This county, created by Act of theLegislature October 1, 1870, was named for Stephen A. Douglas, the "Little Giant," a Vermonter who was Congressman from Illinois 1843 to '47, Senator from '47 to '61, and Democratic candidate for President in 1860 on the ticket with gov.Herschel V. Johnson, of Georgia, for Vice President. Among the first County Officers were: sheriff T.H. Sellman, Clerk of Superior Court A.L. Gorman, Ordinary Wm. Hindman, Tax Receiver Jno. M. James, Tax Collector M.D. Watkins, Treasurer C.P. Bower, Surveyor John M. Hughey.The county was created from the part ofCampbell county which was northwest of theChattahoochee River. The remainder of Campbell becamesouthwest Fulton at the beginning of 1932.[citation needed]
The act creating Douglas County provided that in November 1870, voters of the new county would elect county officers, and vote to select the site of the county seat. In the election, some voters chose a site near the center of the county, but a larger number voted for the settlement known as "Skinned Chestnut" or "Skin(t) Chestnut," based on a Creek Indian landmark tree. The courthouse commissioners chose this site as county seat and proceeded to sell lots and build a courthouse. It later changed its name to Douglasville.
A group of citizens filed suit against the commissioners. The case ultimately went to theSupreme Court of Georgia, which ruled against the commissioners. Both sides agreed to postpone further action until the route of theGeorgia Western Railroad through Douglas County was determined. The General Assembly enacted legislation on February 28, 1874, directing that an election be held on April 7, 1874, to determine the location of the county seat—but with the provision that the site be located on the Georgia Western Railroad. In the election, voters confirmed Douglasville as the county seat. On February 25, 1875, the General Assembly incorporated Douglasville.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 201 square miles (520 km2), of which 200 square miles (520 km2) is land and 1.0 square mile (2.6 km2) (0.5%) is water.[5]
Douglas County's elevation above sea level ranges as low as 740 feet (230 m) at the Chattahoochee River to as high as 1,340 feet (410 m); one of the county's highest elevation points lies inside the city of Douglasville. Andy Mountain, betweenVilla Rica and Winston – west of Douglasville along Bankhead Highway, has the highest elevation in Douglas County. Two other elevated summits are located in the county, known as Cedar Mountain at 1,257 feet (383 m), and Pine Mountain at 1,180 feet (360 m).
Douglas County sits in Georgia'sPiedmont region, which makes its elevation vary due to many rolling hills that Douglas County sits on near the tail end of theAppalachian Mountains. There are no high mountain peaks in Douglas County, just a range of ridges, hills and valleys.
George Sparks Reservoir makes its home at Sweetwater Creek State Park.
The Dog River is a small, almost creek like river in the western side of Douglas county and travels south and eastward until it ends at the Dog River Reservoir in the southern part of the county.
TheDog River Reservoir is Douglas County's main source ofdrinking water, and also serves as a recreational lake for residents of the county.
Douglas County has been experiencing numerous natural disasters over the most recent decades. Being located in the Southeastern United States'Dixie Alley, the county experiences strong storms and tornadoes.
The county has suffered through numerous ice storms throughout the years. They bring everything to a stand still in the area due to the lack of equipment to deal with the problem and drastic amounts of power outages. Some of the worst ice storms were in 1938, 1994, 1998, 2000,2005, and 2010.
The March1993 Storm of the Century brought 17 inches (43 cm) to Douglasville, with drifts measuring several feet.
In 2005,Hurricane Katrina's remnants tore through the area spawning tornadoes, causing wind damage, and flooding rains. Katrina killed 2 people in Georgia.
In 2007, the county suffered one of the worst droughts in the area's history, causing a completewatering ban and resulting in the largest wildfire in Georgia history. The fire was located in south east Georgia, but it still affected the county with smoke often through the life of the fire.
2008 was the first time in Douglas County history that two tornadoes touched down in the same year. They were:
March 7, 2008: This tornado damaged many homes and ripping one home in half in the Brookmont subdivision on Chapel Hill Road.Arbor Place Mall also reported broken windows from the storm. The tornado also damaged the Chapel HillKroger grocery store and threw a heavyair conditioning unit onto cars below. There was only one injury reported from the storm.
