Greene County, Georgia | |
|---|---|
 Greene County courthouse in Greensboro | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofGeorgia | |
 Georgia's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:33°35′N83°10′W / 33.58°N 83.17°W /33.58; -83.17 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Georgia |
| Founded | 1786; 239 years ago (1786) |
| Named after | Nathanael Greene |
| Seat | Greensboro |
| Largest city | Greensboro |
| Area | |
• Total | 406 sq mi (1,050 km2) |
| • Land | 387 sq mi (1,000 km2) |
| • Water | 19 sq mi (49 km2) 4.6% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 18,915[1] |
| • Density | 49/sq mi (19/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 10th |
| Website | www |
Greene County is acounty located in the east central portion & the Lake country region of theU.S. state ofGeorgia. As of the2020 census, the population was 18,915.[2] Thecounty seat isGreensboro.[3] The county was created on February 3, 1786, and is named forNathanael Greene, anAmerican Revolutionary Warmajor general.
Greene County was formed on February 3, 1786, from land given by Washington County.[4] It was named in honor of General Nathanael Greene, a hero of the American Revolutionary War.[5]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 406 square miles (1,050 km2), of which 387 square miles (1,000 km2) is land and 19 square miles (49 km2) (4.6%) is water.[6]
The majority of Greene County, west of a line betweenWoodville,Union Point, andWhite Plains, is located in the UpperOconee River sub-basin of theAltamaha River basin. The northern half of the remainder of the county is located in theLittle River sub-basin of theSavannah River basin, while the southern half is located in the UpperOgeechee River sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin.[7]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1790 | 5,405 | — | |
| 1800 | 10,761 | 99.1% | |
| 1810 | 11,679 | 8.5% | |
| 1820 | 13,589 | 16.4% | |
| 1830 | 12,549 | −7.7% | |
| 1840 | 11,690 | −6.8% | |
| 1850 | 13,068 | 11.8% | |
| 1860 | 12,652 | −3.2% | |
| 1870 | 12,454 | −1.6% | |
| 1880 | 17,547 | 40.9% | |
| 1890 | 17,051 | −2.8% | |
| 1900 | 16,542 | −3.0% | |
| 1910 | 18,512 | 11.9% | |
| 1920 | 18,972 | 2.5% | |
| 1930 | 12,616 | −33.5% | |
| 1940 | 13,709 | 8.7% | |
| 1950 | 12,843 | −6.3% | |
| 1960 | 11,193 | −12.8% | |
| 1970 | 10,212 | −8.8% | |
| 1980 | 11,391 | 11.5% | |
| 1990 | 11,793 | 3.5% | |
| 2000 | 14,406 | 22.2% | |
| 2010 | 15,994 | 11.0% | |
| 2020 | 18,915 | 18.3% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 21,091 | [8] | 11.5% |
| 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[1] | |||
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 11,126 | 58.82% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 5,783 | 30.57% |
| Native American | 28 | 0.15% |
| Asian | 174 | 0.92% |
| Pacific Islander | 2 | 0.01% |
| Other/Mixed | 513 | 2.71% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 1,289 | 6.81% |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 18,915 people, 7,132 households, and 4,975 families residing in the county.
The county supports theGreene County School Board,Lake Oconee Academy andNathanael Greene Academy.
In 2001,Georgia Supreme Court Chief JusticeRobert Benham convened a committee to investigateindigent defense in the state of Georgia. An avalanche of complaints about the state of public defense in Greene County, along with a number of lawsuits filed byStephen Bright and theSouthern Center for Human Rights, contributed to the formation of this commission. The commission discovered during its investigation that indigent defendants in Greene County were routinely pleaded guilty by judges without the presence of counsel and sometimes without even being present in court to make their pleas, violations of theSixth Amendment. Excessive bail, e.g. $50,000 for loitering, was often set as well, a violation of theEighth Amendment. After two years of investigation, the committee's recommendations led to the passage of the Georgia Indigent Defense Act.[19][20]
Prior to2000, the only time Greene County failed to back a Democratic Party candidate in a presidential election was in1972, whenRichard Nixon won every county in Georgia and all but 130 counties nationwide. From2000 onward, it has been consistently Republican due to the growth of white residents moving to Reynolds Lake Oconee.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 150 | 21.90% | 525 | 76.64% | 10 | 1.46% |
| 1916 | 153 | 17.35% | 676 | 76.64% | 53 | 6.01% |
| 1920 | 178 | 20.72% | 681 | 79.28% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 77 | 9.86% | 558 | 71.45% | 146 | 18.69% |
| 1928 | 245 | 28.10% | 627 | 71.90% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 52 | 5.35% | 918 | 94.44% | 2 | 0.21% |
| 1936 | 86 | 5.96% | 1,348 | 93.35% | 10 | 0.69% |
| 1940 | 148 | 8.93% | 1,497 | 90.29% | 13 | 0.78% |
| 1944 | 144 | 10.33% | 1,246 | 89.38% | 4 | 0.29% |
| 1948 | 92 | 5.79% | 1,213 | 76.29% | 285 | 17.92% |
| 1952 | 397 | 14.60% | 2,323 | 85.40% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 541 | 21.19% | 2,012 | 78.81% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 328 | 14.22% | 1,979 | 85.78% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 1,093 | 28.83% | 2,698 | 71.17% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 652 | 18.58% | 1,635 | 46.58% | 1,223 | 34.84% |
| 1972 | 1,679 | 64.63% | 919 | 35.37% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1976 | 652 | 20.46% | 2,534 | 79.54% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1980 | 961 | 26.90% | 2,571 | 71.96% | 41 | 1.15% |
| 1984 | 1,599 | 44.53% | 1,992 | 55.47% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1988 | 1,432 | 43.93% | 1,818 | 55.77% | 10 | 0.31% |
| 1992 | 1,307 | 32.21% | 2,259 | 55.67% | 492 | 12.12% |
| 1996 | 1,702 | 42.39% | 2,115 | 52.68% | 198 | 4.93% |
| 2000 | 2,980 | 57.34% | 2,137 | 41.12% | 80 | 1.54% |
| 2004 | 4,069 | 59.17% | 2,774 | 40.34% | 34 | 0.49% |
| 2008 | 4,532 | 57.21% | 3,339 | 42.15% | 50 | 0.63% |
| 2012 | 5,071 | 60.90% | 3,201 | 38.44% | 55 | 0.66% |
| 2016 | 5,490 | 61.55% | 3,199 | 35.87% | 230 | 2.58% |
| 2020 | 7,066 | 62.83% | 4,087 | 36.34% | 94 | 0.84% |
| 2024 | 8,215 | 64.25% | 4,514 | 35.30% | 57 | 0.45% |
Places adjacent to Greene County, Georgia | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofGreene County, Georgia,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| Towns | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost towns | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
