Waynesboro, Georgia | |
|---|---|
 Downtown Waynesboro, within the historic district | |
 Seal | |
| Nickname: "The Bird Dog Capital of the World"[1] | |
 Location inBurke County and the state ofGeorgia | |
| Coordinates:33°5′26″N82°0′55″W / 33.09056°N 82.01528°W /33.09056; -82.01528 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Georgia |
| County | Burke |
| Area | |
• Total | 5.53 sq mi (14.31 km2) |
| • Land | 5.47 sq mi (14.17 km2) |
| • Water | 0.054 sq mi (0.14 km2) |
| Elevation | 300 ft (90 m) |
| Population (2024) | |
• Total | 5,472 |
| • Density | 1,000/sq mi (386.2/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code | 30830 |
| Area code | 706 |
| FIPS code | 13-80984[3] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0347180[4] |
| Website | www |
Waynesboro (/ˈweɪnzbʌroʊ/) is a city and thecounty seat ofBurke County,Georgia, United States. The population was 5,472 at the 2024 census.[5][6] It is part of theAugusta, Georgia metropolitan area.
Waynesboro is 37 minutes south ofdowntown Augusta by car viaUS 25. Waynesboro is known as "TheBird Dog Capital of the World".[7] TheWaynesboro Commercial Historic District is listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.
Waynesboro is located in Burke County, one of the eight original counties of Georgia. The city was named after GeneralAnthony Wayne, whose daring efforts during theRevolutionary War earned him the nickname "Mad Anthony Wayne".[8]
Although European Americans lived in the area before the Revolutionary War, the town was not laid out until 1783. The city was officially incorporated in 1883 as Waynesborough. The name was changed to Waynesboro sometime after.[9] It developed as the trading and government center of the county, and is the site of the county courthouse and jail.
PresidentGeorge Washington spent the night of May 17, 1791, in Waynesboro. A stone monument on Liberty Street marks the historical site; it stands in front of the Golden Pantry (formerly Kwik Stop).[10]
On December 4, 1864, theCivil WarBattle of Waynesboro was fought just south of the town. Forces underUnion GeneralJudson Kilpatrick prevented troops led byConfederate GeneralJoseph Wheeler from interfering with Union GeneralWilliam T. Sherman's campaign todestroy a wide swathe of the South on his march toSavannah, Georgia, and the Atlantic Ocean.
Waynesboro is located in the center of Burke County at33°5′26″N82°0′55″W / 33.09056°N 82.01528°W /33.09056; -82.01528 (33.090482, -82.015404).[11]U.S. Route 25 passes through the center as Liberty Street. To the north it is 28 miles (45 km) todowntown Augusta, and to the south it is 49 miles (79 km) toStatesboro.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, Waynesboro has a total area of 5.5 square miles (14.2 km2), of which 5.4 square miles (14.0 km2) is land and 0.039 square miles (0.1 km2), or 0.96%, is water.[5] The city's elevation is 295 feet (90 m) above sea level. Pine, oak, dogwood, and other trees found in the South are in Waynesboro.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 196 | — | |
| 1880 | 1,008 | — | |
| 1890 | 1,711 | 69.7% | |
| 1900 | 2,030 | 18.6% | |
| 1910 | 2,729 | 34.4% | |
| 1920 | 3,311 | 21.3% | |
| 1930 | 3,922 | 18.5% | |
| 1940 | 3,793 | −3.3% | |
| 1950 | 4,461 | 17.6% | |
| 1960 | 5,359 | 20.1% | |
| 1970 | 5,530 | 3.2% | |
| 1980 | 5,760 | 4.2% | |
| 1990 | 5,701 | −1.0% | |
| 2000 | 5,813 | 2.0% | |
| 2010 | 5,766 | −0.8% | |
| 2020 | 5,799 | 0.6% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[12] 1850-1870[13] 1870-1880[14] 1890-1910[15] 1920-1930[16] 1940[17] 1950[18] 1960[19] 1970[20] 1980[21] 1990[22] 2000[23] 2010[24] | |||
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 1,603 | 27.64% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 3,861 | 66.58% |
| Native American | 9 | 0.16% |
| Asian | 32 | 0.55% |
| Other/Mixed | 157 | 2.71% |
| Hispanic orLatino | 137 | 2.36% |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 5,799 people, 1,991 households, and 1,339 families residing in the city.
On February 2, 2010, President Obama was expected to announce a total of $8.3 billion in federal loan guarantees to build and operate a pair ofnuclear reactors in Burke County by Southern Company, an Atlanta-based energy company.[26] The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) offered Southern Company's subsidiary, Georgia Power, a conditional commitment for loan guarantees for the construction of the nation's first nuclear power units in more than 30 years. The new units will be located at Plant Vogtle along theSavannah River 21 miles (34 km) east of Waynesboro, where the company already owns and operates two nuclear units. The conditional commitment is for loan guarantees that would apply to future borrowings related to the construction ofVogtle units 3 and 4.[citation needed]
The Burke County Museum traces the area's history, from plantation life to the establishment of agribusiness.[27]
K-12 public education in Waynesboro is managed byBurke County Public Schools, which covers all of Burke County.[28]
These two elementary schools are the district's elementary facilities in Waynesboro:
These are the district's secondary schools, relevant to all of Burke County:
There are three private schools which are inunincorporated areas outside of the Waynesboro city limits:[29]
Waynesboro is the home to the Burke County Bears high school sports teams. The Bears won the 2011 statefootball championship against the Trojans ofPeach County. Back in the 1950s, the former Waynesboro High School team, the Purple Hurricanes, won the state championship, but the Bears had not won a state championship football game until 2011.
Municipalities and communities ofBurke County, Georgia,United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cities |  | |
| Town | ||
| CDP | ||
| Other unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
