Baldwin County, Alabama

Baldwin County
County
The Baldwin County Courthouse in Bay Minette
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Alabama
Alabama's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 30°39′39″N 87°44′59″W / 30.66097°N 87.74984°W / 30.66097; -87.74984
Country	United States
State	Alabama
Founded	December 21[1], 1809[1]
Named for	Abraham Baldwin
Seat	Bay Minette
Largest city	Daphne
Area [2]
• Total	2,027 sq mi (5,250 km2)
• Land	1,590 sq mi (4,100 km2)
• Water	437 sq mi (1,130 km2)  21.6%
Population  (2020)
• Total	231,767
• Estimate  (2023)	253,507
• Density	110/sq mi (44/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	1st
Website	baldwincountyal.gov
County Number 05 on Alabama License Plates Largest County by population not shuffled to top 4 on Alabama License Plates

Baldwin County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Alabama, on the Gulf coast. It is one of only two counties in Alabama that border the Gulf of Mexico, along with Mobile County. As of the 2020 census, the population was 231,767, making it the fourth-most populous county in Alabama.^[3] The county seat is Bay Minette. The county is named after the founder of the University of Georgia, Senator Abraham Baldwin.^[4]

Baldwin was Alabama's fastest-growing county from 2010 to 2020, with 4 of the top 10 fastest-growing cities in the state in recent years.^[5]

The U.S. federal government designates Baldwin County as the Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL metropolitan statistical area.

It is the largest county in Alabama by area and is located on the eastern side of Mobile Bay. Part of its western border with Mobile County is formed by the Spanish River, a brackish distributary river.