Atlanta () is the
capital
Capital most commonly refers to:
* Capital letter
Letter case (or just case) is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minusc ...
and
most populous city
The United Nations uses three definitions for what constitutes a city, as not all cities in all jurisdictions are classified using the same criteria. Cities may be defined as the city proper, cities proper, the extent of their urban area, or the ...
of the
U.S. state
In the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state ...
of
Georgia
Georgia usually refers to:
* Georgia (country)
Georgia (, ; ) is a country located at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region, bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north and east by ...
. With an estimated 2019 population of 506,811,
it is also the
37th most populous city in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and economic center of the
Atlanta metropolitan area
Metro Atlanta, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). OMB's most prominent functio ...
, home to more than 6 million people and the
ninth-largest metropolitan area in the nation.
[ Atlanta is the ]seat
SEAT S.A. (, ; ''Sociedad Española de Automóviles de Turismo'') is a Spanish car manufacturer, which sells its vehicles under the SEAT and Cupra brands. It was founded on 9 May 1950, by the Instituto Nacional de Industria
Instituto Nacional d ...
of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia. Portions of the city extend eastward into neighboring DeKalb CountyDeKalb County may refer to one of several counties in the United States, all of which were named for Baron Johan DeKalb:
* DeKalb County, Alabama
* DeKalb County, Georgia
* DeKalb County, Illinois
* DeKalb County, Indiana
* DeKalb County, Missouri
* ...
. The city is situated among the foothills
Foothills or piedmont are geographically
Geography (from Ancient Greek, Greek: , ''geographia'', literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of the Earth ...

of the Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America
North America is a continent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention (nor ...

and has the highest elevation among major cities east of the Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and b ...

.
Atlanta was originally founded as the terminus of a major state-sponsored railroad. With rapid expansion, however, it soon became the convergence point among multiple railroads, spurring its rapid growth. The city's name derives from that of the Western and Atlantic Railroad
The Western & Atlantic Railroad of the State of Georgia (W&A) is a government-owned railroad (by the State of Georgia) and is currently leased by CSX, which CSX operates in the Southeastern United States
The southeastern United States, also ...
's local depot, signifying the town's growing reputation as a transportation hub. During the American Civil War
The American Civil War (also known by other names
Other most often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Books
* The Other (Tryon novel), ''The Other'' (Tryon nove ...
, the city was almost entirely burned to the ground in General William T. Sherman's March to the Sea. However, the city rose from its ashes and quickly became a national center of commerce and the unofficial capital of the "New South
New South, New South Democracy or New South Creed is a slogan in the history of the Southern United States, American South after the American Civil War. Reformers used it to call for a modernization of society and attitudes, to integrate more fu ...
". During the 1950s and 1960s, Atlanta became a major organizing center of the civil rights movement
The 1954–1968 civil rights movement in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North ...
, with Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans or Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group of Americans with total or part ...
, Ralph David Abernathy
Ralph David Abernathy Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was ordained in the Baptist tradition in 1948. As a leader of the civil rights movement#REDIRECT Civil rights mov ...
, and many other locals playing major roles in the movement's leadership. During the modern era, Atlanta has attained international prominence as a major air transportation hub, with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , also known as Atlanta Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport, Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield, Hartsfield–Jackson or by its airport code ATL, is the primary international airport serving At ...
being the world's busiest airport by passenger traffic since 1998.
It ranks in the top twenty among world cities and 10th in the nation with a gross domestic product
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary
Image:National-Debt-Gillray.jpeg, In a 1786 James Gillray caricature, the plentiful money bags handed to King George III are contrasted with the beggar whose legs and arms were amputated, in the ...
(GDP) of $385 billion.[ Atlanta's economy is considered diverse, with dominant sectors that include aerospace, transportation, logistics, professional and business services, media operations, medical services, and information technology. Atlanta has topographic features that include rolling hills and dense tree coverage, earning it the nickname of "the city in a forest". Gentrification of Atlanta's neighborhoods, initially spurred by the ]1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, commonly known as Atlanta 1996, and also referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games, was an international multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized s ...
, has intensified in the 21st century with the growth of the Atlanta Beltline
The Atlanta BeltLine (also Beltline or Belt Line) is a former railway corridor around the core of Atlanta, Georgia, under development in stages as a Shared use path, multi-use trail. Some portions are already complete, while others are still in ...
, altering the city's demographics, politics, aesthetic, and culture.
History
Native American settlements
For thousands of years prior to the arrival of European settlers in north Georgia, the indigenous Creek people
The Muscogee, also known as the Muskogee, Muscogee Creek, Mvskoke
Creek, Mvskokvlke, or the Muscogee Creek Confederacy () in the Muscogee language
The Muscogee language (Muskogee, ''Mvskoke'' in Muscogee), also known as Creek, is a Muskogean l ...

and their ancestors inhabited the area. Standing Peachtree, a Creek village where Peachtree Creek
Peachtree Creek is a major stream
A stream is a body of water with surface water flowing within the stream bed, bed and Bank (geography), banks of a Channel (geography), channel. The flow of a stream is controlled by three inputs – surface ...
flows into the Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Hunts ...

, was the closest Native American settlement to what is now Atlanta. Through the early 19th century, European Americans systematically encroached on the Creek of northern Georgia, forcing them out of the area from 1802 to 1825. The Creek were forced to leave the area in 1821, under Indian Removal #REDIRECT Indian removal#REDIRECT Indian removal
Indian removal is the former United States government policy of forced displacement of self-governing tribes of Native Americans from their ancestral homelands in the eastern United States to l ...
by the federal government, and European American settlers arrived the following year.
Western and Atlantic Railroad
In 1836, the Georgia General Assembly
The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature
A state legislature is a Legislature, legislative branch or body of a State (country subdivision), political subdivision in a Federalism, federal system.
Two federations literally use the ...
voted to build the Western and Atlantic Railroad in order to provide a link between the port of Savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats ...
and the Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
. The initial route was to run southward from Chattanooga
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat
A county seat is an administrative centerAn administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration o ...

to a terminus east of the Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Hunts ...

, which would be linked to Savannah. After engineers surveyed various possible locations for the terminus, the "zero milepost" was driven into the ground in what is now Five Points. A year later, the area around the milepost had developed into a settlement, first known as ''Terminus'', and later ''Thrasherville'', after a local merchant who built homes and a general store
A general merchant store (also known as general merchandise store, general dealer or village shop) is a rural or small-town Retailing, store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, sometimes in a ...

in the area. By 1842, the town had six buildings and 30 residents and was renamed '' Marthasville'' to honor Governor daughter Martha. Later, John Edgar Thomson
John Edgar Thomson (February 10, 1808 – May 27, 1874) was an American civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering
Civil engineering is a Regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discip ...
, Chief Engineer of the Georgia Railroad
Georgia usually refers to:
* Georgia (country)
Georgia (, ; ) is a country located at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region, bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north and east by R ...
, suggested the town be renamed ''Atlanta''. The residents approved, and the town was incorporated as Atlanta on December 29, 1847.
Civil War
By 1860, Atlanta's population had grown to 9,554. During the American Civil War
The American Civil War (also known by other names
Other most often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Books
* The Other (Tryon novel), ''The Other'' (Tryon nove ...
, the nexus of multiple railroads in Atlanta made the city a strategic hub for the distribution of military supplies.
In 1864, the Union Army
During the American Civil War
The American Civil War (also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States from 1861 to 1865, fought between northern U.S. state, states loyal to the Union (A ...
moved southward following the capture of Chattanooga and began its . The region surrounding Atlanta was the location of several major army battle
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

s, culminating with the Battle of Atlanta
The Battle of Atlanta was a battle of the Atlanta Campaign fought during the American Civil War
The American Civil War (also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States from 1861 to 186 ...

and a four-month-long siege of the city by the Union Army under the command of General William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a General officer, general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recogn ...

. On September 1, 1864, Confederate
Confederacy may refer to:
A confederation, an association of sovereign states or communities. Examples include:
* Battle of the Trench, Confederate tribes
* Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed ...

General John Bell Hood
John Bell Hood (June 1 or June 29, 1831 – August 30, 1879) was a Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War. Hood had a reputation for bravery and aggressiveness that sometimes bordered on recklessness. Arguably o ...

decided to retreat from Atlanta, and he ordered the destruction of all public buildings and possible assets that could be of use to the Union Army. On the next day, Mayor James Calhoun surrendered Atlanta to the Union Army, and on September 7, Sherman ordered the city's civilian population to evacuate. On November 11, 1864, Sherman prepared for the Union Army's March to the Sea by ordering the destruction of Atlanta's remaining military assets.
Rebuilding the city
After the Civil War ended in 1865, Atlanta was gradually rebuilt. The work attracted many new residents. Due to the city's superior rail transportation
Rail or rails may refer to:
Rail transport
*Rail transport
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transferring passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are located on tracks. In contrast to r ...

network, the state capital
Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital cities
A capital or capital city is the municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having Municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-gov ...
was moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta in 1868. In the 1880 Census, Atlanta had surpassed Savannah as Georgia's largest city.
Beginning in the 1880s, Henry W. Grady, the editor of the ''Atlanta Constitution
''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the Atlanta metropolitan area, metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Cons ...
'' newspaper, promoted Atlanta to potential investors as a city of the "New South
New South, New South Democracy or New South Creed is a slogan in the history of the Southern United States, American South after the American Civil War. Reformers used it to call for a modernization of society and attitudes, to integrate more fu ...
" that would be based upon a modern economy and less reliant on agriculture. By 1885, the founding of the Georgia School of Technology (now Georgia Tech
*
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech, is a public
In public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from a ...
) and the Atlanta University Center
The Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUC Consortium) is the oldest and largest contiguous consortium
A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association
Association may refer to:
*Club (organization), an association of two or more people ...
, a consortium of historically black colleges
Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States
Higher education in the United States is an optional stage of formal learning
Education is the process of facilitating ...
made up of units for men and women, had established Atlanta as a center for higher education. In 1895, Atlanta hosted the Cotton States and International Exposition
The 1895 Cotton States and International Exposition was held at the current Piedmont Park
Piedmont Park is an urban park in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), ...
, which attracted nearly 800,000 attendees and successfully promoted the New South's development to the world.
20th century
During the first decades of the 20th century, Atlanta enjoyed a period of unprecedented growth. In three decades' time, Atlanta's population tripled as the city limits expanded to include nearby streetcar suburbs. The city's skyline grew taller with the construction of the , Flatiron, Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". Narrowly defined, an empire is a sovereign state called an empire and ...

