Madison, Georgia | |
|---|---|
| City of Madison | |
 Morgan County Courthouse in Madison | |
 Flag | |
 Location inMorgan County and the state ofGeorgia | |
  Madison Location within thecontiguous United States of America | |
| Coordinates:33°35′17″N83°28′21″W / 33.58806°N 83.47250°W /33.58806; -83.47250 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Georgia |
| County | Morgan |
| Incorporated | December 12, 1809; 215 years ago (1809-12-12) |
| Named after | James Madison |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–Council |
| • Mayor | Fred Perriman |
| • Council | Members
|
| Area | |
• Total | 8.86 sq mi (22.94 km2) |
| • Land | 8.78 sq mi (22.75 km2) |
| • Water | 0.073 sq mi (0.19 km2) |
| Elevation | 679 ft (207 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 4,447 |
| • Density | 506.3/sq mi (195.48/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code | 30650 |
| Area code(s) | 706 |
| FIPS code | 13-49196[4] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0332303[5] |
| Major airport | ATL |
| Website | madisonga |
Madison is a city inMorgan County,Georgia, United States. It is part of theAtlanta-Athens-Clarke-Sandy Springs combined statistical area. The population was 4,447 at the2020 census,[3] up from 3,979 in2010. The city is thecounty seat ofMorgan County and the site of theMorgan County Courthouse.
TheMadison Historic District is one of the largest in the state.[6] Many of the nearly 100 antebellum homes have been carefully restored.Bonar Hall is one of the first of the grand-styleFederal homes built in Madison during the town'scotton-boom heyday from 1840 to 1860.
Budget Travel magazine voted Madison as one of the world's 16 most picturesque villages.[7]
Madison is featured on Georgia's Antebellum Trail, and is designated as one of the state's Historic Heartland cities.
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On December 12, 1809, the town,named for4thUnited States president,James Madison, wasincorporated.[8] Madison was described in an early 19th-century issue ofWhite's Statistics of Georgia as "the most cultured and aristocratic town on the stagecoach route fromCharleston toNew Orleans."[6] An 1849 edition ofWhite's Statistics stated, "In point of intelligence, refinement, and hospitality, this town acknowledges no superior."[citation needed]
While many believe thatWilliam Tecumseh Sherman spared the town because it was too beautiful to burn during hisMarch to the Sea, the truth is that Madison was home to pro-Union Congressman (later Senator)Joshua Hill. Hill had ties with General Sherman's brother in the House of Representatives, so his sparing the town was more political than appreciation of its beauty.[9]
In 1895 Madison was reported to have an oil mill with a capital of $35,000, a soap factory, a fertilizer factory, four steamginneries, a mammoth compress, twocarriage factories, a furniture factory, a grist and flouringmill, a bottling works, a distillery with a capacity of 120 gallons a day, an ice factory with a capital of $10,500, a canning factory with a capital of $10,000, a bank with a capital of $75,000, surplus $12,000, and a number of small industries operated by individual enterprise.[10] One of the carriage factories was owned and operated by prominent African-American businessman and entrepreneur H. R. Goldwire.[citation needed]
Against the backdrop of thisJim Crow-era prosperity, white Madisonians participated in at least three documentedlynchings of African Americans. In February 1890, after a rushed trial involving knife-wieldingjurors, Brown Washington, a 15-year-old,[11] was found guilty of the murder of a 9-year-old local white girl. After the verdict, though the sheriff with the governor's approval called up the Madison Home Guard to protect Washington, "only three militiamen and none of the officers" responded to the order. Washington was thus easily taken from jail by a posse of ten men organized by a "leading local businessman".[12] Described as "among the best citizens", they promptly handed him over to a mob of over 300 people waiting outside the courthouse. From there, he was taken to atelegraph pole behind a local residence, allowed a prayer, then strung up and shot, his body mutilated by more than 100 bullets. Afterwards, in the patriarchal exhibition-style common of southern lynchings, a sign was posted on the telegraph pole: "Our women and children will be protected."[11][12] His body was not taken down until noon the next day.[13]
According to Brundage's account of the lynching of Brown Washington inLynching in the New South: Georgia and Virginia, 1880-1930:
