Quitman County, Georgia

Not to be confused with Quitman, Georgia.

Quitman County
County
Quitman County Courthouse in Georgetown
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 31°52′N85°01′W / 31.86°N 85.01°W / 31.86; -85.01
Country	United States
State	Georgia
Founded	December 10, 1858;166 years ago (1858)
Named for	John A. Quitman
Seat	Georgetown
Largest city	Georgetown
Area
• Total	161 sq mi (420 km2)
• Land	151 sq mi (390 km2)
• Water	9.3 sq mi (24 km2)  5.8%
Population  (2020)
• Total	2,235
• Density	15/sq mi (6/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Quitman County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,235, ^[1] making it the second-least populous county in Georgia. The county seat is Georgetown. ^[2] The county was created on December 10, 1858, and named after General John A. Quitman, leader in the Mexican–American War, and once Governor of Mississippi. In November 2006, residents voted to consolidate the city government of Georgetown and the county government of Quitman into a consolidated city-county.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 161 square miles (420 km²), of which 151 square miles (390 km²) is land and 9.3 square miles (24 km²) (5.8%) is water. ^[3] The entirety of Quitman County is located in the Middle Chattahoochee River–Walter F. George Lake sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). ^[4]

Major highways

• U.S. Route 82
• State Route 27
• State Route 39
• State Route 50

Adjacent counties

• Stewart County (north)
• Randolph County (east)
• Clay County (south)
• Barbour County, Alabama (west/CST Border)

National protected area

• Eufaula National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Communities

City

• Georgetown (county seat)

Unincorporated community

• Morris

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1860	3,499		—
1870	4,150		18.6%
1880	4,392		5.8%
1890	4,471		1.8%
1900	4,701		5.1%
1910	4,594		−2.3%
1920	3,417		−25.6%
1930	3,820		11.8%
1940	3,435		−10.1%
1950	3,015		−12.2%
1960	2,432		−19.3%
1970	2,180		−10.4%
1980	2,357		8.1%
1990	2,209		−6.3%
2000	2,598		17.6%
2010	2,513		−3.3%
2020	2,235		−11.1%
2023 (est.)	2,280	[5]	2.0%
U.S. Decennial Census [6] 1790-1880 [7] 1890-1910 [8] 1920-1930 [9] 1930-1940 [10] 1940-1950 [11] 1960-1980 [12] 1980-2000 [13] 2010 [14]

Quitman County racial composition as of the 2020 U.S. census ^[15]

Race	Num.	Perc.
White	1,190	53.24%
Black or African American	917	41.03%
Native American	13	0.58%
Asian	12	0.54%
Other/Mixed	72	3.22%
Hispanic or Latino	31	1.39%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,235 people, 842 households, and 577 families residing in the county.

Education

Quitman County School District operates area public schools, including Quitman County High School.

County students attended Stewart-Quitman High School (now Stewart County High School) from 1978, until Quitman County High opened, ^[16] in 2009.^{[ citation needed ]}

Politics

United States presidential election results for Quitman County, Georgia ^[17]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	604	54.61%	497	44.94%	5	0.45%
2016	575	55.08%	461	44.16%	8	0.77%
2012	510	45.21%	612	54.26%	6	0.53%
2008	509	45.61%	597	53.49%	10	0.90%
2004	409	42.38%	543	56.27%	13	1.35%
2000	348	38.50%	542	59.96%	14	1.55%
1996	224	28.11%	514	64.49%	59	7.40%
1992	284	30.80%	523	56.72%	115	12.47%
1988	296	40.11%	436	59.08%	6	0.81%
1984	361	42.42%	490	57.58%	0	0.00%
1980	240	28.67%	589	70.37%	8	0.96%
1976	313	31.62%	677	68.38%	0	0.00%
1972	502	78.19%	140	21.81%	0	0.00%
1968	90	12.05%	198	26.51%	459	61.45%
1964	377	62.11%	230	37.89%	0	0.00%
1960	67	14.73%	388	85.27%	0	0.00%
1956	31	8.03%	355	91.97%	0	0.00%
1952	93	21.88%	332	78.12%	0	0.00%
1948	19	5.26%	246	68.14%	96	26.59%
1944	16	4.31%	355	95.69%	0	0.00%
1940	19	5.54%	324	94.46%	0	0.00%
1936	19	5.08%	355	94.92%	0	0.00%
1932	0	0.00%	239	98.35%	4	1.65%
1928	41	19.07%	174	80.93%	0	0.00%
1924	8	5.33%	138	92.00%	4	2.67%
1920	4	2.88%	135	97.12%	0	0.00%
1916	15	10.56%	125	88.03%	2	1.41%
1912	7	4.27%	152	92.68%	5	3.05%

From the 1940s to 1960s Joe Hurst dominated politics in Quitman County, delivering votes for statewide officials, state judges, and prosecuting attorneys, under the County unit system which gave Quitman two units, a third as many as the biggest counties in the state. He hand-delivered state welfare checks and prevented secret ballots. In 1962 he stuffed the ballot box for future President Jimmy Carter's opponent in a state senate primary. Carter won a series of court cases to remove his Democratic primary opponent's name from the general election ballot. There was no Republican candidate. Both candidates used radio ads to ask voters to vote by write-in, and Carter won the general election. Hurst was later convicted of fraud in an earlier primary, for which he had a fine and three years probation. He was also convicted of selling moonshine, for which he went to prison. ^{[18] [19]}

See also

• State of Georgia portal

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Quitman County, Georgia
• List of counties in Georgia

References

1. "Census - Geography Profile: Quitman County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved December 28, 2022.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
4. "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
5. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
6. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". United States Census Bureau.
7. "1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1880.
8. "1910 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1910.
9. "1930 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1930.
10. "1940 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1940.
11. "1950 Census of Population - Georgia -" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1950.
12. "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1980.
13. "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000.
14. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
15. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
16. "Stewart - Quitman County High School is Splitting Up". WTVM. August 14, 2008. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
17. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
18. Carter, Jimmy (1992). Turning point: a candidate, a state, and a nation come of age (1 ed.). New York: Times Books. pp. 74–204. ISBN   978-0-8129-2079-6.
19. Bourne, Peter G. (1997). Jimmy Carter: a comprehensive biography from Plains to postpresidency. New York: A Lisa Drew book Scribner. pp. 113–132. ISBN   978-0-684-19543-8.

External links

• Georgetown-Quitman County Consolidated Government
• Quitman County Sheriff