St. Elmo, AL is a city located seven miles north of Bayou La Batre and the Mississippi Sound, and 10 miles east of Grand Bay. Most of St. Elmo, Alabama lies along US Highway 90. St. Elmo was originally a farming community and was served by the L&N Railroad, which provided passenger and freight depots. Jesse James and his gang were rumored to have once hid out in St. Elmo after one of their robberies, and assumed aliases while hiding out. There is an outlying airfield of Brookley Air Force Base, which is located west of town just north of Highway 90. It was used for training flights during World War II and is now owned by the State of Alabama.