Butts County was formed on December 24, 1825, as the sixty-fourth county in Georgia from portions of Henry County and Monroe County. It was named by theGeorgia General Assembly in honor ofSamuel Butts, an officer who was killed in theCreek War in 1814.[5][6] A year later, Jackson was created as the first city in the new county and became the county seat. Other towns followed, including Indian Springs (1837); Flovilla (1883); Jenkinsburg (1889); and Pepperton (1897). Indian Springs later disincorporated and Pepperton was merged with Jackson in 1966, leaving just three incorporated cities in Butts County. In recent years, Indian Springs has again become a tourist destination including many historic sites, shops, eating establishment and the famousIndian Springs Hotel as its centerpiece.
Much of Butts County and its cities were destroyed by the army of GeneralWilliam T. Sherman in itsMarch to the Sea during theAmerican Civil War. Butts County struggled for decades afterwards to become economically stable again. The arrival of the first railroad train on May 5, 1882, started the resurgence and growth followed. In 1898, caught up in the post-reconstruction fervor that had infected most Georgia counties, Butts County erected a monumental courthouse designed byBruce & Morgan. This building was used as a courthouse until 2019; following renovations, it is now a museum and visitor center. The construction of the Lloyd Shoals dam in 1910 createdJackson Lake, a recreational lake located primarily in Butts County.
Progress milestones in Butts County include the first telephones in 1884; first waterworks in 1905; electric lights on February 19, 1907; and traffic lights in 1926.
In 2007, Butts County, along with the city of Flovilla, were both designated as Georgia Signature Communities by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. This prestigious designation was given to a total of 12 communities in Georgia that year.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 188 square miles (490 km2), of which 184 square miles (480 km2) is land and 3.6 square miles (9.3 km2) (1.9%) is water.[7] The entirety of Butts County is located in the UpperOcmulgee River sub-basin of theAltamaha River basin.[8]
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 25,434. Of the residents, 19.9% were under the age of 18 and 16.6% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 40.2 years. For every 100 females there were 115.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 119.3 males. 22.4% of residents lived in urban areas and 77.6% lived in rural areas.[19][20][21]
There were 8,460 households in the county, of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 27.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 23.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[20]
The census counted 5,823 families within the county.[20]
There were 9,437 housing units, of which 10.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.1% were owner-occupied and 25.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.8%.[20]
Butts County has one radio station:WJGA FM 92.1 and one local newspaper, theJackson Progress-Argus.The county has gained attention in recent years as being a frequent backdrop for a number of movies and television shows. Most recently, theNetflix seriesStranger Things made the Butts County city ofJackson, Georgia the backdrop of the show's fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, turning the downtown area into a 1980s Indiana small town.[22] In addition to the many buildings of the downtown that are visible in various scenes, the exterior of the Butts County Courthouse is featured, standing in for the Hawkins library.[23]
The fact that Butts County serves as the filming location for key events in the show has already led fans there after just two seasons. Other shows which have filmed in the area includeThe Originals, a television show, and a recent remake ofEndless Love byUniversal Studios. Beginning October 18, 2024, Butts County Sheriff's Office began being featured in the Reelz live television program "On Patrol: Live."[24]
Butts County is governed by a Board of Commissioners composed of one commissioner from each of the county's five electoral districts. The commission members serve four year, staggered terms. The Board is presided over by the chairman, elected annually from the members of the commission to chair the meetings of the Board. The Board employs a County Administrator, Deputy County Administrator, County Clerk and nine department managers to oversee the daily affairs of the government.
There are four Constitutional Officers and three Elected Officials who are elected at-large by the voters of the county. The Constitutional Officers include the Sheriff; Tax Commissioner; Probate Judge and Clerk of the Superior Court. Elected officials include the Magistrate Judge; Coroner and County Surveyor. Other services are provided by departments headed by appointees of the Board of Commissioners.
In 2008, a movement began to create an elected, at-large chairman position to serve as presiding officer over the Board of Commissioners. This movement lost ground in 2009 and has not been revisited.
^"Georgia Locations for Netflix's 'Stranger Things'".Deep South Magazine. Deep South Media. July 28, 2016. RetrievedJanuary 1, 2017.Georgia's small towns outside of Atlanta, including Douglasville, Conyers, Jackson, Winston and Fayetteville, easily pass for the Midwest, and Jackson's intact downtown isn't a far stretch from 1983 Hawkins on film.
^"Georgia Diagnostic and Classification PrisonArchived 2010-04-23 at theWayback Machine."Georgia Department of Corrections. Retrieved on July 18, 2010. "HWY 36 WEST" "JACKSON, GA 30233." and the travel directions "Take I-75 south toward Macon to Exit 201, Jackson/Barnesville. Exit and turn left, go over the bridge and travel approximately ¼ mile. Go through two lights and you will see the entrance to the Diagnostic Center ahead on the left, several truck stops and fueling stations on the right. Turn left on Prison Boulevard and follow it to the facility."
