Mableton, Georgia | |
|---|---|
    From top to bottom, left to right: a residential street in Mableton, Robert Mable's home built in 1843, the Mableton Post Office, the Atlanta skyline from Mt. Harmony Memorial Gardens in Mableton | |
 Location inCobb County and the state ofGeorgia | |
  Mableton Location within theAtlanta Metropolitan Area | |
| Coordinates:33°49′06″N84°34′34″W / 33.81833°N 84.57611°W /33.81833; -84.57611 | |
| State |  Georgia |
| County | Cobb |
| Settled | September 11, 1843 |
| Incorporated (town) | August 19, 1912 |
| Disincorporated | August 17, 1916 |
| Incorporated (city) | May 11, 2023 |
| Founded by | Robert Mable |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Michael Owens (D) |
| • District Commissioner | Monique Sheffield |
| • Body | Cobb County Board of Commissioners |
| Area | |
• Total | 36.56 sq mi (94.7 km2) |
| • Land | 36.46 sq mi (94.43 km2) |
| • Water | 0.10 sq mi (0.27 km2) |
| Elevation | 978 ft (298 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 37,115 |
| • Density | 2,133.48/sq mi (823.65/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code | 30126 |
| Area codes | |
| FIPS code | 13-48288[2] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0332295[3] |
| Website | mableton |
Mableton (/ˈmeɪbəltən/MAY-bəl-tən) is a city inCobb County, Georgia, United States. Voters of the unincorporated area of Mableton approved a referendum to incorporate on November 8, 2022, and six council members were elected on March 21, 2023, withMichael Owens elected asmayor of Mableton in the2023 Mableton mayoral election. According to the2020 census, the census-designated area Mableton had a population of 37,115; the city website cites a population of more than 78,000 people. UponBrookhaven's cityhood in December 2012, Mableton was previously the largestunincorporated CDP inMetro Atlanta. With boundaries described in Appendix A of House Bill 839, Mableton is the largest city in Cobb County in terms of population and includes historical Mableton, along with the Six Flags area, areas of unincorporated Smyrna, and parts of unincorporated South Cobb.
Between the 16th and 19th centuries, most of the land in present-day southern Cobb County belonged to theCherokee andCreek. Two Native American villages were established near the area that will later become known as Mableton - the settlements of Sweet Water Town and Nickajack. Both tribes coinhabited the area peacefully, with one legend claiming that eventual ownership of the area by the Cherokee was settled via a ball game.[4] One of the early known records of white Europeans being aware of the inhabitants is an 1839 map depicting a 'Nickajack Creek' converging with the Chattahoochee River south and west of theStanding Peachtree settlement.[5]
The town was named after Scottish immigrant Robert Mable (October 18, 1803 – July 7, 1885), who on September 11, 1843, bought 300 acres (approximately 120 hectares or 1.2 km2) of land in southern Cobb County from theGeorgia Land Lottery of 1832. Mable was a millwright and farmer who grew cotton, corn, potatoes, and sorghum in the area; he owned between 11 and 48 slaves by 1860. According to oral interviews, Mable was a "fair and kind" enslaver who educated slave children alongside his own, and eventually also liberated his slaves before any government mandate ordered him to.[4] TheRobert Mable House and Cemetery, located offU.S. 78 on Floyd Road just north of Clay Road, now includes an amphitheater which hosts public events.[6]
More white settlers moved into the northern edge of Mableton byNickajack Creek, near Smyrna, in the mid-1800s. They formed a community initially known as Mill Grove and later Nickajack. The creek provided ample power to run grist, saw, cotton, and woolen mills. Acovered bridge, originally built c. 1848–1850, traverses the stream and is now part of ahistorical district. It is one of the few remaining covered bridges in Georgia, and still highly active today after it was later buttressed to handle automobile traffic. A notable resident of the area during that period was John Gann, Cobb County's first state senator. His home, built in 1841, still stands today and is also part of the historical district.[5]
