ 112, pt. 28: Required licenses for dealers in firearms. Licenses were priced at twenty dollars.Item type:Item, 1892 Ala. Laws 292(1892)Approved the town of Demopolis to require licensing but also placed a maximum license fee of one hundred dollars on dealers of pistols, pistol cartridges, bowie knives, dirk knives. Gun shops, or gun repair shops capped at five dollars.Item type:Item, 1898 Ala. Laws 190(1898)Placed a one hundred dollar tax on dealers of pistols, Bowie knives, or dirk knives of one hundred dollars. Also taxed dealers of pistol and rifle cartridges at ten dollars.Item type:Item, A Revised Code of Ordinances of the City of Tuscaloosa 163 (1885)(1885)Prohibited keeping more than twenty-five pounds of gun powder or other explosive. Also prohibited sale of gun powder by artificial light.Item type:Item, 1899 Ala. Laws 154(1899)Prohibited the discharge of any gun, pistol, or other firearm on a passenger train. Also prohibited reckless handling of any firearm or other weapon in the presence of other people on trains. Violators fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, or imprisoned not exceeding twelve months, or both at discretion of the court.Item type:Item, W.M. S. Thorington, The Code of Ordinances of the City Council of Montgomery 223, 225, 229 (1888)(1888)These ordinances restrict the use, possession, and transport of weapons and explosives: firing guns in public is banned except for self-defense or law enforcement, and discharging firearms or fireworks requires official permission; carrying concealed weapons is prohibited and punishable by fines or hard labor, though fear of attack may mitigate the offense; and transporting gunpowder must be done safely and out of public view.Item type:Item, A Revised Code of Ordinances of the City of Tuscaloosa 170 (1885)(1885)Prohibited carrying concealed any brass knuckles, slung-shot, or other weapon of like kind, or carries a rifle, shot gun walking cane. Violators fined not exceeding one hundred dollars, and may be imprisoned, or put to hard labor not exceeding sixty days.Item type:Item, A Revised Code of Ordinances of the City of Tuscaloosa 149-50 (1885)(1885)Prohibited use of firearms while fighting in a public place, except for in self defense. On conviction, violator shall pay a fine of no more than $25 and face imprisonment or work for the city for a period not exceeding 30 days.Item type:Item, 1874-75 Ala. Laws 6(1875)Reduced tax rate to 0.75% of the value of any pistols, guns, dirks, and Bowie knives.Item type:Item, Item type:Item, J. M. Falkner, The Code of Ordinances of the City Council of Montgomery 225 (1888)(1879)Prohibited carrying of a concealed Bowie knife, pistol, air gun, slungshot, brass knuckles, or other deadly or dangerous weapon. Punishable by a fine of $1-100.Item type:Item, 1876 Ala. Code 929-30(1871)Prohibited hunting wild hogs with a dog and gun without giving notice to "at least three freeholders in the neighborhood." Violators fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars. Prohibited fire-hunting with a gun.Item type:Item, 1892 Ala. Laws 183(1892)Imposed $300 occupational tax on dealers of pistols, pistol cartridges, Bowie knives, and dirk knives, and clarified that cartridges that can be used in a pistol shall be deemed pistol cartridges.Item type:Item, 1890 Ala. Laws 1317(1890)Approved the town of Decatur to require licensing but also placed a maximum license fee of one hundred dollars on dealers of pistols, pistol cartridges, bowie knives, dirk knives.Gun shops, or gun repair shops capped at ten dollars.Item type:Item, Item type:Item, 1936 Ala. Laws 51-54(1936)The Uniform Firearms Act of 1936 established a comprehensive regulatory framework for the possession, sale, and carriage of pistols (defined as firearms with barrels under twelve inches) to aid in the suppression of "crimes of violence." The Act mandates that individuals must obtain a license from local authorities to carry a pistol—excepting law enforcement, military personnel, and certain merchants—and strictly prohibits possession by those previously convicted of violent crimes. It regulates commercial transactions by requiring retail licenses, a 48-hour waiting period for deliveries, and detailed record-keeping