McDuffie County, Georgia

McDuffie County
County
McDuffie County Courthouse in Thomson
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°29′N82°29′W / 33.48°N 82.48°W / 33.48; -82.48
Country	United States
State	Georgia
Founded	1870;155 years ago (1870)
Named for	George McDuffie
Seat	Thomson
Largest city	Thomson
Area
• Total	266 sq mi (690 km2)
• Land	257 sq mi (670 km2)
• Water	8.9 sq mi (23 km2)  3.4%
Population  (2020)
• Total	21,632
• Density	84/sq mi (32/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	10th
Website	www.thomson-mcduffie.gov

McDuffie County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,632. ^[1] The county seat is Thomson. ^[2] The county was created on October 18, 1870 ^[3] and named after the South Carolina governor and senator George McDuffie. ^[4]

McDuffie County is part of the Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC metropolitan statistical area.

History

Most communities located in the county were founded before the county was created. Some have faded into obscurity. The Historic Wrightsborough Foundation preserves the memory of the early 12,000 acre settlement of Wrightborough, which was occupied 1768 to 1920. ^[5]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 266 square miles (690 km²), of which 257 square miles (670 km²) is land and 8.9 square miles (23 km²) (3.4%) is water. ^[6]

Most of the southern half of McDuffie County, south of Thomson, is located in the Brier Creek sub-basin of the Savannah River basin, except for a slice of the eastern portion of the county, north of Dearing and along a north–south line running through Boneville, which is located in the Middle Savannah River sub-basin of the Savannah River basin. The northern half of McDuffie County, north of Thomson, is located in the Little River sub-basin of the same Savannah River basin. ^[7]

Major highways

• Interstate 20
• U.S. Route 78
• U.S. Route 221
• U.S. Route 278
• State Route 10
• State Route 12
• State Route 17
• State Route 43
• State Route 47
• State Route 150
• State Route 223
• State Route 402 (unsigned designation for I-20)

Adjacent counties

• Lincoln County (northeast)
• Columbia County (east)
• Richmond County (southeast)
• Jefferson County (south)
• Warren County (west)
• Wilkes County (northwest)

Communities

City

• Thomson (county seat)

Town

• Dearing

Unincorporated communities

• Autney
• Boneville
• Cobbham
• Cobbham Crossroads

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	9,449		—
1890	8,789		−7.0%
1900	9,804		11.5%
1910	10,325		5.3%
1920	11,509		11.5%
1930	9,014		−21.7%
1940	10,878		20.7%
1950	11,443		5.2%
1960	12,627		10.3%
1970	15,276		21.0%
1980	18,546		21.4%
1990	20,119		8.5%
2000	21,231		5.5%
2010	21,875		3.0%
2020	21,632		−1.1%
2023 (est.)	21,799	[8]	0.8%
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]

McDuffie County racial composition as of 2020 ^[18]

Race	Num.	Perc.
White (non-Hispanic)	11,417	52.78%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic)	8,644	39.96%
Native American	45	0.21%
Asian	76	0.35%
Pacific Islander	13	0.06%
Other/Mixed	647	2.99%
Hispanic or Latino	790	3.65%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 21,632 people, 8,153 households, and 5,770 families residing in the county.

Education

Main article: Thomson, Georgia § Education

Politics

Typical of many counties in Georgia and the Solid South, McDuffie County mainly backed candidates of the Democratic Party in presidential elections by wide margins prior to 1964. There were several exceptions to this, firstly between 1892 and 1908 when it supported Republican William McKinley and the Populist candidacies of James B. Weaver and favorite son Thomas E. Watson. ^[19]

United States presidential election results for McDuffie County, Georgia ^[20]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	6,562	62.01%	3,937	37.20%	83	0.78%
2020	6,169	59.00%	4,168	39.86%	119	1.14%
2016	5,432	58.27%	3,699	39.68%	191	2.05%
2012	5,475	57.00%	4,044	42.10%	86	0.90%
2008	5,400	57.11%	3,989	42.19%	66	0.70%
2004	4,846	62.29%	2,899	37.26%	35	0.45%
2000	3,926	59.94%	2,580	39.39%	44	0.67%
1996	3,254	50.96%	2,725	42.68%	406	6.36%
1992	2,955	45.69%	2,640	40.82%	873	13.50%
1988	3,231	65.04%	1,704	34.30%	33	0.66%
1984	3,284	62.08%	2,006	37.92%	0	0.00%
1980	1,928	41.17%	2,667	56.95%	88	1.88%
1976	1,694	35.91%	3,024	64.09%	0	0.00%
1972	2,990	75.01%	996	24.99%	0	0.00%
1968	1,324	32.89%	992	24.65%	1,709	42.46%
1964	2,657	70.27%	1,124	29.73%	0	0.00%
1960	1,039	49.06%	1,079	50.94%	0	0.00%
1956	649	38.45%	1,039	61.55%	0	0.00%
1952	933	44.32%	1,172	55.68%	0	0.00%
1948	58	3.87%	182	12.13%	1,260	84.00%
1944	187	19.04%	795	80.96%	0	0.00%
1940	75	7.20%	959	92.12%	7	0.67%
1936	98	12.11%	705	87.14%	6	0.74%
1932	29	4.80%	568	94.04%	7	1.16%
1928	381	55.62%	304	44.38%	0	0.00%
1924	37	6.61%	267	47.68%	256	45.71%
1920	109	22.20%	382	77.80%	0	0.00%
1916	70	11.65%	466	77.54%	65	10.82%
1912	9	2.33%	271	70.21%	106	27.46%

See also

• State of Georgia portal

• Central Savannah River Area
• National Register of Historic Places listings in McDuffie County, Georgia
• List of counties in Georgia

References

1. "Census - Geography Profile: McDuffie County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved December 27, 2022.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. Georgia.gov's McDuffie County Overview
4. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 194.
5. Georgia Encyclopedia: Wrightsborough, accessed October 2017.
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. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
8. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
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.
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 February 16, 2014.
18. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
19. Menendez, Albert J.; The Geography of Presidential Elections in the United States, 1868-2004, p. 169 ISBN   0786422173
20. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.

External links

• Official website

33°29′N82°29′W / 33.48°N 82.48°W / 33.48; -82.48