The City of Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa County and the Black Warrior River which runs through the City of Tuscaloosa all take their name from the Choctaw Indian Chief "tushka lusa" (tushka meaning "warrior", lusa meaning "black") which was translated as Tuskaloosa and later Tuscaloosa.  According to historical accounts, Chief Tuskaloosa was a very wise and respected leader and was of impressive physical stature standing nearly 7 feet tall.  He encountered Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto during his travels through what would later become Alabama and around 1540, waged a violent battle with DeSoto at a settlement called Maubilia which was southwest of the present Tuscaloosa area.  In 1817 Alabama became a territory and on December 13, 1819, the territorial legislature incorporated the town of Tuscaloosa, exactly one day before Congress admitted Alabama to the Union as a state.  As such, the City of Tuscaloosa is exactly one day older than the State of Alabama.
Please use the menu links on the left side of this page to access additional information regarding the facts and history of Tuscaloosa.