, and Candler buildings. Sweet Auburn
The Sweet Auburn Historic District is a historic African-American neighborhood
African-American neighborhoods or black neighborhoods are types of ethnic enclaves found in many cities in the United States. Generally, an African American Neighbourh ...

emerged as a center of black commerce. The period was also marked by strife and tragedy. Increased racial tensions led to the Atlanta Race Riot
The Atlanta Massacre of 1906 was an attack by armed mobs of white Americans
White Americans are Americans
Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States of ...
of 1906, when whites attacked blacks, leaving at least 27 people dead and over 70 injured, with extensive damage in black neighborhoods. In 1913, Leo Frank
Leo Max Frank (April 17, 1884August 17, 1915) was an American factory superintendent who was convicted in 1913 of the murder of a 13-year-old employee, Mary Phagan, in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. His trial, conviction, and appeals ...

, a Jewish-American factory superintendent, was convicted of the murder of a 13-year-old girl in a highly publicized trial. He was sentenced to death but the governor commuted his sentence to life. An enraged and organized took him from jail in 1915 and hanged him in Marietta. The Jewish community in Atlanta and across the country were horrified. On May 21, 1917, the Great Atlanta Fire destroyed 1,938 buildings in what is now the Old Fourth Ward
The Old Fourth Ward, often abbreviated O4W, is an intown neighborhood on the eastside of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgi ...
, resulting in one fatality and the displacement of 10,000 people.[
On December 15, 1939, Atlanta hosted the ]premiere
A premiere or première is the wikt:debut, debut (first public presentation) of a Play (theatre), play, film, dance, or musical composition.
A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the ...

of ''Gone with the WindGone with the Wind may refer to:
* Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell
* Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), 1939 adaptation of the novel
* Gone with the Wind (musical), ...
'', the epic film based on the best-selling novel by Atlanta's Margaret Mitchell
Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell (November 8, 1900 – August 16, 1949) was an American novelist and journalist. Mitchell wrote only one novel, published during her lifetime, the American Civil War-era novel ''Gone With the Wind (novel), Gone with t ...
. The gala event at Loew's Grand Theatre
Loew's Grand Theater, originally DeGive's Grand Opera House, was a movie theater at the corner of Peachtree Street, Peachtree and Forsyth Streets in downtown Atlanta, downtown Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States. It was most famous as the site of ...
was attended by the film's legendary producer, David O. Selznick
David O. Selznick (May 10, 1902June 22, 1965) was an American film producer
A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working Independent film, independently, producers plan and coordina ...
, and the film's stars Clark Gable
William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

, Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh (; 5 November 1913 – 8 July 1967; born Vivian Mary Hartley and styled as Lady Olivier after 1947) was a British actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, for her definitive performances as Scarlett O'Hara in ''Gon ...
, and Olivia de Havilland
Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British-American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actors of her time. At ...

, but Oscar winner Hattie McDaniel
Hattie McDaniel (June 10, 1893October 26, 1952) was an American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as "Mammy” in '' Gone with the Wind'' (1939), becoming the first Afric ...
, an African-American actress, was barred from the event due to racial segregation laws.
Metropolitan area's growth
Atlanta played a vital role in the Allied effort during World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a global war
A world war is "a war
War is an intense armed conflict between states
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literatur ...
due to the city's war-related manufacturing companies, railroad network and military bases. The defense industries attracted thousands of new residents and generated revenues, resulting in rapid population and economic growth. In the 1950s, the city's newly constructed highway system, supported by federal subsidies, allowed middle class Atlantans the ability to relocate to the suburbs. As a result, the city began to make up an ever-smaller proportion of the metropolitan area's population.[ ]Georgia Tech
*
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech, is a public
In public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from a ...
's president Blake R Van Leer
Blake Ragsdale Van Leer (a.k.a. Blake Van Leer) (August 16, 1893 – January 23, 1956) was an orphan who became the fifth president of Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech ...
played an important role with a goal of making Atlanta the "MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university
A research university is a university
A university ( la, universitas, 'a whole') is an educational institution, institution of higher education, hi ...
of the South." In 1946 Georgia Tech secured about $240,000 annually in sponsored research and purchased an electron microscope
An electron microscope is a microscope that uses a beam of accelerated electrons as a source of illumination. As the wavelength of an electron can be up to 100,000 times shorter than that of visible light photons, electron microscopes have a high ...

for $13,000 (), the first such instrument in the Southeastern United States
The southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is broadly the eastern portion of the southern United States
The Southern United States, also referred to as the Southern States, the Ame ...
and one of few in the United States at the time. The Research Building was expanded, and a $300,000 () Westinghouse
Westinghouse may refer to:
Businesses Current companies
*Westinghouse Licensing, the brand management division of ViacomCBS, and licensees:
**Westinghouse Electric Company, providing nuclear power related services
**Westinghouse Electronics, wh ...
A-C network calculator was given to Georgia Tech by Georgia Power
Georgia Power is an electric utility headquartered in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an est ...
in 1947. In 1953, Van Leer assisted with helping Lockheed establish a research and development
Research and development (R&D, R+D), known in Europe
Europe is a continent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention (norm), convention rather than any strict criteria, up to seven geogra ...
and production line in Marietta. Later in 1955 he helped set up a committee to assist with establishing a nuclear research facility, which would later become the Neely Nuclear Research Center. Van Leer also co-founded Southern Polytechnic State University
Southern Polytechnic State University (also called Southern Poly; abbreviated SPSU) was a public, co-educational, state university in Marietta, Georgia, United States approximately northwest of downtown Atlanta. Until 2015, it was an indepen ...
now known as Kennesaw State University
Kennesaw State University (KSU) is a public
In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept ...
to help meet the need for technicians after the war. Van Leer was instrumental in making the school and Atlanta the first major research center in the American South
The Southern United States, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, Dixie, the Southland, or simply the South, is a geographic and cultural region
In geography
Geography (from Ancient Greek, Greek: , ''geograph ...
. The building that houses Tech's school of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the la ...
bears his name.
Civil Rights Movement
African-American veterans returned from World War II seeking full rights in their country and began heightened activism. In exchange for support by that portion of the black community that could vote, in 1948 the mayor ordered the hiring of the first eight African-American police officers in the city. Much controversy preceded the 1956 Sugar Bowl
The 1956 Sugar Bowl featured the 7th ranked Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute o ...
, when the Pitt Panthers
Atlantic Coast Conference logo in Pittsburgh's colors.
The Pittsburgh Panthers, commonly also referred to as the Pitt Panthers, are the athletic teams representing the University of Pittsburgh, although the term is colloquially used to refer t ...
, with African-American fullback Bobby Grier on the roster, met the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Ge ...
. There had been controversy over whether Grier should be allowed to play due to his race, and whether Georgia Tech should even play at all due to Georgia's Governor
A governor is, in most cases, a public official with the power to govern the Executive (government), executive branch of a non-sovereign or sub-national level of government, ranking under the head of state. In federations, ''governor'' may be t ...
Marvin Griffin
Samuel Marvin Griffin, Sr. (September 4, 1907 – June 13, 1982) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia.
A lifelong Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Griffin was a native of Bainbridge, Geor ...
's opposition to racial integration.[Mulé, Marty ]
A Time For Change: Bobby Grier And The 1956 Sugar Bowl
. Black Athlete Sports Network, December 28, 2005 After Griffin publicly sent a telegram to the state's Board Of Regents requesting Georgia Tech not to engage in racially integrated events, Georgia Tech's president Blake R Van Leer
Blake Ragsdale Van Leer (a.k.a. Blake Van Leer) (August 16, 1893 – January 23, 1956) was an orphan who became the fifth president of Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech ...
rejected the request and threatened to resign. The game went on as planned.
In the 1960s, Atlanta became a major organizing center of the civil rights movement
The 1954–1968 civil rights movement in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North ...
, with Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans or Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group of Americans with total or part ...
, Ralph David Abernathy
Ralph David Abernathy Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was ordained in the Baptist tradition in 1948. As a leader of the civil rights movement#REDIRECT Civil rights mov ...
, and students from Atlanta's historically black colleges and universities
Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States
Higher education in the United States is an optional stage of formal learning following secondary education. Higher education is ...
playing major roles in the movement's leadership. While Atlanta in the postwar years had relatively minimal racial strife compared to other cities, blacks were limited by discrimination, segregation, and continued disenfranchisement
Disfranchisement, also called disenfranchisement, or voter disqualification is the restriction of suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections (although the term is sometime ...
of most voters. In 1961, the city attempted to thwart blockbusting
Blockbusting is a business process in which U.S. real estate agents and building developers convince white property owners to sell their houses at low prices, which they do by telling house owners that racial minorities will soon move into their ...
by realtors by erecting road barriers in Cascade Heights, countering the efforts of civic and business leaders to foster Atlanta as the "city too busy to hate".
Desegregation of the public sphere came in stages, with public transportation desegregated by 1959, the restaurant at Rich's department store by 1961, movie theaters by 1963, and public schools by 1973 (nearly 20 years after the US Supreme Court ruled that segregated public schools were unconstitutional).
In 1960, whites comprised 61.7% of the city's population. During the 1950s–70s, suburbanization and white flight
White flight or white exodus is the sudden or gradual large-scale migration of from areas becoming more racially or ethnoculturally diverse. Starting in the 1950s and 1960s, the terms became popular in the . They referred to the large-scale mi ...
from urban areas led to a significant demographic shift. By 1970, African Americans were the majority of the city's population and exercised their recently enforced voting rights and political influence by electing Atlanta's first black mayor, Maynard Jackson
Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr. (March 23, 1938 – June 23, 2003) was an American politician and attorney from Georgia
Georgia usually refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), one of t ...