May 11, 2008: Known as the "Mother's Day Tornado," the EF2 caused damage all over the county. It first touched down in theFairplay area and then moved through the rest of the county, picking up wind speeds up to 110 mph (180 km/h) . Afilling station in Douglasville was destroyed by the storm, with the large roof being thrown onto the street. No injuries or deaths were reported. Thegovernor of Georgia declared astate of emergency for Douglas County and many other counties in the state on May 12, 2008.
OnSeptember 21, 2009, Douglas County was devastated by the worst flood in Georgia history. Over 18 inches (460 mm) of rain fell in one night causing many roads to be destroyed and many homes a total loss. The county was later declared adisaster area, and the governor of Georgia declared a state of emergency.[7] The flooding's worst affected areas were in the areas of Douglasville, Villa Rica, Austell, Lithia Springs, and Chapel Hill. The disaster killed more than eight people in the county, most of them in the Douglasville area. The Austell death toll was also high but it was reported in the Cobb County losses.
On Sunday night onJanuary 9, 2011, right after Douglasville'sfirst white Christmas in decades, a snowstorm developed over Douglas County and caused as much as 8 inches of snow in the area. The storm closed grocery stores, the courthouse, and Arbor Place Mall until that Wednesday, January 12. Schools were closed the entire second week of January.
Douglas County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 144,237, with 51,024 households and 32,898 families.[20][21]
The median age was 37.5 years, 24.8% of residents were under the age of 18, and 12.5% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 86.1 males. 84.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 15.5% lived in rural areas.[20][21]
Of those households, 37.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 31.1% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[21]
There were 53,885 housing units, of which 5.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 65.9% were owner-occupied and 34.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.5%.[21]
Tanner Health System serves Douglas County with three locations in Villa Rica. Tanner Medical Center/Villa Rica is a 53-bed acute care hospital located in Villa Rica, Georgia, serving the residents of Carroll, Douglas and Paulding counties and beyond.
Hunter Park is located within the city limits of Douglasville, and it is home to the majority of the sports events held in Douglas County. It is home to the Douglas County Boys and Girls Club.
Deer Lick Park is located in the northeast corner of the county and is the third-largest park in the county. It is also home to sporting events.
Woodrow Wilson Park and Lithia Springs Girls Ball Field are located in Lithia Springs next toSweetwater Creek. The ballfield has flooded during heavy rain storms.
Boundary Waters Aquatic Center opened in July 2005 in the southeastern section of the county, and it is home to the Douglas County swim team, the Stingrays. The center also provides aquatic therapy and swim lessons to the county's citizens for a low fee. Residents outside the county can use the center as well for a slightly higher fee. Boundary Waters Park features 9 miles of trails open to hikers, joggers, bicyclists and equestrians.
Most government offices in the county are located at the Douglas County Courthouse complex, about 1-mile (1.6 km) south of the downtown area of Douglasville. The exception is the Douglas County Board of Education, located adjacent to Hunter Park. The Douglas County Chamber of Commerce is located in downtown Douglasville.
The county courthouse was constructed in 1997–98 and opened in 1998 after the county services needed a new courthouse for the ever-growing and changing county. The services prior to the opening were scattered all over downtown Douglasville in seven or eight office buildings. The old Douglas County courthouse, built in 1956, remains in downtown and is now used as a museum and a satellite school for theUniversity of West Georgia an institution of theUniversity System of Georgia with the main campus located in the city ofCarrollton inCarroll County,[2] which is included in theAtlanta Metropolitan Area historically, a commercial center for several mostly rural counties in both Georgia and Alabama.
Douglas County is governed by the Douglas County Board of Commissioners with an elected chairman and commissioners from Douglas County's four districts.