During theAtlanta campaign of theCivil War, Union officersWalter Q. Gresham andFrancis P. Blair Jr. of theXVII Corps reached Mableton on July 3, 1864, after theUnion defeat at Kennesaw. Gresham replenished his troops' supplies and received medical care at Robert Mable's house, and camped for the night before advancing to Atlanta.[7] The house was spared from the carnage ofSherman's March to the Sea.[8]
TheGeorgia Pacific Railway (later absorbed bySouthern Railway and today known as theNorfolk Southern Railway) opened a railroad station in Mableton in December 1881. The chief engineer erected a sign displaying 'Mableton' upon completion of the station in honor of Robert. The first train from Atlanta arrived at the station just before Christmas. Shortly after, the post office was established on June 28, 1882. This replaced the post office in Bryantville, a former settlement about two miles (3.2 km) southeast. The arrival of the railroad allowed Mableton to act as a commercial hub for then-rural Cobb County.[9] Cotton export flourished throughout the county from the 1890s until theGreat Depression.[10]
On August 19, 1912, Mableton was incorporated as a town but was disincorporated on August 17, 1916.[11] In that year, the town suffered from a heavy flood that overwhelmed its sewer system,[12] resulting in an unexpected tax burden being placed upon the residents for repairs.[8] But after locals successfully demanded that a tax on storm drains be shared by all of Cobb County instead, the town's charter was revoked and Mableton was disincorporated.[13]Homer A. Glore, a medical doctor served as the firstmayor of Mableton.[4][14]
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In 2020, a local initiative known as the South Cobb Alliance fostered a debate for cityhood.[15] A feasibility study conducted by theCarl Vinson Institute of Government stated that the potential city would generate $11.3 million in operating expenses and $14.6 million in revenue.[16] Alternatively, nearby Smyrna considered annexing parts of Mableton. This move would have made Smyrna the largest city in Cobb County, surpassing the county seat ofMarietta, and would have ultimately disrupted Mableton's cityhood efforts.[17]
Following the2022 midterm elections, a referendum on cityhood was passed, with 13,162 in favor of Mableton's cityhood and 11,675 rejecting it.[18][19] The majority of no votes were concentrated in the north of Mableton, where household income is higher.[20] Human resources director Mark Sette said it was a "power grab" to annex unincorporated areas of north Mableton to "pay for all of the projects that they want down there [in south Mableton]".[20] Thousands of people signed a petition tode-annex areas that voted no from the city.[21] Mableton was different in that the supporters of de-annexation were multi-racial and multi-generational while organizers of similar secession movements tended to be mainly older white residents.[20]
It is the largest city in Cobb County in terms of population, with the new city incorporating about 47,000 residents.[22] The city limits also include areas of unincorporated Smyrna and Austell.
The City of Mableton was approved by the voters in a referendum on the General Election Ballot on November 8, 2022.[23]
Mableton was the only one of four proposed new cities inMetro Atlanta to be approved; the other three,East Cobb,Lost Mountain andVinings, all failed to be incorporated as municipalities in referendums.[24] In May 2022, Brentin Mock ofBloomberg News described the city movement in Metro Atlanta as being "defeated".[24] Though Mock reported that Mableton was different as it was the only one out of the four to have a majority non-white population and is assembling around "principles of diversity, affordability and inclusive voting rights".[25] Politically, Mableton is inCobb County whoseboard of commissioners was majority white and Republican for most of its history, until 2020 when it became majority black and Democrat.[25] According to a preliminary analysis from Cobb County, the incorporation of Mableton would result in a net annual loss of $8 million from the city's budget after accounting for the services that the county would no longer provide for it.[25]
The referendum was the result of the General Assembly's passage of House Bill (HB-839), which set the boundaries of the city, established city council districts, and laid out the powers of the Mayor and Council. The law also established March 21, 2023, as the date for a special election for the first council members andmayor of Mableton.
