Stewart County, Georgia Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Stewart County
U.S. county
Stewart County courthouse in Lumpkin
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Georgia
Founded	December 23, 1830; 194 years ago (1830)
Named for	Daniel Stewart
Seat	Lumpkin
Largest city	Richland
Area
• Total	464 sq mi (1,200 km²)
• Land	459 sq mi (1,190 km²)
• Water	4.9 sq mi (13 km²) 1.1%%
Population
• Estimate (2018)	6,199
• Density	13/sq mi (5/km²)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	2nd

Stewart County is a county located in the west central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,058. The county seat is Lumpkin. The county was created on December 23, 1830. It has the lowest per capita income of any county without a major correctional facility.

History
Geography
Demographics
- 2020 census
- 2010 census
Parks and recreation
Communities
See also

History

The area was inhabited by Native Americans for thousands of years in the Pre-Columbian period. Roods Landing Site on the Chattahoochee River is a significant archaeological site located south of Omaha. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it includes major earthwork mounds built about 1100-1350 CE by peoples of the sophisticated Mississippian culture.

The first Europeans to encounter the Native Americans were Spanish explorers in the mid-16th century. At that time the historical Creek tribe inhabited the area, and they maintained their territory until after European American settlers arrived in increasing number in the early decades of the 19th century. The ensuing conflicts ultimately resulted in the Creek people's being driven out of the region. In the 1830s under Indian removal, the federal government forced most Creek to relocate west of the Mississippi River to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma.

Under the European Americans, Stewart County was created by an act of the Georgia General Assembly on December 23, 1830, from land that had been part of Randolph County, Georgia. The county is named for Daniel Stewart, a Revolutionary War veteran, fighter against American Indians, and the great-grandfather of U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt.

Settlers developed the area as large cotton plantations, part of the "Black Belt" of Georgia and the Deep South. Before the American Civil War, planters depended on enslaved labor of thousands of African Americans to cultivate and process the cotton for market. They were transported in the slave trade from Africa and the Upper South. In 1850, the county reached its peak in wealth as one of the largest cotton producers in the state. It had the tenth largest population of any county, with 16,027 people, of whom 7,373 were enslaved.

By 1860, the population had declined to 13,422. Kinchafoonee (later Webster County) and Quitman County counties had been created from Stewart County territory in 1853 and 1858, respectively. There were 5,534 slaves in the redefined Stewart County.

After the war and emancipation, cotton continued as a major commodity crop. Many freedmen became sharecroppers and tenant farmers in the area, which was agricultural for decades, but in decline. Stewart County lost its premier position when it was bypassed by developing railroads, which went north and south. It did not have railroad access until 1885.

Inappropriate farming practices and over-cultivation of cotton from before the Civil War led to extensive land erosion by the early 20th century, with accompanying population losses. Up to the mid century, many blacks left the area in two waves of the Great Migration, seeking jobs and better lives in northern and midwestern industrial cities. Farmers shifted to cultivating peanuts and later pine trees to reclaim and restore the land. Population losses continued throughout the 20th century, as the forest and lumber industry did not require as many laborers.

In 1965, some of the towns in the county began to redevelop historic properties to attract tourists and expand the economy. Lumpkin, Omaha and Louvale all had relatively intact historic properties and commercial districts. Green Grove is an historic African-American community established after the Civil War. Stewart was the first rural county in the state to use historic preservation and Main Street redevelopment to support heritage tourism.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 464 square miles (1,200 km²), of which 459 square miles (1,190 km²) is land and 4.9 square miles (13 km²) (1.1%) is water.

The vast majority of Stewart County is located in the Middle Chattahoochee River-Walter F. George Lake sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). Just the very eastern edge of the county, bordered by a north-to-south line running through Richland, is located in the Kinchafoonee-Muckalee sub-basin of the same ACF Basin, with the very southeastern corner located in the Ichawaynochaway Creek sub-basin of the larger ACF River Basin.

Major highways

U.S. Route 27
U.S. Route 280
State Route 1
State Route 1 Connector
State Route 27
State Route 39
State Route 39 Connector
State Route 39 Spur
State Route 520

Adjacent counties

Chattahoochee County (north)
Webster County (east)
Randolph County (south)
Quitman County (southwest)
Barbour County, Alabama (west/CST Border)
Russell County, Alabama (northwest/CST Border except for Phenix City as the city is jointed by the Columbus Metropolitan Area)

National protected area

Eufaula National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1840	12,933	—
1850	16,027	23.9%
1860	13,422	−16.3%
1870	14,204	5.8%
1880	13,998	−1.5%
1890	15,682	12.0%
1900	15,856	1.1%
1910	13,437	−15.3%
1920	12,089	−10.0%
1930	11,114	−8.1%
1940	10,603	−4.6%
1950	9,194	−13.3%
1960	7,371	−19.8%
1970	6,511	−11.7%
1980	5,896	−9.4%
1990	5,654	−4.1%
2000	5,252	−7.1%
2010	6,058	15.3%
2018 (est.)	6,199	2.3%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2010-2013

2020 census

Stewart County Racial Composition
Race	Num.	Perc.
White	1,338	25.18%
Black or African American	2,461	46.31%
Native American	10	0.19%
Asian	167	3.14%
Pacific Islander	5	0.09%
Other/Mixed	116	2.18%
Hispanic or Latino	1,217	22.9%

As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 5,314 people, 1,816 households, and 1,138 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 6,058 people, 1,862 households, and 1,187 families living in the county. The population density was 13.2 inhabitants per square mile (5.1/km²). There were 2,383 housing units at an average density of 5.2 per square mile (2.0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 47.3% black or African American, 28.0% white, 0.7% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 22.8% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 24.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 6.8% were English, 6.3% were German, and 4.9% were American.

Of the 1,862 households, 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.4% were married couples living together, 21.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.3% were non-families, and 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age was 37.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,954 and the median income for a family was $41,673. Males had a median income of $29,936 versus $29,653 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,612. About 18.5% of families and 24.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 40.1% of those under age 18 and 20.2% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

Florence Marina State Park and Providence Canyon State Park are located in Stewart County.

About 800 acres (3.2 km²) of the Eufaula National Wildlife Refuge are located along the Chattahoochee River's eastern shores in Stewart County. In addition, the Hannahatchee Wildlife Management Area is a 5,600-acre (23 km²) hunting preserve.