Red Bay is a city in Franklin County, Alabama, United States.

What is now Red Bay was originally known as "Vinson's Crossroads," and was initially located further to the southwest along Gum Creek.

A branch of the Illinois Central Railroad was constructed through the area in 1907, and Red Bay developed into an important lumber and shipping center.

The trees, planted by the Red Bay Garden Club in the 1930s, cast a canopy over Main Street.

The first school in Red Bay was located where the First United Methodist Church stands today.

After crops were harvested, students attended school through the remainder of the fall and winter months until the spring planting season.

The building constructed in 1927 was a brick "U", one of the most popular school designs in Alabama at the time.

A large auditorium with double wooden seats that could be folded and stored was centrally located between the two wings.

With steps leading from the hallway, the first cafeteria available to Red Bay students became operational.

Eight years later, in 1984, a new cafeteria was ready for use in time for the school's annual football banquet.

The former cafeteria was renovated providing five additional classrooms, a photography lab, and a yearbook staff workroom.

[4] Football games were first played in a pasture where the present Sunshine Homes plant is located.

Later, the games were played at the American Legion Field which is the current location of Tiffin Motor Homes.

Red Bay boys basketball made the final eight teams in 1995 with a 26–5 record.

In the summer of 2006, the Red Bay City Hall caught fire after a transformer exploded.

The contractor bid for the new city hall by Burton Construction of Belmont, Mississippi, was supposedly $750,000.

[citation needed] Red Bay is located in western Franklin County at 34°26′24″N 88°8′18″W / 34.44000°N 88.13833°W / 34.44000; -88.13833 (34.439898, -88.138208).

It is situated on the Tennessee Valley Divide, with the northern half of the city draining north to Bear Creek, a tributary of the Tennessee River, and the southern half draining south to Gum Creek, a tributary of the Tombigbee River.

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,232 people, 1,220 households, and 640 families residing in the city.