The last time Mobile was bigger than Birmingham in population, commercial car sales were just beginning, Teddy Roosevelt was president, and Joe Cain — the Mobilian credited with reviving Mardi Gras after the Civil War — was still alive.

But for the past 123 years, Birmingham simply had more people than Mobile.

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That was until Tuesday when Mobile added 19,789 new residents in a single day with an annexation vote – leapfrogging both Birmingham and Montgomery into the position of second most populous city in Alabama with about 204,600 residents.

It’s a new status celebrated by some in the Port City as if Mardi Gras had come six months early.

But when it comes to a city’s population size, does bigger really mean better?

At least some think so.

“We are bigger than Birmingham,” a smiling Mayor Sandy Stimpson said to supporters Tuesday at a seafood restaurant on the western outskirts of Mobile.

Bradley Byrne, president & CEO with the Mobile Chamber, said on Wednesday that Mobile becoming bigger than Birmingham illustrates the city’s success as a growing city.

“Being the second-largest city in Alabama is a big deal now and we can add to it that we’re bigger than Birmingham,” said Byrne, a former congressman in South Alabama. “Anyone looking to bring business to a new place wants to know that it’s a successful and growing place.”

Birmingham reacts

Birmingham city officials have a different view of things, and they cite their city’s significance as the cultural and economic heart of the largest metropolitan regions in Alabama.

Birmingham city spokesman Rick Journey, in a statement to AL.com, said the Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area has a population of 1.1 million people, which is far greater than any other MSA in the state.

The Mobile MSA, which consists of Mobile and Washington counties, has a population of 430,197. Even by adding fast-growing Baldwin County, the combined statistical area is around 662,000 residents.

“Birmingham is proud to be the urban center of the Greater Birmingham Region, which remains the most populous region and economic center of the state,” Journey said.

The Birmingham City Council, in a joint statement to AL.com, said the city remains the “cultural and economic heartbeat of Alabama.” Birmingham, with a population of 197,575, is now the fourth-largest city in Alabama.

The council’s full statement reads, “As a result of yesterday’s special election, a large number of unincorporated county residents were annexed in to allow for a dramatic increase in Mobile’s population. Numbers on paper can say one thing, but the growth we’ve seen over the last several years in Birmingham tells another story, and Birmingham has been and will remain the cultural and economic heartbeat of Alabama. We remain optimistic about Birmingham’s growth over the next decade as we continue to work with our community shareholders to make this city the best version of itself.”

Montgomery and Huntsville

The additional population in Mobile also represents the first time since the 1990s when the Port City surpassed Alabama’s Capitol City in population count. Montgomery officials could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed, whose city is slightly above Birmingham for No. 3 in population at 198,665 residents, said his city is the “state’s leader in economic development with 2,000 new jobs and $1.7 billion invested in 2022.”

He said the city is positioned for “long-term, sustainable growth at a rate that has not been realized in decades.”

Reed said he was happy for Mobile. However, he said his residents are focused on other things.

“When I talk to our citizens, they are focused on public safety and educating their children and grandchildren,” he said. “As mayor of Montgomery, that is my focus. When we talk to site developers and project managers, they are focused on workforce, job creation and job retention. So as the Mayor, that, too, is my focus. If we meet the needs of our residents and stakeholders, then it does not matter if we are the first or the fifth largest city in Alabama. What matters is our city is growing and our residents are getting what they need from my office and the city, and the rest will take care of itself.”

Tuscaloosa, with a population of 100,618 residents, is the state’s fifth-largest city.

Huntsville will continue its lock on the largest city in Alabama. The city is also the fastest growing among major cities in Alabama. The Rocket City, with nearly 217,000 residents, officially became Alabama’s largest following the 2020 Census.

“Huntsville’s focus remains on being the best,” Mayor Tommy Battle said in a statement. “Our emphasis continues to be on quality-of-life, good-paying jobs, and healthy, measured growth. Whether we are No. 1, 2, or 3 in size has never factored into our vision.”

Future annexations

Mobile officials hinted that they could continue to look at further westward annexations following the special election on Tuesday.

Del Sawyer, who heads up the pro-annexation group, said he anticipates reaching out to residents in the sole corridor that voted down annexation – near the Mobile Regional Airport along Airport Boulevard. He said that he felt those residents were fed “misinformation” leading to the election, and he worries that voters did not consider the potential of losing city police and fire protection services.

Had voters in that area would have agreed to annexation, an additional 6,017 residents would have been added, increasing Mobile’s population to nearly 211,000 residents and inching ever closer to Huntsville.

“They’ve been talking about it like they were in rural Mobile County 30 years ago,” Sawyer said about some of the anti-annexation voters within that area. “The city grew up and grew past them regardless where the (city limit) line is at. County doesn’t necessarily mean rural. There wasn’t any area we felt was rural.”

Becky Light, 50, a voter within that area, said she felt the areas west of the city limits already have “great fire protection” with a local volunteer fire protection agency. She felt there was no reason for city officials to threaten voters with the prospects of eliminating police protection within the three-mile police jurisdiction west of Mobile.

The council could explore terminating policing within the jurisdiction that consists of approximately 71,000 residents.

“I don’t think that a lot of (city) money will be coming out here,” Light said. “I think it will stay closer to downtown. There are just not a lot of advantages for us to be in the city … if it’s not broken, why fix it?”

Sawyer said he hopes he convince voters like Light otherwise.

“Everything hinges on a growing population,” Sawyer said. “New airlines come in and they want to know if your city is vibrant or on the upswing or on the decline.”

He added, “We have a future, and Birmingham (city) has a declining future. I don’t care what the (metropolitan area) is. We’re just proud to be Mobilians today.”