Walton County, Georgia

Last updated

Walton County
005-Walton-County-Georgia-courthouse.jpg
Walton County courthouse in Monroe
Flag of Walton County, Georgia.svg
Waltongaseal.gif
Map of Georgia highlighting Walton County.svg
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia in United States.svg
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°47′N83°44′W / 33.78°N 83.74°W / 33.78; -83.74
CountryFlag of the United States.svg United States
StateFlag of Georgia (U.S. state).svg  Georgia
FoundedDecember 22, 1818;206 years ago (1818)
Named for George Walton
Seat Monroe
Largest cityMonroe
Area
  Total330 sq mi (900 km2)
  Land326 sq mi (840 km2)
  Water4.3 sq mi (11 km2)  1.3%
Population
 (2020)
  Total96,673
  Density297/sq mi (115/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
  Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 10th
Website waltoncountyga.gov

Walton County is a county located in the Middle Georgia portion of the U.S. - State of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 96,673. [1] It is located about 30 miles east of the state capital, the city of Atlanta. Monroe is the county seat; Loganville is another major city. [2]

Contents

Walton County is part of the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA metropolitan statistical area.

History

Walton County was created on December 15, 1818. It is named for George Walton, one of the three men from Georgia who signed the United States Declaration of Independence. [3] The other two were Button Gwinnett and Lyman Hall.

A Supreme Court ruling in April 1946 had ruled that white primaries were unconstitutional, enabling some black citizens in Georgia to cast ballots for the first time during the primary race later that summer. [4] This increased social tensions in many areas, as whites continued to oppose voting by blacks. In addition, many whites resisted black veterans' efforts to gain expanded freedoms following their service during World War II.

Moore's Ford lynchings (1946)

In July 1946, four African Americans were lynched in Walton County, Georgia. The victims were two married couples: George and Mae Murray Dorsey, and Roger and Dorothy Dorsey Malcom (reportedly pregnant). [4]

A historical highway marker erected by the state in the 21st century reads:

2.4 miles east, at Moore’s Ford Bridge on the Apalachee River, four African-Americans - George and Mae Murray Dorsey and Roger and Dorothy Dorsey Malcom (reportedly 7 months pregnant) - were brutally beaten and shot by an unmasked mob on the afternoon of July 25, 1946. The lynching followed an argument between Roger Malcom and a local white farmer. These unsolved murders played a crucial role in both President Truman’s commitment to civil rights legislation and the ensuing modern civil rights movement. [5]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 330 square miles (850 km2), of which 326 square miles (840 km2) is land and 4.3 square miles (11 km2) (1.3%) is water. [6] The county is located in the Piedmont region of the state.

The western half of Walton County, in a half circle from Social Circle through Monroe to northeast of Loganville, is located in the Upper Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. The eastern part of the county, east of that curve, is located in the Upper Oconee River sub-basin of the same Altamaha River basin. [7]

Adjacent counties

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Demographics

There was a noted decline in the African American population from 1900 to 1960 as thousands left rural areas in the South during the Great Migration to the North, Midwest and West Coast to escape social oppression and to gain better jobs and opportunities.

With dramatic new growth related to the rise of Atlanta as a corporate city, the demographics have changed and the county is majority white in the 21st century. The area has been developed for suburban housing and retail.

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
1810 1,026
1820 4,192308.6%
1830 10,929160.7%
1840 10,209−6.6%
1850 10,8216.0%
1860 11,0742.3%
1870 11,038−0.3%
1880 15,62241.5%
1890 17,46711.8%
1900 20,94219.9%
1910 25,39321.3%
1920 24,216−4.6%
1930 21,118−12.8%
1940 20,777−1.6%
1950 20,230−2.6%
1960 20,4811.2%
1970 23,40414.3%
1980 31,21133.4%
1990 38,58623.6%
2000 60,68757.3%
2010 83,76838.0%
2020 96,67315.4%
2023 (est.)106,702 [8] 10.4%
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] 2020 [18]
Walton County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US 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 [19] Pop 2010 [17] Pop 2020 [18] % 2000% 2010% 2020
White alone (NH)49,73165,67768,49981.95%78.40%70.86%
Black or African American alone (NH)8,70312,99317,13614.34%15.51%17.73%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)1451941880.24%0.23%0.19%
Asian alone (NH)4109471,4090.68%1.13%1.46%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)1038440.02%0.05%0.05%
Other race alone (NH)251595520.04%0.19%0.57%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)5001,0773,6170.82%1.29%3.74%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)1,1632,6835,2281.92%3.20%5.41%
Total60,68783,76896,673100.00%100.00%100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 96,673 people, 33,350 households, and 25,736 families residing in the county.

