Altoona, AL

Altoona is a small town in Etowah County, Alabama, and part of the Gadsden metropolitan area. It sits in Murphree Valley at the base of Altoona Mountain, with Straight Mountain nearby, so the landscape matters more than the town's size suggests. Altoona began around 1900 as a mining town and was named after Altoona, Pennsylvania, another coal community. T...