Wilsonville, AL

Wilsonville is a town in southeast Shelby County on the Coosa River above Lay Lake. Its road story began with a stagecoach route toward Montgomery; later, a wide-gauge railroad connected Wilsonville to Talladega and brought Shelby County's first railroad depot. The town was named for Elisha Wilson, an early settler, and incorporated in 1897. Alabama Route 25 now bisects the downtown, running northeast toward Harpersville and southwest toward Columbiana.

Water and power shape the town's wider map. Lay Lake and the Coosa River bring fishing, boating, and shoreline recreation close to town, while the E. C. Gaston Steam Plant, completed in 1929, stands as a reminder of the river-based power system that helped modernize Alabama. Wilsonville's present-day map holds a highway through Main Street, the historic depot site, and a river edge that keeps the town connected to the lake. The town's elementary school belongs to Shelby County's school system, keeping the school map close to the highway and river.