Harris County, Georgia

Harris County is a county located in the west-central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia; its western border with the state of Alabama is formed by the Chattahoochee River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 34,668.[1] The county seat is Hamilton.[2] The largest city in the county is Pine Mountain, a resort town that is home to the Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park (the largest state park in Georgia). Harris County was created on December 14, 1827, and named for Charles Harris, a Georgia judge and attorney.[3]

Harris County
County
County courthouse in Hamilton
County courthouse in Hamilton
Map of Georgia highlighting Harris County
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Map of the United States highlighting Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 32°44′N 84°55′W
Country United States
State Georgia
FoundedDecember 14, 1827 (1827-12-14)
Named forCharles Harris
SeatHamilton
Largest cityPine Mountain
Area
 • Total473 sq mi (1,230 km2)
 • Land464 sq mi (1,200 km2)
 • Water9.1 sq mi (24 km2)  1.9%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total34,668
 • Density75/sq mi (29/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district3rd
Websitewww.harriscountyga.gov

Harris County is part of the Columbus, GA-AL metropolitan area and has become a popular suburban and exurban destination of residence for families relocating from Columbus. Because of this, Harris has become the sixth-wealthiest county in Georgia in terms of per capita income and the wealthiest in the state outside of Metro Atlanta.

History

The county was settled by European Americans largely after the federal government had removed the indigenous Creek people (Muscogee) in the 1830s, under treaties by which they ceded most of their homelands to the United States. They were relocated to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River.

In the antebellum era, parts of the county were developed for cotton plantations, the premier commodity crop. Planters acquired numerous enslaved African Americans as laborers from the Upper South through the domestic slave trade.

The County Courthouse was designed by Edward Columbus Hosford of Georgia and completed in 1906.

Moonshiners were active in the mountain areas of the county in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Both whites and blacks took part in this, and were common drinking patrons.[4]

Lynchings

On January 22, 1912, a black woman and three black men were lynched in Hamilton, the county seat, for the alleged murder of young local white landowner Norman Hadley. He was described by journalist Karen Branan in her 2016 book about these events as a white, "near penniless plowboy-playboy"[5] and "notorious predator of black women."[6]

Of this group, Dusky Crutchfield was the first woman lynched in Georgia.[5] The lynching case attracted attention of national northern newspapers.[7][8] Also murdered by the lynch mob were Eugene Harrington, Burrell Hardaway,[9] and Johnie Moore. (Note: There was confusion about the names of victims at the time, and variations in spelling have been published.)[4]

The four had been taken in for questioning about Hadley's murder by Sheriff Marion Madison "Buddie" Hadley, but never arrested. Lynched as scapegoats by a white mob of 100 men, they were later shown to have been utterly innocent. As an example of the complex relationships in the town and county, Johnie Moore was a mixed-race cousin of the sheriff; and Norman Hadley was the sheriff's nephew.[5][4][9]

In 1947, prosperous farmer Henry "Peg" Gilbert, a married African-American man who owned and farmed 100 acres in Troup County, was arrested by officials from neighboring Harris County and charged with harboring a fugitive. The 47-year-old father was accused in the case of Gus Davidson, an African-American man accused of fatally shooting a white man in Harris County and who had disappeared. Four days later Gilbert was dead, shot while held in jail by the Harris County Sheriff, who said it was self-defense. No charges were filed against him.

In 2016 the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project of Northeastern University reported on GGilbert's death in custody. They had found that Henry Gilbert had been beaten severely before his death, and shot five times. They asserted he had been detained and killed because whites resented his success as a farmer.[10][11] Economic issues and competition were often at the bottom of lynchings. A white man took over Gilbert's land, cheating his family out of everything he had built.

Geography
View of Harris County on Pine Mountain

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 473 square miles (1,230 km2), of which 464 square miles (1,200 km2) are land and 9.1 square miles (24 km2) (1.9%) are covered by water.[12]

The county is located in the Piedmont region of the state, with forests, farmland, and rolling hills covering much of the county. The Pine Mountain Range begins in the county, and runs across the northernmost parts of the county, with the highest point on the range found at Dowdell's Knob near the Meriwether County line.

The majority of Harris County is located in the middle Chattahoochee River–Lake Harding subbasin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola–Chattahoochee–Flint River Basin), with the exception of the county's southeastern border area, south of Ellerslie, which is located in the middle Chattahoochee River–Walter F. George Lake subbasin of the same ACF River Basin as that part of the county is drained by Bull Creek, which flows into Upatoi Creek south of Columbus.[13]

Lake Harding and Goat Rock Lake both form much of the county's western border along the Chattahoochee, and both are very popular recreational destinations, especially for metro Columbus residents.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18305,105—
184013,933172.9%
185014,7215.7%
186013,736−6.7%
187013,284−3.3%
188015,75818.6%
189016,7976.6%
190018,0097.2%
191017,886−0.7%
192015,775−11.8%
193011,140−29.4%
194011,4282.6%
195011,265−1.4%
196011,167−0.9%
197011,5203.2%
198015,46434.2%
199017,78815.0%
200023,69533.2%
201032,02435.2%
202034,6688.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[14]
1790-1960[15] 1900-1990[16]
1990-2000[17] 2010-2013[18]

2020 census
Harris County racial composition[19]
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 25,925 74.78%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 5,170 14.91%
Native American 101 0.29%
Asian 388 1.12%
Pacific Islander 21 0.06%
Other/Mixed 1,646 4.75%
Hispanic or Latino 1.417 4.09%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 34,668 people, 12,156 households, and 9,581 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 32,024 people, 11,823 households, and 9,268 families residing in the county.[20] The population density was 69.0 inhabitants per square mile (26.6/km2). There were 13,397 housing units at an average density of 28.9 per square mile (11.2/km2).[21] The racial makeup of the county was 79.3% white, 17.2% black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 0.7% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.7% of the population.[20] In terms of ancestry, 17.2% identified as having African ancestry; 13.5% were German, 13.4% were Irish, 11.5% were English, and 10.5% identified as having American ancestry.[22]