, in 1973. Under Mayor Jackson's tenure, Atlanta's airport was modernized, strengthening the city's role as a transportation center. The opening of the Georgia World Congress Center
The Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) is a convention center in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgi ...
in 1976 heralded Atlanta's rise as a convention city. Construction of the city's subway system
Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail, metro, subway, tube, U-Bahn, metropolitana or underground, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. Unlike buses or trams, rapid transit s ...
began in 1975, with rail service commencing in 1979. Despite these improvements, Atlanta lost more than 100,000 residents between 1970 and 1990, over 20% of its population. At the same time, it developed new office space after attracting numerous corporations, with an increasing portion of workers from northern areas.
1996 Summer Olympic Games
Atlanta was selected as the site for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. Following the announcement, the city government undertook several major construction projects to improve Atlanta's parks, sporting venues, and transportation infrastructure; however, for the first time, none of the $1.7 billion cost of the games was governmentally funded. While the games experienced transportation and accommodation problems and, despite extra security precautions, there was the Centennial Olympic Park bombing
The Centennial Olympic Park bombing was a domestic terrorist pipe bomb
A pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device which uses a tightly sealed section of pipe (material), pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by ...
, the spectacle was a watershed event in Atlanta's history. For the first time in Olympic history, every one of the record 197 national Olympic committees invited to compete sent athletes, sending more than 10,000 contestants participating in a record 271 events. The related projects such as Atlanta's Olympic Legacy Program and civic effort initiated a fundamental transformation of the city in the following decade.
2000 to present
During the 2000s, Atlanta underwent a profound physical, cultural
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior
Social behavior is behavior
Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling diff ...
, and demographic
Demography (from prefix ''demo-'' from Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the used in and the from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: (), Dark Ages (), the period ...

transformation. As some of the black middle and upper classes also began to move to the suburbs, a booming economy drew numerous new migrants from other areas of the country, who contributed to changes in the city's demographics. African Americans made up a decreasing portion of the population, from a high of 67% in 1990 to 54% in 2010. From 2000 to 2010, Atlanta gained 22,763 white residents, 5,142 Asian residents, and 3,095 Hispanic residents, while the city's black population decreased by 31,678. Much of the city's demographic change during the decade was driven by young, college-educated professionals: from 2000 to 2009, the three-mile radius surrounding Downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta is the central business district of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimate ...

gained 9,722 residents aged 25 to 34 and holding at least a four-year degree, an increase of 61%. This was similar to the tendency in other cities for young, college educated, single or married couples to live in downtown areas.
Between the mid-1990s and 2010, stimulated by funding from the HOPE VIHOPE VI is a program of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is a Cabinet department in the executive branch
The executive is the branch of governmen ...
program and under leadership of CEO Renee Lewis Glover (1994–2013), the Atlanta Housing Authority
The Atlanta Housing Authority (AHA) is an agency that provides affordable housing for low-income families in Atlanta. Today, the AHA is the largest housing agency in Georgia and one of the largest in the United States, serving approximately 50,000 ...
demolished nearly all of its public housing, a total of 17,000 units and about 10% of all housing units in the city. After reserving 2,000 units mostly for elderly, the AHA allowed redevelopment of the sites for mixed-use and mixed-income, higher density developments, with 40% of the units to be reserved for affordable housing. Two-fifths of previous public housing residents attained new housing in such units; the remainder received vouchers to be used at other units, including in suburbs. At the same time, in an effort to change the culture of those receiving subsidized housing, the AHA imposed a requirement for such residents to work (or be enrolled in a genuine, limited-time training program). It is virtually the only housing authority to have created this requirement. To prevent problems, the AHA also gave authority to management of the mixed-income or voucher units to evict tenants who did not comply with the work requirement or who caused behavior problems.
In 2005, the city approved the $2.8 billion BeltLine
The Atlanta BeltLine (also Beltline or Belt Line) is a former railway corridor around the core of Atlanta, Georgia, under development in stages as a multi-use trail. Some portions are already complete, while others are still in a rough state b ...
project. It was intended to convert a disused 22-mile freight railroad loop that surrounds the central city into an art-filled multi-use trail and light rail transit line, which would increase the city's park space by 40%. The project stimulated retail and residential development along the loop, but has been criticised for its adverse effects on some Black communities.
Atlanta's cultural offerings expanded during the 2000s: the High Museum of Art
The High Museum of Art (colloquially the High) is an art museum in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia ...
doubled in size; the Alliance Theatre
The Alliance Theatre is a theater company in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an esti ...
won a Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is the generally preferred spelling in the United Sta ...
; and art galleries were established on the once-industrial Westside. The city of Atlanta was the subject of a massive cyberattack which began in March 2018.
Geography
Atlanta encompasses , of which is land and is water. The city is situated among the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America
North America is a continent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention (nor ...

. At above mean sea level, Atlanta has the highest elevation among major cities east of the Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and b ...

. Atlanta straddles the Eastern Continental Divide
Image:NorthAmerica-WaterDivides.png, upright 1.2, A map of the principal hydrological divides of North America. The Eastern Continental Divide (orange line) demarcates two watersheds of the Atlantic Ocean: the Gulf of Mexico watershed and the Atla ...
. Rainwater that falls on the south and east side of the divide flows into the Atlantic Ocean, while rainwater on the north and west side of the divide flows into the Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin
400px, Diagrammatic cross-section of an ocean basin, showing the various geographic features
In hydrology
Hydrology (from Greek: wikt:ὕδωρ, ὕδωρ, "hýdōr" meaning ...

. Atlanta developed on a ridge
A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from narrow top on either side. The lines along th ...

south of the Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Hunts ...

, which is part of the ACF River Basin
The ACF River Basin is the drainage basin, or watershed, of the Apalachicola River, Apalachicola River, Chattahoochee River, Chattahoochee River, and Flint River (Georgia), Flint River, in the Southeastern United States.
This area is alternativel ...
. The river borders the far northwestern edge of the city, and much of its natural habitat has been preserved, in part by the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA) preserves a series of sites between Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia ( ...
.
Atlanta is sometimes called "City of Trees" or "city in a forest", despite having lost approximately of trees between 1973 and 1999.
Cityscape
Most of Atlanta was burned during the Civil War, depleting the city of a large stock of its historic architecture. Yet architecturally, the city had never been traditionally "southern" because Atlanta originated as a railroad town, rather than a southern seaport dominated by the planter class, such as Savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats ...
or Charleston
Charleston most commonly refers to:
* Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, South Carolina, Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charle ...

. Because of its later development, many of the city's landmarks share architectural characteristics with buildings in the Northeast or Midwest, as they were designed at a time of shared national architectural styles.
During the late twentieth century, Atlanta embraced the global trend of modern architecture
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style
An architectural style is a set of characteristics and features that make a building or other structure notable or historically identifiable ...

, especially for commercial and institutional structures. Examples include the State of Georgia Building
The State of Georgia Building, alternately referenced as 2 Peachtree Street, is a 44-story, skyscraper located in downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America
North America is a continent entirely within the Nor ...

built in 1966, and the Georgia-Pacific Tower
Georgia-Pacific Tower is a , 1,567,011 sq.ft skyscraper in downtown Atlanta. It contains 52 stories of office space and was finished in 1982. Before the six-year era of tall skyscrapers to be built in Atlanta, it was Atlanta's second tallest build ...

in 1982. Many of the most notable examples from this period were designed by world renowned Atlanta architect John Portman
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname), including a list of people who have the name John
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
*Johannine literature
** Gospel of John, a title often shortened ...
. Most of the buildings that define the downtown skyline were designed by Portman during this period, including the Westin Peachtree Plaza
The Westin Peachtree Plaza, Atlanta, is a skyscraper hotel on Peachtree Street in downtown Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, adjacent to the Peachtree Center complex and the former Davison's/Macy's flagship store with 1,073 rooms. At and ...
and the Atlanta Marriott Marquis
The Atlanta Marriott Marquis is a 53-story, Marriott International, Marriott hotel in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the 14th tallest skyscraper in the city. The building was designed by Atlanta architect John C. Portman, Jr. with ...

. In the latter half of the 1980s, Atlanta became one of the early homes of postmodern buildings that reintroduced classical elements to their designs. Many of Atlanta's tallest skyscrapers were built in this period and style, displaying tapering spires or otherwise ornamented crowns, such as One Atlantic Center
One Atlantic Center, also known as IBM Tower, is a skyscraper
A skyscraper is a large continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least 100 metres or 150 metres in height, tho ...

(1987), (1991), and the Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta
The Four Seasons Hotel occupies the lower third of the GLG Grand building.
Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta is a five-star hotel and part of the Toronto-based Four Seasons Hotel, Four Seasons luxury hotels and resorts. It is located in the Midtown ...
(1992). Also completed during the era is the Portman-designed Bank of America Plaza built in 1992. At , it is the tallest building in the city and the 14th-tallest in the United States.
The city's embrace of modern architecture has often translated into an ambivalent approach toward historic preservation, leading to the destruction of many notable architectural landmarks. These include the (1892–1971), Terminal Station
A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transferring passengers and goods on wheeled vehicle
A vehicle (from la, vehiculum) is a machine ...
(1905–1972), and the Carnegie Library
Image:Andrew Carnegie in National Portrait Gallery IMG 4441.JPG, up''Andrew Carnegie'', c. 1905, National Portrait Gallery (United States), National Portrait Gallery
A Carnegie library is a library built with money donated by Scottish-American ...
(1902–1977). In the mid-1970s, the Fox Theatre, now a cultural icon of the city, would have met the same fate if not for a grassroots effort to save it. More recently, preservationists may have made some inroads. For example, in 2016 activists convinced the Atlanta City Council not to demolish the Atlanta-Fulton Central Library, the last building designed by noted architect Marcel Breuer
Marcel Lajos Breuer ( ; 21 May 1902 – 1 July 1981), was a Kingdom of Hungary, Hungarian-born modernism, modernist architect, and furniture designer. At the Bauhaus he designed the Wassily Chair and the Cesca Chair which is “among the 10 most im ...

.
Atlanta is divided into 242 officially defined neighborhoods
A neighbourhood (British English
British English (BrE) is the standard dialect of the English language
English is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language first spoken in History of Anglo-Saxon England, early medieval E ...
. The city contains three major high-rise districts, which form a north–south axis along Peachtree: Downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America
North America is a continent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention (norm), convention rather than any strict criteria, up t ...