Michael Owens stated that he was not against de-annexation but that his focus was on the majority of Mableton residents who wish to be in the city.[26] LaTonia Long and Michael Murphy both opposed de-annexation.[26] Mayoral candidate Aaron Carman said that he supported the people involved in the de-annexation effort but stated that if the de-annexation efforts do not pass, Mableton needed someone that could "bring the city together".[26] State representativeDavid Wilkerson submitted two de-annexation bills that would have allowed some areas to de-annex from Mableton but both failed in theGeorgia General Assembly.[27] A compromise bill in response to the bills submitted by Wilkerson was drafted by state representativesTerry Cummings andMichael Smith but this also failed as it was not published in time.[28][27]
The 2023 Mableton mayoral election took place on March 21, 2023, in Mableton, with a runoff held on April 18, 2023, as no candidate got 50% of the vote in the general election. Aaron Carman gained the most votes in the first round but lost the runoff to formerCobb County Democratic Committee chairMichael Owens who became the firstmayor of Mableton, Georgia in over 100 years.[29] Despite the runoff election being described as historic, only 6,113 votes were cast andvoter turnout remained low at 12.9% of 47,200 registered voters.[30][31]
Statewide officials
State legislators
Local officials
Labor unions
| Campaign finance reports as of March 15, 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Total raised | Cash on hand | |
| Aaron Carman | $9,600 | Not disclosed | |
| LaTonia Long | $21,940[a] | $7,775 | |
| Michael Murphy | $6,750 | Not disclosed | |
| Michael Owens | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | |
| [33] | |||
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Carman | 2,162 | 36% | |
| Michael Owens | 1,846 | 31% | |
| LaTonia Long | 1,472 | 24% | |
| Michael Murphy | 561 | 9% | |
| Write-in | 43 | 0.7 | |
| Total votes | 6,084 | 100% | |
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Owens | 3,396 | 55.68% | |
| Aaron Carman | 2,703 | 44.32% | |
| Write-in | 14 | 0.22% | |
| Total votes | 6,113 | 100% | |
Mableton is located at33°49′06″N84°34′34″W / 33.81833°N 84.57611°W /33.81833; -84.57611 (33.818333, -84.576111).[44] TheChattahoochee River acts as the southeast border, separating Cobb County from westFulton County — where the historic African-American neighborhood ofCollier Heights and the former site of theBankhead Courts housing project are nearby. Two suburban cities directly border Mableton:Austell in the west andSmyrna in the north.Lithia Springs, an unincorporated community, is directly southwest.
Mableton is approximately 15 miles west-northwest from the city ofAtlanta, and approximately 20 miles fromHartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 7,127 | — | |
| 1980 | 24,894 | — | |
| 1990 | 25,137 | 1.0% | |
| 2000 | 29,733 | 18.3% | |
| 2010 | 37,115 | 24.8% | |
| 2020 | 40,834 | 10.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[45] 1850-1870[46] 1870-1880[47] 1890-1910[48] 1920-1930[49] 1940[50] 1950[51] 1960[52] 1970[53] 1980[54] 1990[55] 2000[56] 2010[57] 2020[58] | |||
Mableton appeared as an unincorporated place in the1960 U.S. Census.[52] It was not listed in the1970 U.S. Census.[53] It was listed as acensus designated place in the1980 U.S. Census.[54]
| Race / ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop. 2000[59] | Pop. 2010[57] | Pop. 2020[58] | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 17,165 | 14,090 | 10,944 | 57.73% | 37.96% | 26.80% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 8,633 | 14,424 | 17,982 | 29.04% | 38.86% | 44.04% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 72 | 101 | 61 | 0.24% | 0.27% | 0.15% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 401 | 810 | 677 | 1.35% | 2.18% | 1.66% |
| Native Hawaiian orPacific Islander alone (NH) | 3 | 6 | 7 | 0.01% | 0.02% | 0.02% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 112 | 113 | 271 | 0.38% | 0.30% | 0.66% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 432 | 707 | 1,455 | 1.45% | 1.90% | 3.56% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2,915 | 6,864 | 9,437 | 9.80% | 18.49% | 23.11% |
| Total | 29,733 | 37,115 | 40,834 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of thecensus[2]of 2000, there were 11,339 housing units at an average density of 550.8 per square mile (212.7/km2). There were 10,894 households, out of which 34.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.5% weremarried couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.9% were non-families. 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.12.