Of the 11,823 households, 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.0% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 21.6% were non-families, and 18.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.04. The median age was 42.0 years.[20]

The median income for a household in the county was $67,018 and the median income for a family was $74,457. Males had a median income of $49,844 versus $37,103 for females. The per capita income for the county was $31,073. About 6.0% of families and 9.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.3% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.[23]

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Politics

Like all of Georgia except the Unionist Fannin, Towns, Pickens and Gilmer counties, which were in the upland region and could not support plantations, Harris County was historically dominated by a majority of conservative white voters after the Civil War. They belonged to the Democratic Party. From the end of Reconstruction to 1980, they supported Republican presidential candidates only twice, in 1964 (when Barry Goldwater carried the state in a landslide) and 1972 (during Richard Nixon's national landslide).

But the passage of civil rights legislation by the national Democratic Party and social and cultural disruption of the era resulted in white conservatives beginning to support the Republican Party. In 1984, the state swung from having given a 16.8 percent victory to the 'favorite son' of Georgia, Jimmy Carter, in 1976, to a nearly 20-point victory for Ronald Reagan in his second term. In this, it was part of the realignment of white conservatives across the South. Since then, these voters in Harris County have voted for Republican presidential candidates. 1984 is the last time that a Democrat gained more than 40 percent of the vote. This trend has been attributed to the effect of Columbus's suburbs extending into the county, but it is part of the broader realignment among conservatives in the region.

United States presidential election results for Harris County, Georgia[24]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No. %No. %No. %
2020 14,319 71.59% 5,457 27.28% 226 1.13%
2016 11,936 72.33% 4,086 24.76% 480 2.91%
2012 11,197 72.14% 4,145 26.71% 179 1.15%
2008 10,648 71.25% 4,184 28.00% 113 0.76%
2004 8,878 71.82% 3,400 27.50% 84 0.68%
2000 5,554 64.87% 2,912 34.01% 96 1.12%
1996 3,829 53.70% 2,779 38.97% 523 7.33%
1992 3,316 47.64% 2,679 38.49% 965 13.86%
1988 3,414 63.94% 1,905 35.68% 20 0.37%
1984 3,138 59.95% 2,096 40.05% 0 0.00%
1980 2,001 40.49% 2,807 56.80% 134 2.71%
1976 1,544 35.05% 2,861 64.95% 0 0.00%
1972 2,617 78.87% 701 21.13% 0 0.00%
1968 1,021 25.89% 1,072 27.18% 1,851 46.93%
1964 2,166 69.74% 940 30.26% 0 0.00%
1960 735 35.05% 1,362 64.95% 0 0.00%
1956 563 29.79% 1,327 70.21% 0 0.00%
1952 544 28.36% 1,374 71.64% 0 0.00%
1948 138 12.14% 759 66.75% 240 21.11%
1944 79 8.13% 893 91.87% 0 0.00%
1940 71 7.15% 914 92.04% 8 0.81%
1936 54 5.36% 953 94.54% 1 0.10%
1932 21 2.40% 851 97.26% 3 0.34%
1928 144 20.72% 551 79.28% 0 0.00%
1924 20 3.87% 457 88.39% 40 7.74%
1920 9 2.21% 398 97.79% 0 0.00%
1916 31 5.13% 550 91.06% 23 3.81%
1912 28 4.54% 585 94.81% 4 0.65%

Education

The Harris County School District holds preschool to grade 12 and consists of four elementary schools, an intermediate school, a middle school, and a high school.[25] The district headquarters is located in Hamilton, and has 274 full-time teachers and over 4,411 students spread out over seven schools.[26]

Notable people

See also

References
  1. "Census - Geography Profile: Harris County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 150.
  4. Karen Branan, The Family Tree: A Lynching in Georgia, a Legacy of Secrets, and My Search for the Truth, Atria Books, 2016.
  5. Jeff Calder, " 'Family Tree’ unpacks mystery of a 1912 Georgia lynching", Books & Literature, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, January 9, 2016, accessed April 6, 2016.
  6. Karen Branan, "Getting to the Roots of My Family Tree", Coming to the Table, 2014, accessed April 6, 2016.
  7. "Woman and 3 Men Lynched by Mob", Chicago Daily Tribune, January 23, 1912, accessed April 6, 2016.
  8. (Associated Press), "Three Colored Men and Woman Lynched", VALLEY SENTINEL (Carlisle, Pennsylvania), January 26, 1912, accessed April 6, 2016.
  9. "Burrell Hardaway" Archived April 17, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, Georgia Lynching Project Circa 1875-1930, Project of Emory University, 2016, accessed April 6, 2016.
  10. CRRJ Provides First Full Account of Notorious 1947 Georgia Jailhouse Killing, Civil Rights Restorative Justice Project, August 22, 2016, retrieved August 25, 2016
  11. Dunn, Tara; Kong, Ariel Goeun Lee (2016). Henry Gilbert. Northeastern University School of Law (Report). Boston, MA: Civil Rights Restorative Justice Project. Archived from the original on August 26, 2016. Retrieved August 25, 2016.
  12. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  13. "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  14. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  15. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  16. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  17. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  18. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  19. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  20. "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  21. "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  22. "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  23. "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  24. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  25. Georgia Board of Education, Retrieved June 19, 2010.
  26. School Stats, Retrieved June 19, 2010.
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