, , and Buckhead
Buckhead is the uptown commercial and residential district of the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), G ...
. Surrounding these high-density districts are leafy, low-density neighborhoods, most of which are dominated by single-family homes.
Downtown Atlanta contains the most office space in the metro area, much of it occupied by government entities. Downtown is home to the city's sporting venues and many of its tourist attractions. Midtown Atlanta
Midtown Atlanta, or Midtown, is a high-density commercial and residential neighborhood of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Geo ...

is the city's second-largest business district, containing the offices of many of the region's law firms. Midtown is known for its art institutions, cultural attractions, institutions of higher education, and dense form. Buckhead
Buckhead is the uptown commercial and residential district of the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), G ...
, the city's uptown district, is north of Downtown and the city's third-largest business district. The district is marked by an urbanized core along Peachtree Road, surrounded by suburban single-family neighborhoods situated among woods and rolling hills.
Surrounding Atlanta's three high-rise districts are the city's low- and medium-density neighborhoods
A neighbourhood (British English
British English (BrE) is the standard dialect of the English language
English is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language first spoken in History of Anglo-Saxon England, early medieval E ...
, where the craftsman bungalow
A bungalow is a small house
A house is a single-unit residential building
A building, or edifice, is a structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a var ...

single-family home is dominant. The eastside is marked by historic streetcar suburbs
A streetcar suburb is a residential community whose growth and development was strongly shaped by the use of streetcar lines as a primary means of transportation. Such suburbs developed in the United States in the years before the automobile, when t ...
, built from the 1890s–1930s as havens for the upper middle class. These neighborhoods, many of which contain their own villages encircled by shaded, architecturally distinct residential streets, include the Victorian
Victorian or Victorians may refer to:
19th century
* Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign
** Victorian architecture
** Victorian house
** Victorian decorative arts
** Victorian fashion
** Victorian literature
...
Inman Park
Inman Park is an intown neighborhood
A neighbourhood (British English, Hiberno-English, Hibernian English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; American and British English spelling differences, see sp ...
, Bohemian
A Bohemian () is a resident of Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech lands in the present-day Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area cons ...
East Atlanta
East Atlanta is a neighborhood on the east side of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimated ...
, and eclectic Old Fourth Ward
The Old Fourth Ward, often abbreviated O4W, is an intown neighborhood on the eastside of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgi ...
. On the westside and along the BeltLine
The Atlanta BeltLine (also Beltline or Belt Line) is a former railway corridor around the core of Atlanta, Georgia, under development in stages as a multi-use trail. Some portions are already complete, while others are still in a rough state b ...
on the eastside, former warehouses and factories have been converted into housing, retail space, and art galleries, transforming the once-industrial areas such as West Midtown
West Midtown, also known as Westside, is a colloquial area, comprising many historical neighborhoods located in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Once largely industrial, West Midtown is now the location of urban lofts, art galleries, live ...
into model neighborhoods for smart growth
Smart growth is an urban planning
Planning is the process
A process is a series or set of Action (philosophy), activities that interact to produce a result; it may occur once-only or be recurrent or periodic.
Things called a process include:
B ...
, historic rehabilitation, and infill construction.
In southwest Atlanta, neighborhoods closer to downtown originated as streetcar suburbs, including the historic West End
West End most commonly refers to:
* West End of London, an area of central London, England
* West End theatre, a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London, England
West End may also refer to:
Place ...
, while those farther from downtown retain a postwar suburban layout. These include Collier Heights and Cascade Heights, home to much of the city's affluent African-American population. Northwest Atlanta contains the areas of the city to west of Marietta Boulevard and to the north of Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, including those neighborhoods remote to downtown, such as Riverside, Bolton and Whittier Mill. The latter is one of Atlanta's designated Landmark Historical Neighborhoods. Vine City, though technically Northwest, adjoins the city's Downtown area and has recently been the target of community outreach programs and economic development initiatives.
Gentrification of the city's neighborhoods is one of the more controversial and transformative forces shaping contemporary Atlanta. The gentrification of Atlanta
Bungalows in Atlanta's Inman Park neighborhood
Gentrification of Atlanta's Intown Atlanta, inner-city neighborhoods began in the 1970s, and it has continued, at varying levels of intensity, into the present. Many factors have contributed to the c ...
has its origins in the 1970s, after many of Atlanta's neighborhoods had declined and suffered the urban decay that affected other major American cities in the mid-20th century. When neighborhood opposition successfully prevented two freeways
network.
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway
A highway is any public or private road
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two Location (geography), places that has been Pavement (material), paved or ...
from being built through the city's east side in 1975, the area became the starting point for Atlanta's gentrification
Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood
A neighbourhood (British English
British English (BrE) is the standard dialect
A standard language (also standard variety, standard dialect, and standard ...

. After Atlanta was awarded the Olympic games in 1990, gentrification expanded into other parts of the city, stimulated by infrastructure improvements undertaken in preparation for the games. New development post-2000 has been aided by the Atlanta Housing Authority
The Atlanta Housing Authority (AHA) is an agency that provides affordable housing for low-income families in Atlanta. Today, the AHA is the largest housing agency in Georgia and one of the largest in the United States, serving approximately 50,000 ...
's eradication of the city's public housing. As noted above, it allowed development of these sites for mixed-income housing, requiring developers to reserve a considerable portion for affordable housing units. It has also provided for other former residents to be given vouchers to gain housing in other areas. Construction of the Beltline has stimulated new and related development along its path.
Climate
Under the Köppen classification, Atlanta has a humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents, generally between latitude
In geography
Geograp ...
(''Cfa'') with four distinct seasons and generous precipitation year-round, typical for the Upland South
The Upland South or Upper South is a cultural and geographic subregion
A subregion is a part of a larger region
In geography
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia'', literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the ...
; the city is situated in USDA Plant Hardiness Zone
File:World Hardiness Zones.png, Global Plant Hardiness Zones, 250px
A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined to encompass a certain range of climatic conditions relevant to plant growth and survival.
The original and most widely used system, ...
8a, with the northern and western suburbs transitioning to 7b. Summers are hot and humid, with temperatures somewhat moderated by the city's elevation. Winters are cool but variable, occasionally susceptible to snowstorms even if in small quantities on several occasions, unlike the central and southern portions of the state. Warm air from the Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin
400px, Diagrammatic cross-section of an ocean basin, showing the various geographic features
In hydrology
Hydrology (from Greek: wikt:ὕδωρ, ὕδωρ, "hýdōr" meaning ...

can bring spring-like highs while strong Arctic air masses can push lows into the teens °F (−7 to −12 °C).
July averages , with high temperatures reaching on an average of 44 days per year, though readings are not seen most years. January averages , with temperatures in the suburbs slightly cooler due largely to the urban heat island
An urban heat island (UHI) is an urban area
An urban area, or built-up area, is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized ...

effect. Lows at or below freezing can be expected 40 nights annually, but the last occurrence of temperatures below is January 6, 2014. Extremes range from on February 13, 1899 to on June 30, 2012. Average dewpoints in the summer range from in June to in July.[
Typical of the southeastern U.S., Atlanta receives abundant rainfall that is evenly distributed throughout the year, though spring and early fall are markedly drier. The average annual rainfall is , while snowfall is typically light with a normal of per winter.] The heaviest single snowfall occurred on January 23, 1940, with around of snow. However, ice storm #REDIRECT Ice storm#REDIRECT Ice storm
An ice storm is a type of winter storm characterized by freezing rain, also known as a ''glaze event'' or, in some parts of the United States, as a ''silver thaw''. The U.S. National Weather Service define ...

s usually cause more problems than snowfall does, the most severe occurring on January 7, 1973. Tornadoes are rare in the city itself, but the March 14, 2008 EF2 tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air
File:Atmosphere gas proportions.svg, Composition of Earth's atmosphere by volume, excluding water vapor. Lower pie represents trace gases that together compose about 0.043391% of the atmos ...

damaged prominent structures in downtown Atlanta.
Demographics
The 2010 United States Census
The United States Census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in ...
reported that Atlanta had a population of 420,003. The population density
Population density (in agriculture
Agriculture is the science, art and practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary
Image:Family watching television 1958.jpg, Exercise tr ...

was 3,154 per square mile
The square mile (abbreviated as sq mi and sometimes as mi2)Rowlett, Russ (September 1, 2004) University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC-Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Chapel Hill, o ...
(1232/ km2). The racial makeup and population of Atlanta was 54.0% Black or African American, 38.4% White, 3.1% Asian and 0.2% Native American. Those from some other race made up 2.2% of the city's population, while those from two or more races made up 2.0%. Hispanics of any race made up 5.2% of the city's population. The median income for a household in the city was $45,171. The per capita income for the city was $35,453. 22.6% percent of the population was living below the poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income
In microeconomics, income is the Consumption (economics), consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, w ...
.
In the 1920s, the black population began to grow in Southern metropolitan cities like Atlanta, Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city
A city is a large human settlement.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Ro ...
, Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, List of United States cities by population, fourth-most populous city in the United States, most populous city in the Southern United States, as well as th ...

, and Memphis
Memphis is the name of:
*Memphis, Egypt
, alternate_name =
, image =
, alt =
, caption = Ruins of the pillared hall of Ramesses IIat Mit Rahina
, map_type = Egypt
, map_alt =
, map_size =
, reli ...
. In the 2010 Census, Atlanta was recorded as the nation's fourth-largest majority-black city. The New Great Migration brought an insurgence of African Americans from California
California is a state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* The State (newspaper), ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper i ...

and the North
North is one of the four compass points
The points of the compass are the vectors by which planet
A planet is an astronomical body orbiting a star or Stellar evolution#Stellar remnants, stellar remnant that is massive enough to be Hydro ...
to the Atlanta area. It has long been known as a center of African-American political power, education, economic prosperity, and culture, often called a black mecca
A black mecca, in the United States
The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US), or America, is a country Contiguous United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, s ...
. Some middle and upper class African-American residents of Atlanta followed an influx of whites to newer housing and public schools in the suburbs in the early 21st century. From 2000 to 2010, the city's black population decreased by 31,678 people, shrinking from 61.4% of the city's population in 2000 to 54.0% in 2010, as the overall population expanded and migrants increased from other areas.
At the same time, the white population of Atlanta has increased. Between 2000 and 2010, the proportion of whites in the city had notable growth. In that decade, Atlanta's white population grew from 31% to 38% of the city's population, an absolute increase of 22,753 people, more than triple the increase that occurred between 1990 and 2000.
Early immigrants in the Atlanta area were mostly Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים ISO 259-2 ISO
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ) is an international standard
An international standard is a technical standard
A technical standard is an established norm (social), ...
and Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group
An ethnic group or ethnicity is a grouping of people
A people is any plurality of person
A person (plural people or persons) is a being that has cer ...
. Since 1970, the Hispanic immigrant population, especially Mexicans, has experienced the most rapid growth, particularly in Gwinnett, Cobb, and DeKalb counties. Since 2010, the Atlanta area has seen very notable growth with immigrants from India, China, South Korea, and Jamaica. Other notable countries immigrants come from are Vietnam, Eritrea, Nigeria, the Arabian gulf, Ukraine and Poland. Within a few decades, and in keeping with national trends, immigrants from England, Ireland, and German-speaking central Europe were no longer the majority of Atlanta's foreign-born population. The city's Italians included immigrants from northern Italy, many of whom had been in Atlanta since the 1890s; more recent arrivals from southern Italy; and Sephardic Jews from the Isle of Rhodes, which Italy had seized from Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Turkey, is a country located mainly on Anatolia
Anatolia,, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau. also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia an ...

in 1912.
Of the total population five years and older, 83.3% spoke only English at home, while 8.8% spoke Spanish, 3.9% another Indo-European language, and 2.8% an Asian language. 7.3% of Atlantans were born abroad ( 86th in the US). Atlanta's dialect has traditionally been a variation of Southern American English
Southern American English or Southern U.S. English is a regional dialect or collection of dialects of American English
American English (AmE, AE, AmEng, USEng, en-US), sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of ...

