Taliaferro County, Georgia | |
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![Taliaferro County Courthouse (built 1902),[1] Crawfordville](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aTaliaferro_County_Courthouse_east_facade.jpg) Taliaferro County Courthouse (built 1902),[1] Crawfordville | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofGeorgia | |
| Coordinates:33°34′N82°53′W / 33.57°N 82.88°W /33.57; -82.88 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Georgia |
| Founded | December 24, 1825; 201 years ago (1825) |
| Named after | Benjamin Taliaferro |
| Seat | Crawfordville |
| Largest city | Crawfordville |
| Area | |
• Total | 195 sq mi (510 km2) |
| • Land | 195 sq mi (510 km2) |
| • Water | 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km2) 0.4% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 1,559 |
| • Density | 8/sq mi (3.1/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 10th |
| Website | taliaferrocountyga |
Taliaferro County (/ˈtɒlɪvər/TOL-iv-ər) is acounty located in East central Piedmont region of theU.S. state ofGeorgia. As of the2020 census, the population was 1,559,[2] down from the2010 census when the population was 1,717,[3] making it theleast populous county in Georgia and the second least populous county east of theMississippi River (afterIssaquena County, Mississippi). Thecounty seat isCrawfordville.[4]
Taliaferro County was formed by an act of theGeorgia Legislature meeting inMilledgeville on December 24, 1825.[1] It was formed by taking portions of five other counties:Wilkes,Greene,Hancock,Oglethorpe, andWarren Counties.[5]
The county was named forColonelBenjamin Taliaferro ofVirginia, who was an officer in theAmerican Revolution.
The county is most famous for containing the birthplace and home ofAlexander H. Stephens, who served as a U.S. congressman from Georgia in the antebellum South, as vice president of theConfederate States of America during the Civil War, and as governor of Georgia after the war (dying in office).A. H. Stephens State Park inCrawfordville is named after him.[6]
During the segregation era, due to judge-ordered desegregation of public schools, all white children moved to white-only private schools, leading to the county being segregated up until 1976.[7]
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 195 square miles (510 km2), of which 195 square miles (510 km2) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km2) (0.4%) is water.[8] It is drained by tributaries of theOgeechee andLittle rivers.[9]
The northern half of Taliaferro County, north ofCrawfordville, is located in theLittle River sub-basin of theSavannah River basin. The southern half of the county is located in the UpperOgeechee River sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin.[10]
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1830 | 4,934 | — | |
| 1840 | 5,190 | 5.2% | |
| 1850 | 5,146 | −0.8% | |
| 1860 | 4,583 | −10.9% | |
| 1870 | 4,796 | 4.6% | |
| 1880 | 7,034 | 46.7% | |
| 1890 | 7,291 | 3.7% | |
| 1900 | 7,912 | 8.5% | |
| 1910 | 8,766 | 10.8% | |
| 1920 | 8,841 | 0.9% | |
| 1930 | 6,172 | −30.2% | |
| 1940 | 6,278 | 1.7% | |
| 1950 | 4,515 | −28.1% | |
| 1960 | 3,370 | −25.4% | |
| 1970 | 2,423 | −28.1% | |
| 1980 | 2,032 | −16.1% | |
| 1990 | 1,915 | −5.8% | |
| 2000 | 2,077 | 8.5% | |
| 2010 | 1,717 | −17.3% | |
| 2020 | 1,559 | −9.2% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 1,620 | [11] | 3.9% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[12] 1790-1880[13] 1890-1910[14] 1920-1930[15] 1930-1940[16] 1940-1950[17] 1960-1980[18] 1980-2000[19] 2010[20] 2020[21] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2000[22] | Pop 2010[20] | Pop 2020[21] | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 787 | 625 | 591 | 37.89% | 36.40% | 37.91% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 1,251 | 1,024 | 833 | 60.23% | 59.64% | 53.43% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0.05% | 0.12% | 0.26% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 1 | 8 | 6 | 0.05% | 0.47% | 0.38% |
| Native Hawaiian orPacific Islander alone (NH) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0.29% | 0.00% | 0.13% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 12 | 23 | 54 | 0.58% | 1.34% | 3.46% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 19 | 35 | 69 | 0.91% | 2.04% | 4.43% |
| Total | 2,077 | 1,717 | 1,559 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 1,559. The median age was 51.0 years. 17.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 28.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 100.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.2 males age 18 and over. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[23][24][25]
The racial makeup of the county was 38.9% White, 53.4%Black or African American, 0.3%American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Asian, 0.0%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 1.8% from some other race, and 5.3% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 4.4% of the population.[25]
There were 699 households in the county, of which 27.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 34.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 36.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[24]
There were 908 housing units, of which 23.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.5% were owner-occupied and 27.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.8%.[24]
Taliaferro county's main employer is the government,[26] primarily the Taliaferro County Sheriffs Department, which patrolsI-20 and issues many traffic tickets per capita compared to other counties in the state. For instance,Fulton County, the largest county by population in Georgia, gains $16.98 per capita in traffic ticket revenue. By comparison, Taliaferro county gains $1,614.33 per capita, which is around a hundred times more.[27]
SeveralHollywood films have been shot in Taliaferro County.Paris Trout (1991), starringDennis Hopper and based on the novel by the same name byPete Dexter, was primarily filmed in the county.Sweet Home Alabama (2002), starringReese Witherspoon, was filmed in the county seat of Crawfordville.