for every sale, while also forbidding the transfer of weapons to minors, drug addicts, or those of "unsound mind." Furthermore, the law increases penalties for crimes committed while armed, prohibits the alteration of identification marks, and sets a uniform fine of up to $500 or one year of imprisonment for any violations of its provisions.Item type:Item, 1878-79 Ala. Laws 437(1878)Ch. 314, § 14: Authorized Uniontown to license dealers of pistols, Bowie knives, and dirk knives.Item type:Item, John W.A. Sanford, The Code of the City of Montgomery, Prepared in Pursuance of an Order of the City Council of Montgomery 7-9 (1861)(1861)Granted the mayor and aldermen the power and authority to assess, levy, and collect annual taxes on pistol galleries.Item type:Item, 1876 Ala. Code 989(1876)§ 4809: Prohibited the concealed carrying of any Bowie knife, or any other knife of like kind or description, pistol, air gun, slungshot, brass knuckles, or other deadly or dangerous weapon, unless the person was threatened with, or had good reason to apprehend, an attack, or " while traveling, or setting out on a journey." Punishable by fine of $50-300 and imprisonment of not more than 6 months.Item type:Item, 1894 Ala. Laws 616(1894)Approved the town of Columbia to require licensing but also placed a maximum license fee of one hundred dollars on dealers of pistols, pistol cartridges, bowie knives, dirk knives. Gun shops, or gun repair shops capped at five dollars.Item type:Item, 1852 Ala. Code 588(1852)Prohibited the concealed carry of a pistol, or any other firearms, while not being threatened or having good reason to believe attack is imminent. Also prohibited the concealed carry of knives and handguns. Violators fined not less than fifty, but no more than three hundred dollars.Item type:Item, 1888-89 Ala. Laws 82(1889)Prohibited associating, assembling, congregating together for the purpose of drilling, parading, or marching, or bearing arms in such capacity. Violators guilty a misdemeanor & fined not more than one thousand dollars.Item type:Item, 1861 Ala. Laws 214-15(1861)Appropriated $6000 to purchase Bowie knives and Bowie knife pikes for the 48th regiment of the Alabama militia at an inflated price of $3 per Bowie knife due to Bowie knife restrictions. The average value of a Bowie knife was fifty cents in other states.Item type:Item, A Revised Code of Ordinances of the City of Tuscaloosa 161 (1885)(1885)§ 375 prohibited discharging a gun, pistol, or other fire-arm within the corporate limits of Tuscaloosa. Violators fined not exceeding twenty-five dollars. § 376 prohibited shooting gravel or other substance with a. gravel-shooter, sling-shot, or other implement of like kind within the city. Violators fined not exceeding five dollars.Item type:Item, 1874-75 Ala. Laws 41(1874)§ 102, pt. 27: Imposed $25 occupational tax on dealers of pistols, Bowie knives, and dirk knives.Item type:Item, 1909 Ala. Laws 258(1909)This Alabama legislative act establishes a general prohibition against carrying a concealed pistol or carrying any pistol on property not owned or controlled by the individual. While it provides exemptions for specific law enforcement and federal officials, it mandates penalties ranging from fines to imprisonment or hard labor for violators. Notably, the act allows defendants to present evidence of a "good reason" to fear an attack as a potential justification or means to reduce the fine, though the burden of proof for such an excuse rests entirely on the defendant during trial.Item type:Item, A. H. Jackson & James W. Lapsley, Code of the City of Selma 96 (1862)(1862)Prohibition on concealed carry without legitimate reason.Item type:Item, 1887 Ala. Code 194(1887)Imposed a tax of $300 on the sale of pistols, pistol cartridges, Bowie knives, and dirk knives. Imposed $25 tax on shooting galleries.Item type:Item, 1880-81 Ala. Laws 38-39(1881)Prohibited the concealed carrying of any Bowie knife, or any other knife of like kind or description, pistol, or firearm of " any other kind or description," or air gun. Punishable by fine of $50-300 and imprisonment of not more than 6 months. Further provided that fines collected under the statute would be monetary and not in-kind payments.