Rockdale County, Georgia

Rockdale County
County
Rockdale County Courthouse in Conyers
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°39′N84°02′W / 33.65°N 84.03°W / 33.65; -84.03
Country	United States
State	Georgia
Founded	October 18, 1870;154 years ago (1870-10-18)
Named for	Rockdale Baptist Church
Seat	Conyers
Largest city	Conyers
Area
• Total	132 sq mi (340 km2)
• Land	130 sq mi (300 km2)
• Water	2.3 sq mi (6 km2)  1.7%
Population  (2020)
• Total	93,570
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	4th
Website	rockdalecountyga.gov

Rockdale County is a county located in the North Central portion in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 93,570 up from 85,215 in 2010. ^{[1] [2]} The county seat is Conyers. ^[3]

Rockdale County is included in Metro Atlanta.

History

Rockdale Baptist Church

Rockdale County was created on October 18, 1870 ^{[4] [5]} and received its name from Rockdale Baptist Church (est. 1846), which was named after the granite strata that rests under the county's red clay top soil. ^[6] A bill introduced by John F. Hardin and John Harris carved Rockdale out of the northern portion of Newton County; parts of Rockdale County also came from neighboring Henry, Walton, Gwinnett, and DeKalb counties. Conyers, Rockdale's only incorporated town and urban center, became the county seat.

Prior to Rockdale becoming a county, the land had been inhabited by the Creek and Cherokee; the boundary between the two native nations, the Hightower Trail, ran directly through the area. Burial remains have been discovered in the Honey Creek and Hi-Roc areas. Whites began migrating to the area in the early 19th century and initial white settlers suffered from Indian raids. Early white settlements developed along Big Haynes Creek in the northern part of the county, the Yellow River in the middle portion of the county, and Honey Creek in the south.

Communities formed around grist mills and newly formed churches such as Haralson Mill, Costleys Mill, Dial Mill, Zacharys Mill, McElroys Mill, Union Grove Baptist Church, Ebenezer Methodist Church, Philadelphia Methodist Church, Salem Baptist Church, Smyrna Presbyterian Church, Pleasant Hill Baptist Church, Bethel Christian Church, Honey Creek Baptist Church, and Whites Chapel Methodist Church. Other communities included Magnet and Zingara. These settlers were largely subsistence farmers.

During the American Civil War, General William Tecumseh Sherman marched the Union Army north of Conyers on his way to Covington from Lithonia. Seizure and destruction of property accompanied his army's march through the area. Many of the residents of Conyers, fearing Sherman would raze the city, fled to nearby Social Circle in Walton County, since Conyers was an important stop on the Georgia Railroad, but Conyers remained unscathed by the war.

The city is a fine example of residential and commercial architecture of the 19th century. According to a historical marker on U.S. Highway 278 west of Conyers, Major General Joseph Wheeler of the Confederate States Army and part of his staff were captured by Union troops pursuing Jefferson Davis on May 9, 1865. Wheeler was later released in Athens only to be recaptured again. He was wounded three times and had his horse shot out from under him sixteen times.

During Reconstruction, Conyers and Rockdale County experienced tremendous growth. According to the local newspaper, The Weekly Farmer, the population of Conyers increased from 300 to 2,000. The number of stores, businesses, schools, and churches of the county rapidly multiplied as well. Parts of the county were infamous for moonshining and the county became dry in 1882, prohibiting the sale and manufacture of liquor except by a licensed pharmacist as prescribed by a physician. The economy of the county was still based primarily on agriculture into the early 20th century. The PBS documentary The Lost Children of Rockdale County is about a syphilis outbreak which occurred in the county during the 1990s.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 132 square miles (340 km²), of which 130 square miles (340 km²) is land and 2.3 square miles (6.0 km²) (1.7%) is water. ^[7] It is the second-smallest county in Georgia by area, ahead of Clarke County.