Government

Walton County has a six-member commission elected from single-member districts. This legislative body can pass laws for the county and tax bills. The county chairman is elected at-large to serve as the leader. If a seat becomes vacant during the term, the governor can appoint someone to fill the seat, based on recommendations. In 2015, two of the six positions were filled by appointees.

Politics

United States presidential election results for Walton County, Georgia [20]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.%No.%No.%
2020 37,83974.05%12,68324.82%5761.13%
2016 31,12576.18%8,29220.29%1,4413.53%
2012 29,03677.07%8,14821.63%4931.31%
2008 27,25375.54%8,46923.47%3570.99%
2004 21,59478.11%5,88721.29%1660.60%
2000 12,96667.95%5,48428.74%6333.32%
1996 7,93452.82%5,61837.40%1,4689.77%
1992 5,61945.35%4,82138.91%1,95115.75%
1988 5,97465.56%3,09133.92%470.52%
1984 4,99566.81%2,48133.19%00.00%
1980 2,61835.85%4,52561.96%1602.19%
1976 1,68723.80%5,40276.20%00.00%
1972 3,99477.80%1,14022.20%00.00%
1968 1,39919.99%1,55222.18%4,04757.83%
1964 2,87454.99%2,35044.97%20.04%
1960 40311.52%3,09588.48%00.00%
1956 47012.56%3,27187.44%00.00%
1952 3248.11%3,67291.89%00.00%
1948 1645.71%2,44084.99%2679.30%
1944 1727.75%2,04692.25%00.00%
1940 1044.55%2,17995.24%50.22%
1936 1326.33%1,95293.58%20.10%
1932 361.66%2,13698.34%00.00%
1928 42427.20%1,13572.80%00.00%
1924 908.78%87385.17%626.05%
1920 1239.38%1,18990.63%00.00%
1916 835.61%1,30588.24%916.15%
1912 403.35%88574.06%27022.59%

Education

Walton County School District is the local school district for all sections except those in Social Circle. Areas in Social Circle are in the Social Circle City School District. [21]

Transportation

Major highways

Walton County doesn't have any pedestrian trails. However, there are trails in neighboring Gwinnett and Rockdale county such as the Arabia Mountain Path, Conyers Trail and Cedar Creek Trail Loop.

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moore's Ford lynchings</span> 1946 mob lynchings in Georgia, United States

The Moore's Ford lynchings, also known as the 1946 Georgia lynching, refers to the July 25, 1946, murders of four young African Americans by a mob of white men. Tradition says that the murders were committed on Moore's Ford Bridge in Walton and Oconee counties between Monroe and Watkinsville, but the four victims, two married couples, were shot and killed on a nearby dirt road.

The Walton County School District is a public school district in Walton County, Georgia, United States, based in Monroe.

References

  1. "Census - Geography Profile: Walton County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. Krakow, Kenneth K. (1975). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins (PDF). Macon, GA: Winship Press. p. 245. ISBN   0-915430-00-2. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 27, 2003.
  4. 1 2 Chelsea Bailey, "Moore's Ford Massacre: Activists Reenact Racist Lynching as a Call for Justice", 02 August 2017; accessed 11 June 2018
  5. "Moore's Ford Lynching Historical Marker". www.hmdb.org.
  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 18, 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 Decade". 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. 1 2 "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Walton County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
  18. 1 2 "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Walton County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
  19. "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Walton County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
  20. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
  21. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Walton County, GA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved May 7, 2023. - Text list

33°47′N83°44′W / 33.78°N 83.74°W / 33.78; -83.74