. The Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Hunts ...

long formed a border between the and dialects. Because of the development of corporate headquarters in the region, attracting migrants from other areas of the country, by 2003, ''Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimated 2019 population of 506,811, it is also the List of United ...
'' magazine concluded that Atlanta had become significantly "de-Southernized". A Southern accent was considered a handicap in some circumstances. In general, Southern accents are less prevalent among residents of the city and inner suburbs and among younger people; they are more common in the outer suburbs and among older people.[ At the same time, some residents of the city speak in Southern variations of ]African-American English
African-American English (AAE), also known as Black English in America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America
...
.
Religion in Atlanta, while historically centered on Protestant Christianity
Protestantism is a form of Christianity that originated with the 16th-century Reformation, a movement against what its followers perceived to be Criticism of the Catholic Church, errors in the Catholic Church. Protestants reject the Roman Catholi ...
, now encompasses many faiths, as a result of the city and metro area's increasingly international population. Some 63% of residents identify as some type of Protestant, but in recent decades the Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptised
Baptism (from the Greek language, Greek noun βάπτισμα ''báptisma'') is a Christians, Christian ...

has increased in numbers and influence because of new migrants to the region. Metro Atlanta also has numerous ethnic or national Christian congregations, including Korean and Indian churches. The larger non-Christian faiths are Judaism
Judaism is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, monotheism, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion ...
, Islam
Islam (; ar, اَلْإِسْلَامُ, al-’Islām, "submission o God
Oh God may refer to:
* An exclamation; similar to "oh no", "oh yes", "oh my", "aw goodness", "ah gosh", "ah gawd"; see interjection
An interjection is a word or ex ...
, and Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion
Indian religions, sometimes also termed Dharmic religions or Indic religions, are the religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent. These religions, which include Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, ...

. Overall, there are over 1,000 places of worship within Atlanta.
Sexual orientation and gender identity
Atlanta has a thriving and diverse community. According to a 2006 survey by the Williams Institute
The Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law (usually shortened to Williams Institute) is a public policy
Public policy is a course of action created and/or enacted, typically by a government
A government is the system or group of pe ...
, Atlanta ranked third among major American cities, behind San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish
Spanish may refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards, a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Canada
* Spanish River (dis ...

and slightly behind Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport
The Porticciolo del Cedas port in Barcola
The thumb is the first digit of the hand, next to the index finger. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front) ...

, with 12.8% of the city's total population identifying as LGBT. The and Cheshire Bridge areas have historically been the epicenters of LGBT culture
LGBT culture is a culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior and Norm (social), norms found in human Society, societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, ...
in Atlanta. Atlanta formed a reputation for being a progressive place of tolerance after former mayor Ivan Allen Jr.
Ivan Earnest Allen Jr. (March 15, 1911 – July 2, 2003), was an American businessman who served two terms as the 52nd mayor of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most pop ...
dubbed it "the city too busy to hate" in the 1960s.
Economy
With a GDP of $385 billion, the Atlanta metropolitan area
Metro Atlanta, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). OMB's most prominent functio ...
's economy is the tenth-largest in the country and among the top 20-largest in the world. Corporate operations play a major role in Atlanta's economy, as the city claims the nation's third-largest concentration of Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune
Fortune may refer to:
General
* Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck
* Luck, a chance happening, or that which happens beyond a person's controls
* Wealth, an a ...
companies. It also hosts the global headquarters of corporations like The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational
Multinational may refer to:
* Multinational corporation, a corporate organization operating in multiple countries
* Multinational force, a military body from multiple countries
* Multinational ...
, The Home Depot
The Home Depot, Inc., commonly known as Home Depot, is the largest home improvement retailer in the United States, supplying tools, construction products, and services. The company is headquartered in incorporated Cobb County, Georgia, with an ...
, Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States
Major is a military rank
Military ranks are a system of hierarchical
A hierarchy (from the Greek: , from , 'president of sa ...
, AT&T Mobility
AT&T Mobility LLC, also known as AT&T Wireless and Trade name, marketed as simply AT&T, is an American telecommunications company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of AT&T, AT&T Inc. and provides wireless services in the United States, excluding ...

, Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A ( , a play
Play most commonly refers to:
* Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment
* Play (theatre), a work of drama
Play may refer also to:
Computers and technology
* Google Play, a digital content service
* Play Framewor ...

, and UPS. Over 75% of Fortune 1000
The Fortune 1000 are the 1,000 largest American companies ranked by revenue
In accounting
Accounting or Accountancy is the measurement
'
Measurement is the number, numerical quantification (science), quantification of the variable and att ...
companies conduct business operations in the city's metro area, and the region hosts offices of over 1,250 multinational corporations. Many corporations are drawn to the city by its educated workforce; , 45% of adults aged 25 or older residing in the city have at least 4-year college degrees, compared to the national average of 28%.
Atlanta started as a railroad town, and logistics
Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics is the management of the flow of things between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requ ...

has been a major component of the city's economy to this day. Atlanta serves as an important rail junction and contains major classification yard
A classification yard ( American and Canadian English
Canadian English (CanE, CE, en-CA) is the set of varieties of the English language
English is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language first spoken in History of Anglo-Saxo ...
s for Norfolk Southern
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country in . It consists of 50 , a , f ...
and CSX
CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the eastern United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a ...
. Since its construction in the 1950s, Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , also known as Atlanta Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport, Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield, Hartsfield–Jackson or by its airport code ATL, is the primary international airport serving At ...
has served as a key engine of the city's economic growth. Delta Air Lines, the city's largest employer and the metro area's third-largest, operates the world's largest airline hub at Hartsfield-Jackson, and it has helped make it the world's busiest airport, in terms of both passenger traffic and aircraft operations. Partly due to the airport, Atlanta has been also a hub for diplomatic missions; , the city contains 26 consulates general, the seventh-highest concentration of diplomatic missions in the US.
Broadcasting is also an important aspect of Atlanta's economy. In the 1980s, media mogul Ted Turner
Robert Edward Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor
A media proprietor, media mogul or media tycoon refers to a successful entrepreneur or businessperson who controls, through ...

founded the Cable News Network
Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news-based pay television channel headquartered in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state ...
(CNN) and the Turner Broadcasting System
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (abbreviated as Turner) is an American television and media conglomerate
A media conglomerate, media group, or media institution is a company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal e ...
(TBS) in the city. Around the same time, Cox Enterprises
Cox Enterprises, Inc. is a privately held
A privately held company, private company, or close corporation is a corporation not owned by the government, non-governmental organizations and by a relatively small number of shareholders or company ...

, now the nation's third-largest cable television
Cable television is a system of delivering television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV or telly, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium used for transmitting moving images in grayscale, black-and-white or in color, ...
service and the publisher of over a dozen American newspapers, moved its headquarters to the city. The Weather Channel
The Weather Channel (TWC) is an American pay television
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription
The subscription busines ...
is also based just outside of the city in suburban Cobb County
Cobb County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, located in the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north central portion of the state. As of 2019, the population was 760,141, making it List of c ...
.
Information technology (IT) has become an increasingly important part of Atlanta's economic output, earning the city the nickname the " Silicon peach". , Atlanta contains the fourth-largest concentration of IT jobs in the US, numbering 85,000+. The city is also ranked as the sixth fastest-growing for IT jobs, with an employment growth of 4.8% in 2012 and a three-year growth near 9%, or 16,000 jobs. Companies are drawn to Atlanta's lower costs and educated workforce.
Recently, Atlanta has been the center for film and television production, largely because of the Georgia Entertainment Industry Investment Act, which awards qualified productions a transferable income tax credit of 20% of all in-state costs for film and television investments of $500,000 or more. Some film and television production facilities based in Atlanta include Turner Studios
Turner Entertainment Company is an American multimedia company founded by Ted Turner in 1986. Purchased by WarnerMedia, Time Warner in 1996 as part of its acquisition of Turner Broadcasting System (TBS), the company was largely responsible for o ...
, Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a British film studio, film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London.
The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scal ...

(Pinewood Atlanta), Tyler Perry Studios
Tyler Perry Studios (TPS) is an film studio, American film production studio in Atlanta, Georgia founded by actor, filmmaker, and playwright Tyler Perry in 2006.
In 2019, Perry celebrated the grand opening of his newest Atlanta studio location; h ...