The entirety of Rockdale County is located in the Upper Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. ^[8]

Adjacent counties

• Newton County – Southeast
• Henry County – southwest
• DeKalb County – west
• Walton County – northeast
• Gwinnett County – north

Communities

City

• Conyers

Census-designated place

• Lakeview Estates

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	6,838		—
1890	6,813		−0.4%
1900	7,515		10.3%
1910	8,916		18.6%
1920	9,521		6.8%
1930	7,247		−23.9%
1940	7,724		6.6%
1950	8,464		9.6%
1960	10,572		24.9%
1970	18,152		71.7%
1980	36,747		102.4%
1990	54,091		47.2%
2000	70,111		29.6%
2010	85,215		21.5%
2020	93,570		9.8%
2023 (est.)	95,987	[9]	2.6%
U.S. Decennial Census [10] 1790-1880 [11] 1890-1910 [12] 1920-1930 [13] 1930-1940 [14] 1940-1950 [15] 1960-1980 [16] 1980-2000 [17] 2010 [18] 2020 [19]

Rockdale County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the U.S. census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000 [20]	Pop 2010 [18]	Pop 2020 [19]	% 2000	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	50,967	34,826	24,500	72.69%	40.87%	26.18%
Black or African American alone (NH)	12,670	38,996	53,785	18.07%	45.76%	57.48%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	166	179	168	0.24%	0.21%	0.18%
Asian alone (NH)	1,339	1,498	1,532	1.91%	1.76%	1.64%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	36	52	72	0.05%	0.06%	0.08%
Other race alone (NH)	100	230	617	0.14%	0.27%	0.66%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)	651	1,371	3,356	0.93%	1.61%	3.59%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	4,182	8,063	9,540	5.96%	9.46%	10.20%
Total	70,111	85,215	93,570	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 93,570 people, 32,792 households, and 23,533 families residing in the county.

In 2010, the median income for a household in the county was $53,599, and the median income for a family was $60,065. Males had a median income of $41,087 versus $29,189 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,300. About 5.70% of families and 8.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.00% of those under age 18 and 7.70% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Main article: Rockdale County School District

Government and policing

Rockdale County Sheriff

The Sheriff's Office provides police patrol to the county areas other than in Conyers which has a municipal police department. The Sheriff also protects the court, maintains the county prison, and provides administration services.

Politics

A former Republican stronghold, Rockdale County has undergone a massive shift towards the Democratic Party in recent decades, primarily due to large growth of the African-American population. In 2000, Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush won 62.64% of the county's vote, defeating Democrat Al Gore by 29 percentage points. However, just 20 years later, Democratic nominee Joe Biden won 69.88% of the county's vote, defeating Republican incumbent Donald Trump by nearly 41 percentage points. Contrary to national and statewide trends, Rockdale County delivered an even larger margin for Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in 2024, who defeated Republican nominee Donald Trump by 47 percentage points even as Trump narrowly flipped the state of Georgia back to the GOP column.

United States presidential election results for Rockdale County, Georgia ^[21]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	11,711	25.93%	33,165	73.44%	284	0.63%
2020	13,014	29.11%	31,237	69.88%	448	1.00%
2016	13,478	35.39%	23,255	61.06%	1,354	3.56%
2012	15,716	41.19%	22,023	57.72%	417	1.09%
2008	16,921	44.78%	20,526	54.32%	337	0.89%
2004	18,856	60.42%	12,136	38.89%	214	0.69%
2000	15,440	62.64%	8,295	33.65%	914	3.71%
1996	13,006	57.31%	7,656	33.73%	2,034	8.96%
1992	11,945	52.64%	7,003	30.86%	3,742	16.49%
1988	12,413	73.77%	4,330	25.73%	83	0.49%
1984	10,121	75.46%	3,291	24.54%	0	0.00%
1980	5,300	52.65%	4,395	43.66%	372	3.70%
1976	2,974	39.06%	4,640	60.94%	0	0.00%
1972	3,560	81.82%	791	18.18%	0	0.00%
1968	1,195	25.85%	1,213	26.24%	2,215	47.91%
1964	1,503	43.25%	1,972	56.75%	0	0.00%
1960	496	21.94%	1,765	78.06%	0	0.00%
1956	484	21.39%	1,779	78.61%	0	0.00%
1952	321	16.16%	1,665	83.84%	0	0.00%
1948	146	9.86%	1,209	81.63%	126	8.51%
1944	96	9.21%	946	90.79%	0	0.00%
1940	86	6.23%	1,291	93.55%	3	0.22%
1936	73	8.01%	837	91.88%	1	0.11%
1932	18	3.73%	461	95.45%	4	0.83%
1928	156	24.84%	472	75.16%	0	0.00%
1924	24	5.53%	382	88.02%	28	6.45%
1920	201	29.17%	488	70.83%	0	0.00%
1916	56	9.05%	490	79.16%	73	11.79%
1912	51	10.32%	432	87.45%	11	2.23%

