Lee County, Georgia

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Lee County, Georgia
County
Lee County Courthouse, Leesburg.JPG
Lee County courthouse in Leesburg
Map of Georgia highlighting Lee County.svg
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Coordinates: 31°47′N84°08′W / 31.78°N 84.14°W / 31.78; -84.14
CountryFlag of the United States.svg United States
StateFlag of Georgia (U.S. state).svg Georgia
FoundedJune 9, 1825;200 years ago (1825-06-09)
Named after Henry Lee III
Seat Leesburg
Largest cityLeesburg
Area
 • Total
362 sq mi (940 km2)
 • Land356 sq mi (920 km2)
 • Water5.9 sq mi (15 km2)  1.6%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
33,163
 • Density93/sq mi (36/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 2nd
Website www.lee.ga.us

Lee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 33,163. [1] The county was established in 1825 and its county seat is Leesburg. [2] Lee County is included in the Albany, Georgia metropolitan area.

Contents

History

The land for Lee, Muscogee, Troup, Coweta, and Carroll counties was ceded by the Creek people in the 1825 Treaty of Indian Springs. The counties' boundaries were created by the Georgia General Assembly on June 9, but they were not named until December 14, 1826. [3] The county was named in honor of Henry Lee III, popularly known as "Light-Horse Harry," the father of Confederate general Robert E. Lee. [4] On January 29, 1916, five African American men were lynched; they were taken from the Worth county jail and hanged, their bodies riddled with bullets. [5] The Leesburg Stockade occurred in Lee County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 362 square miles (940 km2), of which 356 square miles (920 km2) is land and 5.9 square miles (15 km2) (1.6%) is water. [6] Most of the western three-quarters of Lee County is located in the Kinchafoonee-Muckalee sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The eastern quarter of the county is located in the Middle Flint River sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin, while a very small corner in the south of Lee County is located in the Lower Flint River sub-basin of the same larger ACF River Basin. An even smaller southwestern corner is located in the Ichawaynochaway Creek sub-basin of the ACF River Basin. [7]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Communities

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1830 1,680—
1840 4,520169.0%
1850 6,66047.3%
1860 7,1968.0%
1870 9,56732.9%
1880 10,57710.6%
1890 9,074−14.2%
1900 10,34414.0%
1910 11,67912.9%
1920 10,904−6.6%
1930 8,328−23.6%
1940 7,837−5.9%
1950 6,674−14.8%
1960 6,204−7.0%
1970 7,04413.5%
1980 11,68465.9%
1990 16,25039.1%
2000 24,75752.4%
2010 28,29814.3%
2020 33,16317.2%
2024 (est.)34,073 [8] 2.7%
U.S. Decennial Census [9]
1790-1880 [10] 1890-1910 [11]
1920-1930 [12] 1930-1940 [13]
1940-1950 [14] 1960-1980 [15]
1980-2000 [16] 2010 [17]
Lee County racial composition as of 2020 [18]
RaceNum.Perc.
White (non-Hispanic)22,75868.62%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)7,33122.11%
Native American 570.17%
Asian 8502.56%
Pacific Islander 90.03%
Other/Mixed 1,2053.63%
Hispanic or Latino 9532.87%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 33,163 people, 11,971 households, and 7,872 families residing in the county. The median age was 38.5 years; 25.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.1 males age 18 and over. 37.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 62.4% lived in rural areas. [19] [20]

Of the 11,971 households, 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. [19]

There were 12,709 housing units, of which 5.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 71.5% were owner-occupied and 28.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%. [19]

As of the 2020 census, the racial makeup of the county was 69.3% White, 22.2% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.6% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.1% from some other race, and 4.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.9% of the population. [21]

Education

Lee County School District headquarters Lee County Board of Education, Leesburg.JPG
Lee County School District headquarters

Public schools are operated by the Lee County School District. Lee County High School is the sole high school of the district.

Politics

Historically, Lee County was part of the solidly Democratic Solid South [22] where control of the dominant black population dictated unified white voting for Democratic candidates due to the Republican association with Reconstruction and black political power. However, with a combination of the Great Migration and white in-migration, the black share of the county's population has declined and it is now powerfully Republican, having voted Republican in every presidential election since 1964, with the exception of 1968 and 1976 when it backed Southern “favorite sons” George Wallace and Jimmy Carter.

As of the 2020s, Lee County is a Republican stronghold, voting 71% for Donald Trump in 2024. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Lee County is part of Georgia's 2nd congressional district, currently represented by Sanford Bishop. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Lee County is part of District 13. [23] For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Lee County is part of District 151. [24]

United States presidential election results for Lee County, Georgia [25]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
№ %№ %№ %
1912 52.22%21394.67%73.11%
1916 41.24%31697.83%30.93%
1920 197.04%25192.96%00.00%
1924 239.39%21186.12%114.49%
1928 4513.55%28786.45%00.00%
1932 62.33%25297.67%00.00%
1936 10.20%49099.59%10.20%
1940 173.91%41695.63%20.46%
1944 275.70%44794.30%00.00%
1948 367.69%21545.94%21746.37%
1952 20534.45%39065.55%00.00%
1956 7912.93%53287.07%00.00%
1960 19132.10%40467.90%00.00%
1964 1,04181.01%24418.99%00.00%
1968 38917.18%67429.77%1,20153.05%
1972 1,44178.70%39021.30%00.00%
1976 1,11039.13%1,72760.87%00.00%
1980 1,94253.05%1,67045.62%491.34%
1984 2,97269.83%1,28430.17%00.00%
1988 2,87574.04%99525.62%130.33%
1992 3,06151.81%1,81130.65%1,03617.54%
1996 3,98361.15%2,00530.78%5258.06%
2000 5,87274.48%1,93624.56%760.96%
2004 8,20178.64%2,18220.92%450.43%
2008 9,92575.69%3,10023.64%870.66%
2012 10,31475.58%3,19623.42%1361.00%
2016 10,64674.73%3,17022.25%4303.02%
2020 12,00771.82%4,55827.26%1540.92%
2024 12,65571.38%4,95727.96%1180.67%

[26]

United States Senate election results for Lee County, Georgia3
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
№ %№ %№ %
2022 8,74371.05%3,56228.95%00.00%

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Census - Geography Profile: Lee County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved December 27, 2022.
  2. ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. ↑ Hellmann, Paul T. (May 13, 2013). Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Routledge. p. 236. ISBN   978-1135948597 . Retrieved November 30, 2013.
  4. ↑ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 184.
  5. ↑ "Coroner Probes Lynching in Lee". Atlanta Constitution . January 22, 1916. p. 9.
  6. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Archived from the original on October 3, 2018. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  8. ↑ "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 22, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". United States Census Bureau.
  10. ↑ "1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1880.
  11. ↑ "1910 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1910. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 16, 2024.
  12. ↑ "1930 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1930.
  13. ↑ "1940 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1940.
  14. ↑ "1950 Census of Population - Georgia -" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1950.
  15. ↑ "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1980.
  16. ↑ "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000.
  17. ↑ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  18. ↑ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  19. 1 2 3 "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  20. ↑ "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)". United States Census Bureau. 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  21. ↑ "2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)". United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  22. ↑ Phillips, Kevin P.; The Emerging Republican Majority, p. 267 ISBN   9780691163246
  23. ↑ "Georgia General Assembly". www.legis.ga.gov. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
  24. ↑ "Georgia General Assembly". www.legis.ga.gov. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
  25. ↑ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 15, 2018.
  26. ↑ "2022 Senate Election (Official Returns)". Commonwealth of Georgia by county. November 5, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
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