The open participation of men 'of all ages and standing in life,' the carefully organized public meeting that planned the mob's course of action, the obvious complicity of the militia, and the ritualized execution of Washington all highlight the degree to which the lynching was sanctioned by the community at large. Shared attitudes toward women, sexuality, and black criminality, combined with local bonds of community and family, focused the fears and rage of whites on Washington and guaranteed mass involvement in his execution.[12]
In the aftermath, though local and state authorities vowed to thoroughly investigate the lynching as well as the Madison Home Guard's dereliction of duty, just a week later agrand jury was advised by a judge of the superior court of Madison that any investigation would be a waste of time. In addition, the state body charged with investigating the home guard's non-response reported that their absence had been satisfactorily explained and no tribunal would be convened to investigate the matter."[13][14]
Although the local Madisonian newspaper failed to report on the 1890 extra-judicial murder of Mr. Washington, an even earlier first lynching by Madisonians of a man they similarly pulled out of the old stone county jail appears in the contemporary accounts from theAtlanta Constitution.[14]
In 1919, ten years after the erection of aConfederate memorial one block from the newly built Morgan County courthouse, another lynching occurred in the dark of night a few days beforeThanksgiving. This time, citizens skipped the show-trials altogether, opting to travel to the home of Mr. Wallace Baynes in what one paper of the day called an "arresting party", though no charges against Mr. Baynes were stipulated in the news account.[15] Baynes shot at the party, striking Mr. Frank F. Ozburn of Madison in the head, killing him instantly. In response, the mob outside his home grew to 40-50 men. Despite the arrival of Madison Sheriff C.S. Baldwin, Mr. Baynes was pulled from his home by a rope and shot near the Little River. Afterwards, the sheriff present at the lynching said he could not identify any of the men who came for Mr. Baynes, despite the fact that they arrived in cars and lit up Mr. Baynes' home with the headlights of their vehicles.[15] In an editorial that argued that mobs in theSouth were no worse than mobs in theNorth yet condemned future lynchings, the local Madisonian claimed: "There is not now and perhaps will never be, any friction between the races here."[16]
The Confederate monument erected in 1909 by the Morgan County Daughters of the Confederacy one block from the courthouse where Mr. Baynes was not afforded a trial was inscribed in part: "NO NATION ROSE/SO WHITE AND FAIR, NONE FELL SO PURE OF CRIME."[17][18] In the 1950s, the monument was moved to Hill Park, a Madison city property donated by Bell Hill Knight, daughter of Joshua Hill, the aforementioned pro-Union senator who before theCivil War resigned his position rather than support secession. Mrs. Knight, whose husband Captain Gazaway Knight was Commander of the Panola Guards, a Confederate brigade that was organized in Madison, was a staunch member of the Morgan County Daughters of the Confederacy.[citation needed]
Madison has one of the largest historic districts in the state of Georgia, with visitors coming to see theantebellum architecture of the homes.Allie Carroll Hart was instrumental in establishing Madison's historical prestige.[19]
According to the Madison Historic Preservation Commission, "The Madison Historic District is listed in theNational Register of Historic Places and is Madison's foremost tourist attraction. Preservation of the district and of each property within its boundary provides for the protection of Madison's unique historic character and quality environment. Madison's preservation efforts reflect a nationwide movement to preserve a 'sense of place' amid generic modern development." The Historic Preservation Commission, appointed by Mayor and Council, is charged with protecting the historic character of the district through review of proposed exterior changes.[20]
Madison is located in central Morgan County at33°35′17″N83°28′21″W / 33.58806°N 83.47250°W /33.58806; -83.47250 (33.588038, -83.472368).[21] According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 8.9 square miles (23 km2), of which 0.07 square miles (0.18 km2), or 0.82%, are water.[2]
Madison is situated at an elevation of 691 feet (211 m) on a ridge which traverses Morgan County from the northeast to the southwest.[22] In Madison, the south side of the ridge drains to tributaries of Sugar Creek, which flows southeast to theOconee River, while the north side drains via Mill Branch to Hard Labor Creek, an east-flowing tributary of theApalachee River, which continues to the Oconee. The southwest part of the city drains to Little Indian Creek, a tributary of theLittle River, which flows to the Oconee north ofMilledgeville.