Board of Commissioners
District	Commissioner	Party
CHAIR (at-large)	Oz Nesbitt Sr. (chairman)	Democratic
Post 1	Sherri L. Washington	Democratic
Post 2	Doreen Williams	Democratic

Recreation

• Georgia International Horse Park ^[22]
• Black Shoals Lake and Covered Bridge
• Old Towne Conyers Historic District
• Monastery of the Holy Spirit ^[23]
• Salem Campground ^[24]
• Smyrna Campground
• Milstead Historic Mill Village
• Panola Mountain State Park
• Rockdale Baptist Church
• Georgia Revolution FC ^[25]

Transportation

Major highways

• I-20
• US 278
• SR 12
• SR 20
• SR 138
• SR 162
• SR 212
• SR 402 (unsigned designation for I-20)

The county features an interchange of I-20 and SR 20. In order to ease potential motorist confusion, the concurrency of SR 20 & 138 is usually called just "138".

Pedestrians and cycling

• Arabia Mountain Path
• Conyers Trail
• Deer Run Trial
• Rockdale River Trail
• S River Trail

Notable people

• Jill Arrington, ESPN college football reporter
• Billy Buckner, former Major League Baseball player
• Pop-punk band Cartel's Will Pugh, Joseph Pepper, Jeff Lett, Nic Hudson, & Kevin Sanders
• David Elder, former Major League Baseball player
• Dakota Fanning, actress
• Elle Fanning, actress
• Holly Hunter, actress
• John Mark Karr, JonBenét Ramsey's falsely claimed murderer
• Clint Mathis, World Cup soccer player
• Jack McBrayer, actor
• Kevin Ware, current college basketball player
• E.R. Shipp - Pulitzer Prize recipient
• Grady Jarrett - NFL player

See also

• State of Georgia portal

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

Sources

• Margaret G. Barksdale, E. L. Cowan, Francis A. King, eds. A History of Rockdale County (Conyers, Ga., 1978).
• The Heritage of Rockdale County, Georgia (Waynesville, N.C., 1998).

References

1. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 3, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
2. US Census Bureau, 2020 Report, Rockdale County, Georgia
3. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
4. "History of Rockdale County". Rockdale County. Archived from the original on June 25, 2014. Retrieved June 28, 2014.
5. "Rockdale County". Georgia.gov. Retrieved June 28, 2014.
6. Krakow, Kenneth K. (1975). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins (PDF). Macon, GA: Winship Press. p. 191. ISBN   0-915430-00-2. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 17, 2003.
7. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
8. "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
9. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
10. "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decade". United States Census Bureau.
11. "1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1880.
12. "1910 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1910.
13. "1930 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1930.
14. "1940 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1940.
15. "1950 Census of Population - Georgia -" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1950.
16. "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1980.
17. "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000.
18. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Rockdale County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
19. "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Rockdale County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
20. "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Rockdale County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
21. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
22. The Conyers (2023). "Georgia International Horse Park". Georgia International Horse Park. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
23. "Monastery of the Holy Spirit |". www.trappist.net. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
24. Salem Campground website
25. "Soccer | Georgia Revolution | Mcdonough". Georgia Revolution. Retrieved February 17, 2024.

External links

• Rockdale County Historical Maps
• Rockdale County Courthouse
• The Rockdale Citizen Serving the citizens of Rockdale and Newton Counties
• The Rockdale News Archived March 23, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
• Conyers-Rockdale Chamber of Commerce Wayback Machine
• Conyers Convention and Visitor's Bureau Conyers Convention & Visitor's Bureau
• The Lost Children Of Rockdale County PBS

33°39′N84°02′W / 33.65°N 84.03°W / 33.65; -84.03