, Williams Street
Williams Street Productions, LLC, d/b/a Williams Street and formerly known as Ghost Planet Industries, is an American animation and live action television production studio owned by the Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics division of Warner ...
Productions, and the EUE/Screen Gems
EUE/Screen Gems Ltd. is an American film and television studio production company that owns and operates facilities in Wilmington, North Carolina; Atlanta, Georgia; and Miami, Florida. The company collaborates with other studios and producers fo ...
soundstages. Film and television production injected $9.5 billion into Georgia's economy in 2017, with Atlanta garnering most of the projects. Atlanta has emerged as the all-time most popular destination for film production in the United States and one of the ten most popular destinations globally.
Compared to other American cities, Atlanta's economy in the past had been disproportionately affected by the 2008 financial crisis
8 (eight) is the natural number
File:Three Baskets.svg, Natural numbers can be used for counting (one apple, two apples, three apples, ...)
In mathematics, the natural numbers are those numbers used for counting (as in "there are ''six'' co ...
and the subsequent recession, with the city's economy earning a ranking of 68 among 100 American cities in a September 2014 report due to an elevated unemployment rate, declining real income levels, and a depressed housing market. From 2010 to 2011, Atlanta saw a 0.9% contraction in employment and plateauing income growth at 0.4%. Although unemployment had decreased to 7% by late 2014, this was still higher than the national unemployment rate of 5.8% Atlanta's housing market has also struggled, with home prices dropping by 2.1% in January 2012, reaching levels not seen since 1996. Compared with a year earlier, the average home price in Atlanta plummeted to 17.3% in February 2012, thus becoming the largest annual drop in the history of the index for any American or global city. The decline in home prices prompted some economists to deem Atlanta the worst housing market in the nation at the height of the depression. Nevertheless, the city's real estate market has resurged since 2012, so much median home value and rent growth significantly outpaced the national average by 2018, thanks to a rapidly-growing regional economy.
Culture
Atlanta is noted for its lack of Southern
The name Southern may refer to:
* South
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. South is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to the east and west.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earl ...
culture. This is due to a large population of migrants from other parts of the U.S., in addition to many recent immigrants to the U.S. who have made the metropolitan area their home, establishing Atlanta as the cultural and economic hub of an increasingly multi-cultural
The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology
Sociology is the study of society, human social behaviour, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and culture that surrounds everyday life. ...
metropolitan area. Thus, although traditional Southern culture is part of Atlanta's cultural fabric, it is mostly a footnote to one of the nation's most cosmopolitan cities. This unique cultural combination reveals itself in the arts district of Midtown, the quirky neighborhoods on the city's eastside, and the multi-ethnic enclaves found along Buford Highway
Buford Highway (also Buford Highway Corridor), a.k.a. the DeKalb International Corridor, and in the 1990-2000's as the DeKalb County International Village district, is a community northeast of the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capita ...

.
Arts and theater
Atlanta is one of few United States cities with permanent, professional, and resident companies in all major performing arts disciplines: opera (Atlanta Opera
The Atlanta Opera is an opera company located in the Atlanta metropolitan area
Metro Atlanta, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Alpharetta, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the ...

), ballet (Atlanta Ballet
Atlanta Ballet is a ballet companyA ballet company is a type of dance troupe which performs classical ballet, neoclassical ballet, and/or contemporary ballet in the European tradition, plus managerial and support staff. Most major ballet companies ...
), orchestral music (Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is an American orchestra based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Robert Spano has been its music director since 2001. The ASO's main concert venue is Atlanta Symphony Hall in the Woodruff Arts Center.
History
Th ...
), and theater (the Alliance Theatre
The Alliance Theatre is a theater company in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an esti ...
). Atlanta attracts many touring Broadway acts, concerts, shows, and exhibitions catering to a variety of interests. Atlanta's performing arts district is concentrated in Midtown Atlanta
Midtown Atlanta, or Midtown, is a high-density commercial and residential neighborhood of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Geo ...

at the Woodruff Arts Center
Woodruff Arts Center is a visual
The visual system comprises the sensory organ (the eye) and parts of the central nervous system (the retina containing photoreceptor cells, the optic nerve
The optic nerve, also known as cranial nerv ...

, which is home to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is an American orchestra based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Robert Spano has been its music director since 2001. The ASO's main concert venue is Atlanta Symphony Hall in the Woodruff Arts Center.
History
Th ...
and the Alliance Theatre
The Alliance Theatre is a theater company in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an esti ...
. The city frequently hosts touring Broadway acts, especially at The Fox Theatre, a historic landmark among the highest-grossing theaters of its size.
As a national center for the arts, Atlanta is home to significant art museums and institutions. The renowned High Museum of Art
The High Museum of Art (colloquially the High) is an art museum in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia ...
is arguably the South's leading art museum. The (MODA) and the SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film are the only such museums in the Southeast. Contemporary art museums include the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center
Atlanta Contemporary is a nonprofit, non-collecting institution located in the West Midtown district of Atlanta. It is dedicated to the creation, presentation, and advancement of contemporary art by emerging and established artists.
Atlanta Contem ...

and the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia
The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia (MOCA GA) is a contemporary art museum located in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georg ...
. Institutions of higher education contribute to Atlanta's art scene, with the Savannah College of Art and Design's Atlanta campus providing the city's arts community with a steady stream of curators, and Emory University's containing the largest collection of ancient art in the Southeast. In nearby Athens
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File:Athens Montage L.png, center, 275px, alt=Athens montage. Clicking on an image in the picture causes the browser to load the appropriate article.
rect 15 15 985 460 Acropolis of Athens
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is the Georgia Museum of Art
The Georgia Museum of Art is an art museum in Athens, Georgia
Athens, officially Athens–Clarke County, is a consolidated city–county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia usually refers to:
* Georgia (country)
Georg ...
that is associated with the University of Georgia
, mottoeng = To teach and to inquire into the nature of things.'To serve' was later added to the motto without changing the seal, so the university motto in English now is "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of thi ...
and is both an academic museum and the official art museum of the state of Georgia.
Atlanta has become one of the USA's best cities for street art
Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility. It has been associated with the terms "independent art", "post-graffiti", "neo-graffiti" and guerrilla art.
Street art has evolved from the early forms of defiant gra ...

in recent years. It is home to Living Walls, an annual street art conference and th
Outerspace Project
an annual event series that merges public art, live music, design, action sports, and culture. Examples of street art in Atlanta can be found on th
Atlanta Street Art Map
Music
Atlanta has played a major or contributing role in the development of various genres of American music at different points in the city's history. Beginning as early as the 1920s, Atlanta emerged as a center for country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music
Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed b ...

, which was brought to the city by migrants from Appalachia
Appalachia () is a cultural region
's map of native American cultural areas within the territory of the United States (1948)
as defined by Melville J. Herskovits
influence
, homelands of the Celtic languages
The Celtic languages ( ...
. During the countercultural 1960s, Atlanta hosted the Atlanta International Pop FestivalAtlanta International Pop Festival can refer to:
* Atlanta International Pop Festival (1969), the 1969 festival
* Atlanta International Pop Festival (1970), the 1970 festival
* ''Live at the Atlanta International Pop Festival: July 3 & 5, 1970'', a ...
, with the 1969 festival taking place more than a month before Woodstock
Woodstock was a music festival held August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music" and alternatively referred to as t ...

and featuring many of the same bands. The city was also a center for Southern rock
Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music
Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as "rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and ...
during its 1970s heyday: the Allman Brothers BandAllman may refer to:
Music
*The Allman Brothers Band, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame southern rock band, formed by Duane and Gregg Allman
*The Allman Joys, an early band formed by Duane and Gregg Allman
*The Gregg Allman Band
People
*Allman (surname)
...
's hit instrumental " Hot 'Lanta" is an ode to the city, while Lynyrd Skynyrd #REDIRECT Lynyrd Skynyrd#REDIRECT Lynyrd Skynyrd
Lynyrd Skynyrd ( ) is an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the most populous city in Florida, and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by ...

's famous live rendition of "Free Bird
"Free Bird", also spelled "Freebird", is a song written and performed by American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. The song first featured on (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd), the band's debut album in 1973 and has been included on subsequent albu ...
" was recorded at the Fox Theatre in 1976, with lead singer Ronnie Van Zant
Ronald Wayne Van Zant (January 15, 1948 – October 20, 1977) was an American musician known as the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and founding member of the Southern rock
Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music
Rock music is a broad ...
directing the band to "play it pretty for Atlanta". During the 1980s, Atlanta had an active punk rock
Punk rock (or simply punk) is a music genre
A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music
Music is the art of arranging sounds in time to produce a composition through the elements of melody, harmony, ...
scene centered on two of the city's music venues, and the Metroplex, and Atlanta famously played host to the Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock
Punk rock (or simply punk) is a music genre
A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music
Music is the art of arranging sounds in time to produce a comp ...

' first U.S. show, which was performed at the Great Southeastern Music Hall. The 1990s saw the city produce major mainstream acts across many different musical genres. Country music artist Travis Tritt
James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and actor. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In ...
, and R&B sensations XscapeXscape may refer to:
Business
* Xscape, a chain of arcades owned by Cineplex Entertainment in Canada
*Xscape (building), a chain of indoor ski slope/leisure complexes in the United Kingdom Music
*Xscape (vocal group), an American/R&B band popular i ...
, TLC
TLC may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Television
* TLC (TV series), ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2
* TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network
** TL ...
, Usher and Toni Braxton
Toni Michelle Braxton (born October 7, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, pianist, actress, and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female R&B
Rhythm and blues, ofte ...
, were just some of the musicians who call Atlanta home. The city also gave birth to Atlanta hip hop
Although the music scene of Atlanta is rich and varied, the city's production of hip-hop music has been especially noteworthy, acclaimed, and commercially successful. In 2009, ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'' or ''NY Ti ...
, a subgenre that gained relevance and success with the introduction of the home-grown Atlantans known as Outkast
Outkast (sometimes written as OutKast) were an American Hip hop music, hip hop duo formed in 1992 in East Point, Georgia, consisting of Atlanta-based rappers André 3000, André "3000" Benjamin (formerly known as Dré) and Big Boi, Antwan "Big B ...
, along with other Dungeon Family
The Dungeon Family is a musical collective, based in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With a ...
artists such as Organized Noize
Organized Noize is an American production team from Atlanta, Georgia composed of Rico Wade, Ray Murray and Sleepy Brown.
History
Among the hit records they have worked on include TLC (music), TLC's "Waterfalls (TLC song), Waterfalls", En Vogue's ...
and Goodie Mob
Goodie Mob is an American hip hop
Hip hop or hip-hop is a culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior and Norm (social), norms found in human Society, societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, art ...