Interstate 20,U.S. Route 129,U.S. Route 441, andU.S. Route 278 pass through Madison. I-20 serves the city from exits 113 and 114, leading east 90 miles (140 km) toAugusta and west 57 miles (92 km) toAtlanta. U.S. 278 runs through the center of the city, leading east 19 miles (31 km) toGreensboro and west 24 miles (39 km) toCovington. U.S. 129/441 run through the city together, leading north 29 miles (47 km) toAthens and south 22 miles (35 km) toEatonton.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 1,974 | — | |
| 1890 | 2,131 | 8.0% | |
| 1900 | 1,992 | −6.5% | |
| 1910 | 2,412 | 21.1% | |
| 1920 | 2,348 | −2.7% | |
| 1930 | 1,966 | −16.3% | |
| 1940 | 2,045 | 4.0% | |
| 1950 | 2,489 | 21.7% | |
| 1960 | 2,680 | 7.7% | |
| 1970 | 2,890 | 7.8% | |
| 1980 | 2,954 | 2.2% | |
| 1990 | 3,483 | 17.9% | |
| 2000 | 3,636 | 4.4% | |
| 2010 | 3,979 | 9.4% | |
| 2020 | 4,447 | 11.8% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[23] | |||
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
|---|---|---|
| White | 2,215 | 49.81% |
| Black or African American | 1,919 | 43.15% |
| Native American | 9 | 0.2% |
| Asian | 33 | 0.74% |
| Other/Mixed | 133 | 2.99% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 138 | 3.1% |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 4,447 people, 1,625 households, and 1,121 families residing in the city.
Madison is home to a handful of art galleries and museums. TheMadison-Morgan Cultural Center (MMCC) provides a regional focus for performing and visual arts, plus permanent exhibits including a historical exhibit of Georgia'sPiedmont region. The center occupies an elegantly restored 1895Romanesque Revival building and is located in the heart of Madison's nationally registered historic district. Athens bandR.E.M. recorded anMTV Unplugged session at the center in 1991, where they played "Losing My Religion" with theAtlanta Symphony Orchestra.[25]
The Morgan County African American Museum is located in Madison.
Heritage Hall is maintained by the Morgan County Historical Society and has been restored for its architectural and historical significance. The original portion of Heritage Hall was built in 1811, and it received itsGreek Revival façade around 1830. The house was a private residence until 1977.
The Madison Artists' Guild has more than 150 members and is a nonprofit organization dedicated to education and the encouragement of artistic endeavors in its members and its community through planned programs and regular gatherings.
There are five parks in the city limits. Wellington, Gilbert, Lambert, and Hill Park are designated for active play, whereas Town Park is designed for events and public gatherings.[26]
Madison'ssafari park,Georgia Safari Conservation Park, opened to the public on June 1, 2024.[27][28]
According to a 2017 crime report produced by the city's planning and development director, property crime rates in Madison are double and triple of nearbySocial Circle andWatkinsville, respectively. Violent crime remained steady at a rate of 10 incidents out of a population of 4,034, a rate comparable with Social Circle and Watkinsville. In addition, property crime had decreased in 2016 to a six-year low.[29] The online analytical platform Niche rates Madison's crime a "C" based on violent and property crime rates.[30]
TheMorgan County School District is acharter school system that covers pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of a primary school, an elementary school, a middle school, and a high school.[31] In 2023 the district has 230 full-time teachers and over 3,200 students.[32] The High School graduation rate is 92%, which is greater than the Georgia average of 85%.[32] Overall rankings for the Morgan County School District versus other school districts in Georgia include:
More detailed statistics for individual schools include:
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