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Early County
Early County Courthouse in Blakely
Map of Georgia highlighting Early County
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Map of the United States highlighting Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Georgia
Founded 1818; 206 years ago (1818)
Named for Peter Early
Seat Blakely
Largest city Blakely
Area
 • Total 516 sq mi (1,340 km2)
 • Land 513 sq mi (1,330 km2)
 • Water 3.8 sq mi (10 km2)  0.7%%
Population
 • Estimate 
(2019)
10,190
 • Density 21/sq mi (8/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 2nd

Early County is a county located on the southwest border of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 11,008. The county seat is Blakely, where the Early County Courthouse is located. Created on December 15, 1818, it was named for Peter Early, 28th Governor of Georgia. The county is bordered on the west by the Chattahoochee River, forming the border with Alabama.

History

Prehistoric and nineteenth-century history has been preserved in some of Early County's attractions. It is the site of the Kolomoki Mounds, a park preserving major earthworks built by indigenous peoples of the Woodland culture more than 1700 years ago, from 350 CE to 600 CE. This is one of the largest mound complexes in the United States and the largest in Georgia; it includes burial and ceremonial mounds. The siting of the mounds expresses the ancient people's cosmology, as mounds are aligned with the sun at the spring equinox and summer solstice.

The county area was territory of the historic Creek Indian peoples of the Southeast, particularly along the Chattahoochee River, before European-American settlers encroached and pushed them out during Indian Removal of the first half of the nineteenth century.

The Cohelee Creek Bridge in the county is the southernmost covered bridge still standing. One of the last wooden flagpoles from the American Civil War era is located at the historic courthouse in downtown Blakely.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 516 square miles (1,340 km2), of which 513 square miles (1,330 km2) is land and 3.8 square miles (9.8 km2) (0.7%) is water.

The northeastern and eastern portions of Early County, east of Blakely, and extending south to a line east of Jakin, are located in the Spring Creek sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The western portion of the county is located in the Lower Chattahoochee River sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin.

Major highways

  • US 27.svg U.S. Route 27
  • Business plate.svg
    US 27.svg U.S. Route 27 Business
  • US 84.svg U.S. Route 84
  • Georgia 1.svg State Route 1
  • Georgia 1 Business.svg State Route 1 Business
  • Georgia 38.svg State Route 38
  • Georgia 39.svg State Route 39
  • Georgia 45.svg State Route 45
  • Georgia 62.svg State Route 62
  • Georgia 62 Bypass.svg State Route 62 Bypass
  • Georgia 200.svg State Route 200
  • Georgia 216.svg State Route 216
  • Georgia 273.svg State Route 273
  • Georgia 273 Spur.svg State Route 273 Spur
  • Georgia 370.svg State Route 370

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1820 768
1830 2,051 167.1%
1840 5,444 165.4%
1850 7,246 33.1%
1860 6,149 −15.1%
1870 6,998 13.8%
1880 7,611 8.8%
1890 9,792 28.7%
1900 14,828 51.4%
1910 18,122 22.2%
1920 18,983 4.8%
1930 18,273 −3.7%
1940 18,679 2.2%
1950 17,413 −6.8%
1960 13,151 −24.5%
1970 12,682 −3.6%
1980 13,158 3.8%
1990 11,854 −9.9%
2000 12,354 4.2%
2010 11,008 −10.9%
2019 (est.) 10,190 −7.4%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010-2019

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 11,008 people, 4,228 households, and 2,924 families living in the county. The population density was 21.5 inhabitants per square mile (8.3/km2). There were 4,975 housing units at an average density of 9.7 per square mile (3.7/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 49.6% black or African American, 48.4% white, 0.4% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.5% from other races, and 0.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 8.2% were American, 6.1% were Irish, and 5.5% were German.

Of the 4,228 households, 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% were married couples living together, 21.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.8% were non-families, and 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.12. The median age was 39.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $26,928 and the median income for a family was $40,238. Males had a median income of $36,250 versus $28,401 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,330. About 22.9% of families and 28.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 46.4% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

Early County racial composition
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 4,813 44.34%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 5,534 50.99%
Native American 31 0.29%
Asian 47 0.43%
Other/Mixed 243 2.24%
Hispanic or Latino 186 1.71%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 10,854 people, 4,074 households, and 2,659 families residing in the county.

Communities

Cities

Town

Census-designated place

Other unincorporated communities

  • Bancroft
  • Cederville
  • Colomokee
  • Crossroads
  • Cuba
  • Douglass Crossroads
  • Douglasville
  • Ferrell Crossroads
  • Freeman
  • Hentown
  • Hilton
  • Howards Mill
  • Jones Crossroads
  • Killarney
  • Liberty
  • Lucile
  • Luke
  • McLendon
  • New Hope
  • Nicholasville
  • Pleasant Hill
  • Rock Hill
  • Rowena
  • Saffold
  • Sowhatchee
  • Springfield
  • Urquhart

Education

The Early County School District holds grades pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of one elementary school, a middle school, and a high school. The district has 156 full-time teachers and over 2,764 students.

  • Early County Elementary School
  • Early County Middle School
  • Early County High School

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Early para niños

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