; however, it was not until the 2000s that Atlanta moved "from the margins to becoming hip-hop's center of gravity with another sub-genre called Crunk
Crunk is a subgenre of hip hop music
Hip hop music or hip-hop music, also known as rap music, is a genre of popular music developed in the United States by inner-city African Americans. Puerto Ricans and Jamaicans also played a central ro ...
, part of a larger shift in hip-hop innovation to the South and East".[John Caramanica]
"Gucci Mane, Migos, Young Thug, 21 Savage, T.I, Ludacris, Lil Jon, Donald Glover(Childish Gambino), Andre 3000, Rich the Kid, Soulja Boy, No Holds Barred"
''The New York Times'', December 11, 2009. Also in the 2000s, Atlanta was recognized by the Brooklyn-based ''Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit
A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior
Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see ...
'' magazine for its indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of rock music
Rock music is a broad genre of popular music
Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and ...
scene, which revolves around the various live music venues found on the city's alternative eastside. To facilitate further local development, the state government provides qualified businesses and productions a 15% transferable income tax credit for in-state costs of music investments. Trap music
Trap is a subgenre of hip hop music
Hip hop music or hip-hop music, also known as rap music, is a genre of popular music developed in the United States by inner-city African Americans. Puerto Ricans and Jamaicans also played a central role ...
became popular in Atlanta, and has since become a hub for popular trap artists and producers due to the success of T.I. #REDIRECT T.I.#REDIRECT T.I.
Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. (born September 25, 1980), better known by the stage names T.I. and Tip (often stylized as TIP or T.I.P.), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and entrepren ...
, Young Jeezy
Jay Wayne Jenkins (born September 28, 1977), known by his stage name Jeezy (formerly Young Jeezy), is an American rapper. Signing to Def Jam Recordings in 2004, his major label debut, ''Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101'', was released the fol ...

, 21 Savage
Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph (born October 22, 1992), better known by his stage name 21 Savage, is a rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Born in London, he was brought to Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of m ...

, Gucci Mane
Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper and record executive. He helped pioneer the hip hop
Hip hop or hip-hop is a culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which enco ...
, Future
The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ...
, Migos
Migos () are an American hip hop trio from Lawrenceville, Georgia, founded in 2008. The group is composed of three Rapping, rappers known by their stage names Quavo, Offset (rapper), Offset, and Takeoff (rapper), Takeoff. They are managed by Co ...
, Lil Yachty
Miles Parks McCollum (born August 23, 1997), known professionally as Lil Yachty, is an American rapper from Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. McCollum first gained recognition on the internet in 2015 for his singles "One Night (Lil Yachty song), One ...

, 2 Chainz
Tauheed K. Epps (born September 12, 1977), known professionally as 2 Chainz, is an American rapper, songwriter, media personality, and basketball player. Born and raised in College Park, Georgia
College Park is a city in Fulton
Fulton may refe ...
, Playboi Carti
Jordan Terrell Carter (born September 13, 1996), known professionally as Playboi Carti, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is recognized for his experimental musical style, mumbled lyrics, gothic fashion, and mysterious public per ...

and Young Thug
Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip hop
Hip hop or hi ...
.
Film and television
As the national leader for motion picture and television production,[ and a top ten global leader,][ Atlanta plays a significant role in the entertainment industry. Atlanta is considered a hub for filmmakers of ]color
Color (American English
American English (AmE, AE, AmEng, USEng, en-US), sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. Currently, American Engli ...
and houses Tyler Perry Studios
Tyler Perry Studios (TPS) is an film studio, American film production studio in Atlanta, Georgia founded by actor, filmmaker, and playwright Tyler Perry in 2006.
In 2019, Perry celebrated the grand opening of his newest Atlanta studio location; h ...

(first African-American owned major studio) and Areu Bros. Studios (first Latino-American owned major studio). Atlanta doubles for other parts of the world and fictional settlements in blockbuster productions, among them the newer titles from ''The Fast and the Furious'' franchise and Marvel
Marvel may refer to:
Business
* Marvel (food), a brand of milk powder produced by British-based Premier Foods
* Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company
** Marvel Productions, a former television and film studio subsidiary of the ...
features such as ''Ant-Man
Ant-Man is the name of several superheroes appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby, Ant-Man's first appearance was in ''Tales to Astonish'' #35 (September 1962). The persona was originally t ...
'' (2015), '' Captain America: Civil War'' (2016), ''Black Panther
A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of biological classification, classification and a taxonomic ...
'' and '' Avengers: Infinity War'' (both 2018). On the other hand, ''Gone With the WindGone with the Wind may refer to:
* Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell
* Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), 1939 adaptation of the novel
* Gone with the Wind (musical), ...
'' (1939), ''Smokey and the Bandit
''Smokey and the Bandit'' is a 1977 American road
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two Location (geography), places that has been Pavement (material), paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by foot or by some form of ...
'' (1977), '' Sharkey's Machine'' (1981), ''The Slugger's Wife
''The Slugger's Wife'' is a 1985 romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice-of-life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true l ...
'' (1985), ''Driving Miss Daisy
'' Driving Miss Daisy'' is a 1989 American comedy-drama
Comedy-drama, or dramedy, is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama.
History
The advent of radio drama, film, cinema and in par ...
'' (1989), '' ATL'' (2006), and ''Baby Driver
''Baby Driver'' is a 2017 action film
Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist or protagonists are thrust into a series of events that typically include violence, extended fighting, physical feats, rescues and frantic chases. Ac ...
'' (2017) are among several notable examples of films actually set in Atlanta. The city also provides the backdrop for shows such as ''Ozark
The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the extreme southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant portion of northern Arka ...
'', ''Watchmen
''Watchmen'' is an American comic book Limited series (comics), maxiseries by the British creative team of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons and colorist John Higgins (comics), John Higgins. It was published monthly by DC Comics in 1986 an ...
'', '' The Walking Dead'', ''Stranger Things
''Stranger Things'' is an American science-fiction
Space exploration, as predicted in August 1958 in the science fiction magazine ''Imagination (magazine)">Imagination.''
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to sci-fi or SF) is a genre o ...

'', '' Love is Blind'', ''Star
A star is an astronomical object consisting of a luminous spheroid of plasma
Plasma or plasm may refer to:
Science
* Plasma (physics), one of the four fundamental states of matter
* Plasma (mineral) or heliotrope, a mineral aggregate
* Quark ...
'', '' Dolly Parton's Heartstrings'', ''The OutsiderThe Outsider may refer to:
Film
* ''The Outsider'' (1917 film), an American film directed by William C. Dowlan
* The Outsider (1926 film), ''The Outsider'' (1926 film), an American film directed by Rowland V. Lee
* The Outsider (1931 film), ''The ...
'', ''The Vampire Diaries
''The Vampire Diaries'' is an American supernatural
The supernatural encompasses supposed phenomena or entities that are not subject to the Scientific law, laws of nature. This term is attributed to non-physical entity, non-physical ent ...
'' and ''Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimated 2019 population of 506,811, it is also the List of United ...
'', in addition to a myriad of animated
Animation is a method in which figures
Figure may refer to:
General
*A shape, drawing, depiction, or geometric configuration
*Figure (wood), wood appearance
*Figure (music), distinguished from musical motif
*Noise figure, in telecommunication ...
and reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unknown people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990 ...
programming.[
]
Festivals
Atlanta has more festivals than any city in the southeastern United States.
Some notable festivals in Atlanta include Shaky Knees Music Festival
Shaky Knees Music Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), G ...
, Dragon Con
Dragon Con (previously Dragon*Con and sometimes DragonCon) is a North America
North America is a continent
A continent is any of several large landmasses. Generally identified by convention (norm), convention rather than any st ...
, the Peachtree Road Race
The Peachtree Road Race (branded The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, AJC Peachtree Road Race for sponsorship reasons) is a 10K run, 10-kilometer run held annually in Atlanta, Georgia. After being held on Independence Day (United States), Independenc ...
, Music Midtown
Music Midtown is a large music festival that was held in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. W ...
, the Atlanta Film Festival
The Atlanta Film Festival (ATLFF) is a long-running, international film festival
A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of film
A film, also called a movie, motion picture or moving picture, is a work of visual art use ...
, National Black Arts Festival, Honda Battle of the Bands, Festival Peachtree Latino, Atlanta Pride, the neighborhood festivals in Inman Park
Inman Park is an intown neighborhood
A neighbourhood (British English, Hiberno-English, Hibernian English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; American and British English spelling differences, see sp ...
, Atkins Park, Virginia-Highland (Summerfest), and the Little Five Points
Little Five Points (also L5P or LFP or Little Five or Lil' Five) is a district on the Eastside (Atlanta), east side of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States, east of downtown Atlanta, downtown. It was established in the early ...
Halloween festival.
Tourism
, Atlanta is the seventh-most visited city in the United States, with over 35 million visitors per year. Although the most popular attraction among visitors to Atlanta is the Georgia Aquarium
Georgia Aquarium is a public aquarium in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimated 2019 pop ...

, the world's largest indoor aquarium, Atlanta's tourism industry is mostly driven by the city's history museums and outdoor attractions. Atlanta contains a notable number of historical museums and sites, including the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, which includes the preserved childhood home of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans or Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group of Americans with total or part ...
, as well as his final resting place; the Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum, which houses a massive painting and diorama
The word diorama can either refer to a 19th-century mobile theatre device, or, in modern usage, a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part ...

in-the-round, with a rotating central audience platform, depicting the Battle of Atlanta
The Battle of Atlanta was a battle of the Atlanta Campaign fought during the American Civil War
The American Civil War (also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States from 1861 to 186 ...

in the Civil War; the World of Coca-Cola
The world is the Earth and all life on it, including civilization, human civilization. In a philosophical context, the "world" is the whole of the physical Universe, or an Ontology, ontological world (the "world" of an individual). In a theo ...
, featuring the history of the world-famous soft drink brand and its well-known advertising; the College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame
A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or animals, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame c ...
, which honors college football and its athletes; the National Center for Civil and Human Rights
The National Center for Civil and Human Rights is a museum dedicated to the achievements of both the civil rights movement in the United States and the broader worldwide human rights movement. Located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Geo ...
, which explores the civil rights movement and its connection to contemporary human rights movement Human rights movement refers to a nongovernmental
upright=1.3, alt=A roomful of people, Europe-Georgia Institute head George Melashvili addresses the audience at the launch of the "Europe in a suitcase" project by two NGOs (the EGI and the Frie ...
s throughout the world; the Carter Center
The Carter Center is a nongovernmental
upright=1.3, alt=A roomful of people, Europe-Georgia Institute head George Melashvili addresses the audience at the launch of the "Europe in a suitcase" project by two NGOs (the EGI and the Friedrich N ...
and Presidential Library, housing U.S. President Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician, businessman, and philanthropist who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Par ...

's papers and other material relating to the Carter administration and the Carter family's life; and the Margaret Mitchell House and Museum, where Mitchell wrote the best-selling novel ''Gone with the WindGone with the Wind may refer to:
* Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell
* Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), 1939 adaptation of the novel
* Gone with the Wind (musical), ...
''.
Atlanta contains several outdoor attractions. The Atlanta Botanical Garden
The Atlanta Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located adjacent to Piedmont Park in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Incorporated in 1976, the garden's mission is to "develop and maintain plant collections for the ...

