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Sterling

Ghost town · Cherokee County, Alabama

Cedar Bluff quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1967, 1:24,000)
Cedar Bluff quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1967, 1:24,000) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Sterling is a ghost town in Cherokee County, Alabama. It is one of 13 former communities in Cherokee County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 12th among the 53 Alabama counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Sterling as a historical populated place on the Cedar Bluff topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 34.2431° N, 85.5061° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleCedar Bluff
Elevation647 ft
Nearest living townGaylesville, AL
Distance to it3.6 miles
GNIS feature ID1926422
Coordinates34.24315, -85.50607

Open the location on a map

What's there now

Sterling is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Gaylesville, AL (population 120), about 3.6 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 647 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Sterling?

Sterling is in Cherokee County, Alabama, at 34.2431, -85.5061.

How many ghost towns are in Cherokee County?

Cherokee County, Alabama has 13 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.