Centre is a city in northeast Alabama and the seat of Cherokee County. It sits in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, roughly midway between the metro areas of Atlanta, Birmingham, and Chattanooga, and a short distance from the Georgia line. The 2020 census recorded 3,587 residents, and the city's county-seat role gives it an outsized civic importance relative to its small population. The city's defining natural feature is Weiss Lake, a 30,200-acre reservoir impounded on the Coosa River just north of town. Widely promoted as the "Crappie Capital of the World," the lake anchors a fishing and boating economy that draws anglers from across the Southeast and gives Centre a distinct waterfront character. The city limits extend toward the lake's southern shore, and lake recreation shapes much of the area's leisure life and seasonal tourism. As the county seat, Centre houses Cherokee County's government offices and its principal public schools, along with a compact downtown that includes the Cherokee County Historical Museum. Cherokee County takes its name from the Cherokee people who historically inhabited the region, and the county's identity remains tied to that heritage. U.S. Highway 411 and Alabama State Route 68 bypass the city to the north, providing regional connections while keeping the downtown quiet and walkable. Centre suits residents who want small-town life with strong lake access, set in the Appalachian foothills of northeast Alabama, within reasonable driving distance of three major regional metros and the outdoors of Lookout Mountain. The city offers the services of a county seat alongside the recreation of one of Alabama's best-known fishing lakes.