Washington County, Georgia
Template:Short description Template:Distinguish Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county
Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,988.<ref name="QF">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Census 2020">U.S. 2020 Census Bureau report, Washington County, Georgia</ref> The county seat is Sandersville.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> The county was established on February 25, 1784. It was named for Revolutionary War general and President of the United States George Washington.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (0.9%) is water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>
The western portion of Washington County, west of a north-to-south line running through Sandersville, is located in the Lower Oconee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. The northeastern portion of the county, north of Riddleville, is located in the Upper Ogeechee River sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin, while the southeastern portion, centered on Harrison, is located in the Ohoopee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Major highways
State Route 15
State Route 24
State Route 24 Spur
State Route 57
State Route 68
State Route 88
State Route 102
State Route 231
State Route 242
State Route 272
State Route 540 (Fall Line Freeway)
Adjacent counties
- Glascock County (northeast)
- Jefferson County (east)
- Johnson County (south)
- Wilkinson County (southwest)
- Baldwin County (west)
- Hancock County (northwest)
Communities
Cities
- Davisboro
- Oconee
- Sandersville (county seat)
- Tennille
Towns
Census-designated places
Other unincorporated communities
- Ennis, Georgia
- Goat Town
- Hamburg, Washington County, Georgia
- Irwins Crossroads
- Pringle
- Sun Hill
- Tanner, Georgia
- Veal, Washington County, Georgia
Demographics
2020 Census
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | % 2000 | % 2010 | Template:Partial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 9,620 | 9,339 | 8,412 | 45.43% | 44.08% | 42.09% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 11,233 | 11,124 | 10,698 | 53.05% | 52.50% | 53.52% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 35 | 19 | 37 | 0.17% | 0.09% | 0.19% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 55 | 104 | 76 | 0.26% | 0.49% | 0.38% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.01% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 11 | 26 | 30 | 0.05% | 0.12% | 0.15% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 86 | 167 | 401 | 0.41% | 0.79% | 2.01% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 134 | 407 | 334 | 0.63% | 1.92% | 1.67% |
| Total | 21,176 | 21,187 | 19,988 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 19,988 people, 7,503 households, and 5,315 families residing in the county.
Education
The county is served by the Washington County School District, which includes:<ref name="District">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Ridge Road Elementary School
- T.J. Elder Middle School
- Washington County High School.
The county is also the location of one privately run school:
In popular culture
The 1933 short story "The People's Choice" by Erskine Caldwell is set in Washington County, where the story's protagonist is a popular local politician elected again and again as the county's tax assessor.
In 1992, the Pig Monument was erected in the county, near Oconee off of Georgia State Route 272. The monument commemorates a 1933 event where several residents of the county gathered together to help a local farmer rescue a pig that had fallen down a dry well.
The biography of one of the main characters (Grant Alexander) in the 2011 console game X-Men: Destiny states that they were born in Sandersville, Georgia.
Politics
Like most other majority-minority counties in the South, Washington County has primarily backed Democratic Party candidates for most of its history. Democratic margins of victory in presidential elections were far greater prior to 1964, but the county has only failed to back a Democratic presidential candidate five times in its history. However, no candidate of any party since Bill Clinton in 1996 has managed to win the county by a margin of 1,000 votes or greater. It was the most Black county in Georgia to vote for Donald Trump in 2024. Template:PresHead Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresFoot
See also
- Central Savannah River Area
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Georgia
- List of counties in Georgia
References
Further reading
- Ella Mitchell, History of Washington County. Atlanta, GA: Byrd Printing Company, 1924. —Reissued 1973.
External links
Template:Washington County, Georgia Template:Central Savannah River Area Template:Georgia (U.S. state) Template:Authority control