Originally called "Cowhead", the town began to be settled in 1820, just a year after Alabama achieved statehood.

[4] William J. Rook began a post office in Cowhead in 1883; however, it was closed a month later.

According to local lore, at a community meeting, the town received its current name "Eva" in October 1883 at the suggestion of a local physician, Dr. Lewis Keller, who had just delivered a beautiful baby girl by that name, Eva Brandon.

After discussion, the community agreed upon the name Eva because the town needed a new name as a prerequisite for establishing a new post office.

[4] In 1916, Mr. Wiley Steward, local sawmill owner, donated 5 acres (2.0 ha) of land to the town, for the construction of a new school.

In 1918, using donations from the local community, Eva gazed with admiration upon a beautiful new four-room schoolhouse.

Even the Great Depression could not hold this thriving community down from its dream of higher education for its children.

It was a community undertaking, but the fairy tale dream of a resolute community was realized in 1930, when Eva became a proud possessor of an accredited high school and held graduation exercises with a senior class composed of three members.

[1] The town center, at an elevation of 1,105 feet (337 m) above sea level, is just north of the Tennessee Valley Divide.