Mableton, Georgia was incorporated as a city on August 19, 1912, before being disincorporated on August 17, 1916, as a result of a flood overwhelming the city's sewer system.[60][61] In November 2023, the city was reincorporated in an election.[23]
The mayor is the highest elected official in the city. The current mayor isMichael Owens, who was elected in the2023 Mableton mayoral election.
 |
| # | Mayor | Term start | Term end |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Homer A. Glore | 1912 | 1913 |
| 2 | W.H. Stroud[62] | 1913 | ???? |
| # | Image | Mayor | Term start | Term end | Terms | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Michael Owens | 2023 | Incumbent | 1 | Democratic |
The public-use, general aviationFulton County Airport (Brown Field) is adjacent to Mableton's southeast border with Fulton County. It includes two runways and handles approximately 65,000 operations annually.[63]
TheSilver Comet Trail runs through Mableton.[64] It is a 61.5 mile paved trail with a 2% grade, beginning in Smyrna and ending at the Georgia-Alabama state line nearCedartown, GA.
Heritage Park is a smaller trail running along Nickajack Creek that ultimately connects to the Comet. A notable landmark is the ruins of a woolen mill built in the 1860s.[65]
The Historic Mableton Community Garden is located at 5178 Floyd Road.[66]
Governor Roy Barnes provided a state grant for construction of a 2,500-seatamphitheater shortly after his appointment in 2000, fulfilling residents' desire dating back from the 1970s. The Mable House Barnes Amphitheater is a $7 million state and local investment and attracts numerous high-profile acts.[67]
Six Flags Over Georgia is located near Mableton's border with Austell, adjacent to I-20. The park is home to 11 roller coasters, thefirst "floorless" freefall tower ride in the world, and a fully-functional carousel from 1908 listed in theNational Register of Historic Places.
TheCobb County School District operates several public schools in the area:
The Georgia Japanese Language School (GJLS; ジョージア日本語学校Jōjia Nihongo Gakkō), apart-time supplementary Japanese school, holds its classes at the former Lindley 6th Grade Academy (now Betty Gray Middle School) in Mableton;[68][69] Lindley was previously occupied by the W. H. Barnes Education Center.[70] The GJLS originally opened with nine students in 1974 atOglethorpe University, serving grades 1 through 9. The school moved to W.H. Barnes in 2002.[69]
Whitefield Academy, a Christ-centered college preparatory school in Smyrna, is near Mableton.[71]
The SAE School is an "independent project-based learning school" for pre-school to 8th grade students located in Mableton.[72]
Primrose Schools, a private school for early preschool children, is in the Providence neighborhood of Mableton.[73]
In the summer of 2010, more than a hundred residents, bureaucrats, politicians, architects, designers and traffic engineers spent a week designing a vision for a redeveloped downtown Mableton. It was then formalized byDuany Plater-Zyberk into a plan that was unanimously approved by Cobb County's Board of Commissioners in 2013.[74] The establishment of the new Mableton Town Center (MTC) is part of the county's 2040 Comprehensive Plan.[75]
As of late 2020, Embry Development Company is in talks with the Cobb County Board of Commissioners to begin construction of a 31-acremixed-use commercial/residential plaza at Mableton Parkway and Old Powder Springs Road.[76] The development calls for 81 town homes, 46 "courtyard cottage" style houses, 21 detached single-family homes, and 13,500 square feet of retail and restaurant space. The particular area, in addition to establishments along Veterans Memorial Highway (U.S. 78), is largelydated and rundown, with some businesses failing to adhere tobuilding codes.[77]
Another company, Garner Group, is also redeveloping a nearly 40 year oldstrip mall along Floyd Road and East-West Connector into a mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly plaza. There will be 360 luxury apartments and 42 townhomes on the 60-acre site, with the entire development occupying about 720,000 square feet. Planning Commission Chair Galt Porter, proponent of the plan, stated of the recent growth in the area: "It's probably been 15 to 20 years since there's been a market rate development of apartments anywhere close to this...you have to go to Smyrna to get something, or you have to go out all the way into Powder Springs to get something. There's just nothing in this area."[78] The project was approved by the Cobb County Board of Commissioners on October 21, 2020.[79]
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Municipalities and communities ofCobb County, Georgia,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
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| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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| Geographic | |