As of the 2020s, Taliaferro County is a strongly Democratic Party voting county, voting 57% forKamala Harris in2024. Taliaferro County is one of the most reliably Democratic counties in Georgia, despite being mostly rural in nature, due to being majority African American. It has supported the Democratic candidate in every presidential election by wide margins except in1972, whenRichard Nixon won by a landslide. In2024, Trump became the first Republican since Nixon to get at least 40% of the vote.
For elections to theUnited States House of Representatives, Taliaferro County is part ofGeorgia's 10th congressional district, currently represented byMike Collins. For elections to theGeorgia State Senate, Taliaferro County is part ofDistrict 23.[28] For elections to theGeorgia House of Representatives, Taliaferro County is part ofDistrict 124.[29]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 35 | 12.50% | 225 | 80.36% | 20 | 7.14% |
| 1916 | 14 | 5.07% | 255 | 92.39% | 7 | 2.54% |
| 1920 | 12 | 3.51% | 330 | 96.49% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 4 | 1.37% | 228 | 77.82% | 61 | 20.82% |
| 1928 | 58 | 11.51% | 446 | 88.49% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 3 | 0.59% | 503 | 99.41% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 14 | 2.44% | 552 | 96.34% | 7 | 1.22% |
| 1940 | 19 | 3.61% | 507 | 96.39% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 6 | 1.52% | 389 | 98.48% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 21 | 3.51% | 504 | 84.14% | 74 | 12.35% |
| 1952 | 103 | 10.55% | 873 | 89.45% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 160 | 21.08% | 599 | 78.92% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 148 | 18.43% | 655 | 81.57% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 337 | 34.92% | 628 | 65.08% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 232 | 16.36% | 678 | 47.81% | 508 | 35.83% |
| 1972 | 585 | 61.13% | 372 | 38.87% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1976 | 236 | 23.98% | 748 | 76.02% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1980 | 270 | 28.30% | 670 | 70.23% | 14 | 1.47% |
| 1984 | 318 | 36.64% | 550 | 63.36% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1988 | 306 | 39.38% | 469 | 60.36% | 2 | 0.26% |
| 1992 | 269 | 24.32% | 755 | 68.26% | 82 | 7.41% |
| 1996 | 235 | 26.52% | 615 | 69.41% | 36 | 4.06% |
| 2000 | 271 | 32.57% | 556 | 66.83% | 5 | 0.60% |
| 2004 | 335 | 35.23% | 612 | 64.35% | 4 | 0.42% |
| 2008 | 339 | 34.24% | 643 | 64.95% | 8 | 0.81% |
| 2012 | 323 | 33.54% | 636 | 66.04% | 4 | 0.42% |
| 2016 | 349 | 38.91% | 545 | 60.76% | 3 | 0.33% |
| 2020 | 360 | 38.79% | 561 | 60.45% | 7 | 0.75% |
| 2024 | 375 | 42.42% | 507 | 57.35% | 2 | 0.23% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 366 | 40.58% | 521 | 57.76% | 15 | 1.66% |
| 2020 | 332 | 39.29% | 513 | 60.71% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 178 | 20.14% | 343 | 38.80% | 363 | 41.06% |
| 2020 | 360 | 39.09% | 561 | 60.91% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2022 | 310 | 38.90% | 483 | 60.60% | 4 | 0.50% |
| 2022 | 284 | 39.72% | 431 | 60.28% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2022 | 327 | 40.52% | 477 | 59.11% | 3 | 0.37% |
Places adjacent to Taliaferro County, Georgia | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofTaliaferro County, Georgia,United States | ||
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| Unincorporated communities | ||
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