In presidential elections, Douglas County had been a reliably Republican county between1980 and2004, voting Republican by a double-digit margin even in1992, when DemocratBill Clinton carried the state of Georgia. The county gave over 60% of the vote to RepublicanGeorge W. Bush in both of his presidential runs in2000 and 2004. The county has since become increasingly Democratic, voting for Democrats since2008. In2024, DemocratKamala Harris won 65% of the vote, the highest share of the vote in the county since1976.
United States presidential election results for Douglas County, Georgia[28]
Douglas Countylaw enforcement is handled by the Douglas County Sheriffs Department. Inside Douglasvillecity limits, law enforcement is handled by the Douglasville Police Department.
All of the county is served by the Douglas County School System.[30] Based inDouglasville, it operates 20 Elementary Schools, 8 Middle Schools, 5 High Schools, a Performance Learning Center and numerous private academies, as of 2019[update].[31]
Douglas County (Lithia Springs) is home to a regional academic center ofMercer University, which provides educational programs and extended learning opportunities for working adults. In addition, the county has a campus ofWest Georgia Technical College, formerly West Central Technical College (main campus inWaco, Georgia); the college provides programs for those seekinghigher education in technical fields, as well asadult education andGED classes. The county also is home to Tanner Technical Institute,Strayer University, and Georgia Highlands College.
Thenewspaper that serves the Douglas County area is theDouglas County Sentinel, a paper that circulates three days a week: Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. The paper has been in circulation since 1902. It now relies on its website for breaking news.
The county also has a secondary paper that circulates on Wednesday, theDouglas Neighbor, a paper that is run by the publisher of theMarietta Daily Journal. This paper is delivered free of charge, supported byadvertising.
The county also has a monthly magazine calledChapel Hill News & Views andVilla Rica News & Views that delivers to 39,000 homes and businesses ranging from Villa Rica to Lithia Springs and everywhere in between. It also includes a localyellow pages. The company's website covers a wide range of local information as well.
The county is also well-served by online media.Home Rule News launched in 2009 and covers Douglas County as part of its Greater West Metro Atlanta territory.All On Georgia-Douglas which is the newest and fastest growing digital news outlet in the county.Douglasville Patch launched in 2010 and focuses on countywide news and extensive crime coverage.The Douglasville Menu launched in 2015 and focuses on the retail, economic and development news of the city and county with some community and events news as well. TheDouglasville Menu is part of The City Menus which began solely as The Carrollton Menu.
TheAtlanta Journal-Constitution also serves readers of Douglas County, seven days a week, with its largest paper on Sunday.
Douglas County is served by theAtlanta television market, but has a smallinformation TV channel oncable, DCTV 23. The station broadcasts board meetings and special events, classified job listings, and original shows:Gesundheit,Douglas County Living,Insights,District Dialogue,Legally Speaking,dctv23 Presents,Storytime at the Library,Pet Pause, and the "Friday Night Drive-in Movie".
Lee Road: Runs through the eastern portion of the county in theLithia Springs area. The road intersects I-20, begins at Fairburn Road (State Highway 92) in the south and terminates at S. Sweetwater Rd north of I-20.
Post Road: Runs through the western portion of Douglas County through theWinston area. The road begins at the southern border with Carroll County, and runs north, intersects I-20 and ends at Bankhead Highway (US Route 78).
Chapel Hill Road: begins at I-20 (road continues north as Campbellton St.) and runs south to Dorsett Shoals Road, ending at SR 166.
Douglas Boulevard runs from Chapel Hill Rd. at I-20 to SR 5 (Bill Arp Rd.), and from there to Bright Star Road. This road passes Douglasville's Arbor Place Mall.
Kings Highway runs south from SR 5 to Big A Road, and is host to many residential developments.
Pope Road runs south, southeast looping from the Midway area of Fairburn Rd.(SR 92) and ends at Annewakee Rd.
Annewakee Road runs south from Chapel Hill Rd. at Dorsett Shoals Rd. and ending at Fairburn Rd.(SR 92) and Pope Rd.
Dorsett Shoals Road runs west from Chapel Hill Rd. at Annewakee Rd. to SR 5.
Capps Ferry Road (a future state route) runs from the end of South Fulton Parkway to S.R. 166 connecting southern Douglas County to Atlanta.
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