, adjacent to Piedmont Park, is home to the , a skywalk
The SkyWalk is an approximately 160 metre enclosed walkway connecting Union Station
A union station (also known as a union terminal and, in Europe, a joint station) is a railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) ...

that allows visitors to tour one of the city's last remaining urban forests from above the ground. The Canopy Walk is considered the only canopy-level pathway of its kind in the United States. Zoo Atlanta
Zoo Atlanta (sometimes referred as Atlanta Zoo) is an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoological park in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populou ...
, in Grant Park, accommodates over 1,300 animals representing more than 220 species. Home to the nation's largest collections of gorillas and orangutans, the zoo is one of only four zoos in the U.S. to house giant panda
The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''; ), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear
Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family (biology), family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivoran ...

s. Festivals showcasing arts and crafts, film, and music, including the Atlanta Dogwood Festival
The Atlanta Dogwood Festival is an arts and crafts festival held each spring at Piedmont Park in Atlanta, Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, established in 1933. Originally held for nine days across two weekends and the weekdays betwee ...
, the Atlanta Film Festival
The Atlanta Film Festival (ATLFF) is a long-running, international film festival
A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of film
A film, also called a movie, motion picture or moving picture, is a work of visual art use ...
, and Music Midtown
Music Midtown is a large music festival that was held in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. W ...
, respectively, are also popular with tourists.
Tourists are drawn to the city's culinary scene, which comprises a mix of urban establishments garnering national attention, ethnic restaurants serving cuisine from every corner of the world, and traditional eateries specializing in Southern dining. Since the turn of the 21st century, Atlanta has emerged as a sophisticated restaurant town. Many restaurants opened in the city's gentrifying neighborhoods have received praise at the national level, including Bocado, Bacchanalia, and Miller Union in West Midtown
West Midtown, also known as Westside, is a colloquial area, comprising many historical neighborhoods located in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Once largely industrial, West Midtown is now the location of urban lofts, art galleries, live ...
, Empire State South in , and Two Urban Licks and Rathbun's on the east side. In 2011, ''The New York Times'' characterized Empire State South and Miller Union as reflecting "a new kind of sophisticated Southern sensibility centered on the farm but experienced in the city". Visitors seeking to sample international Atlanta are directed to Buford Highway
Buford Highway (also Buford Highway Corridor), a.k.a. the DeKalb International Corridor, and in the 1990-2000's as the DeKalb County International Village district, is a community northeast of the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capita ...

, the city's international corridor, and suburban Gwinnett County
Gwinnett County is a suburban county
A county is a geographical region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. ...
. There, the nearly-million immigrants
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country
A country is a distinct territorial body or political entity
A polity is an identifiable political entity—any group of people who have a collective ident ...

that make Atlanta home have established various authentic ethnic restaurants representing virtually every nationality on the globe. For traditional Southern fare, one of the city's most famous establishments is The Varsity
.
The Varsity is a restaurant chain, iconic in the modern culture of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The main branch of the chain is the largest drive-in fast food restaurant in the world taking up two city blocks and can accommodate 800 ...

, a long-lived fast food chain and the world's largest drive-in restaurant. and Paschal's are more formal destinations for Southern food.
Sports
Sports are an important part of the culture of Atlanta. The city is home to professional franchises for four major team sports: the Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, lea ...
of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leag ...
, the Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...
of the National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the four major professional sports leagu ...
, the Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport
A team sport includes any sport
Sport ...
of the National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport
A team sport includes any s ...
, and Atlanta United FC
Atlanta United FC, commonly known as Atlanta United, is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Con ...
of Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer
Association football, more commonly known as simply football or soccer, is a team sport
A team sport includes any sport
Sport pertains to any form of Competition, ...
. In addition, many of the city's universities participate in collegiate sports. The city also regularly hosts international, professional, and collegiate sporting events.
The Braves moved to Atlanta in 1966. Originally established as the Boston
Boston (, ), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States and 21st List of Unit ...

Red Stockings in 1871, they are the oldest continually operating professional sports franchise in the United States. The Braves won the World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 World Series, 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The ...

in 1995, during an unprecedented run of 14 straight divisional championships from 1991 to 2005.[The Story of the Braves]
" ''Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, lea ...
.'' Retrieved on April 29, 2008. The team plays at Truist Park
Truist Park (originally SunTrust Park) is a baseball park located in the Atlanta metropolitan area, approximately 10 miles (16 km) northwest of downtown Atlanta in the unincorporated community of Cumberland, Georgia, Cumberland, in Cobb Cou ...

, having moved from Turner Field
''For the former US military facility in Albany, Georgia, see Turner Field.''
Turner Field was a baseball stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia (US state), Georgia. From 1997 Major League Baseball season, 1997 to 2016 Major League Baseball season ...

for the 2017 season. The new stadium is outside the city limits, located northwest of downtown in the Cumberland/Galleria area of Cobb county.
The Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport
A team sport includes any sport
Sport ...
have played in Atlanta since their inception in 1966. The team play their home games at Mercedes Benz Stadium
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, also known as simply "The Benz", is a multi-purpose stadium
A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used by multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one ...
, having moved from the Georgia Dome
The Georgia Dome was a Stadium#Types, domed stadium in the Southeastern United States. Located in Atlanta between downtown Atlanta, downtown to the east and Vine City to the west, it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of th ...
in 2017. The Falcons have won the division title six times (1980, 1998, 2004, 2010, 2012, 2016) and the NFC championship twice in 1998 and 2016. However, they have been unsuccessful in both of their Super Bowl trips, losing to the Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is ...
in Super Bowl XXXIII
Super Bowl XXXIII was an American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American foot ...
in 1999 and to the New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division ...
in Super Bowl LI
Super Bowl LI was an American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, fiel ...
in 2017. In 2019, Atlanta also briefly hosted an Alliance of American Football
The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven play ...
team, the Atlanta Legends
The Atlanta Legends were a professional American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular ...
, but the league was suspended during its first season and the team folded.
The Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...
were founded in 1946 as the Tri-Cities Blackhawks, playing in Moline, Illinois
Moline ( ) is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. With a population of 43,977 in 2010, it is the largest city in Rock Island County.
Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline, Illinois, East Mo ...
. they moved to Atlanta in 1968 and play their games in State Farm Arena
State Farm Arena (formerly Philips Arena) is a multi-purpose list of indoor arenas, indoor arena located in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s Atlanta Hawks. It also serv ...
.[A Franchise Rich With Tradition: From Pettit To 'Pistol Pete' To The 'Human Highlight Film']
" ''Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...
.'' Retrieved on April 29, 2008. The city is also home to a Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a professional basketball league in the United States. It is currently composed of twelve teams. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the National Basketba ...
franchise, the Atlanta Dream
The Atlanta Dream is an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia, playing in the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded for the 200 ...
, who share the stadium with the Hawks.
Professional soccer has been played in some form in Atlanta since 1967. Atlanta's first professional soccer team was the Atlanta Chiefs
The Atlanta Chiefs were an American professional soccer
Association football, more commonly known as simply football or soccer, is a team sport played with a sphere, spherical Ball (association football), ball between two teams of 11 foot ...
of the original North American Soccer League which won the 1968 NASL Championship and defeated English first division club Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English football
Football is a family of team sport
A team is a [group (disambiguation), group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professo ...
twice in international friendlies. In 1998 the Atlanta Silverbacks were formed, playing the new North American Soccer League (2011–2017), North American Soccer League. They now play as an amateur club in the National Premier Soccer League. In 2017, Atlanta United FC
Atlanta United FC, commonly known as Atlanta United, is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Con ...
began play as Atlanta's first premier-division professional soccer club since the Chiefs. They won MLS Cup 2018
MLS Cup 2018 was the 23rd edition of the MLS Cup
The MLS Cup is the annual championship game of Major League Soccer (MLS) and the culmination of the MLS Cup Playoffs. The game is held in early November and pits the winner of the Eastern Co ...
, defeating the Portland Timbers
The Portland Timbers are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member club of the league's Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The ...
2–0. Fan reception has been very positive; the team has broken several single-game and season attendance records for both MLS and the U.S. Open Cup. The club is estimated by Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family
The Forbes family is one of the Boston Brahmins—a wealthy extended American family long prominent in Boston, Massachusett ...

to be the most valuable club in Major League Soccer.
In ice hockey, Atlanta has had two National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the premier pr ...
franchises, both of which relocated after playing in Atlanta for fewer than 15 years. The Atlanta Flames
The Atlanta Flames were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta from 1972 until 1980. They played home games in the Omni Coliseum and were members of the West Division (NHL), West and later Patrick Division, Patrick divisions of the Natio ...
began play in 1972 before moving to Calgary
Calgary
Calgary ( ) is a city in the western Canadian province
The provinces and territories of Canada are sub-national divisions within the geographical areas of Canada
Canada is a country in the northern part of North America ...
in 1980, and the Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia ...
began play in 1999 before moving to Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a at the of the country. It is Canada's , with a population of 1,278,365 as of 2016. The easternmost of the three , Manitoba covers of widely varied ...
in 2011. The Atlanta Gladiators
The Atlanta Gladiators are a professional minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports league, sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, ...
of the ECHL #REDIRECT ECHL #REDIRECT ECHL#REDIRECT ECHL
The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Princeton, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier bel ...
Play in Duluth, a suburb northeast of the city.
The Atlantic Sun Conference
The ASUN Conference, formerly the Atlantic Sun Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I
NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of ...
moved its headquarters to Atlanta in 2019.
Several other, less popular sports also have professional franchises in Atlanta. The Georgia Swarm
The Georgia Swarm are a box lacrosse
Box lacrosse, also known as boxla, box, or indoor lacrosse, is an indoor version of lacrosse played mostly in North America. The game originated in Canada in the 1930s, where it is more popular than field la ...
compete in the National Lacrosse League
The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional league in North America. Headquartered in , , the NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United States and five in Canada. The NLL ranks third in average attendance for pro indoor ...

. On September 21, 2018, Major League Rugby
Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2021 season it was contested by twelve teams: eleven from the United States and one from Canada. Offici ...
announced that Atlanta was one of the expansion teams joining the league for the 2020 season named Rugby ATL
Rugby ATL is a professional
A professional is a member of a profession or any person who earns their living from a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the prof ...
. On August 2, 2018, it was announced that Atlanta would have its own Overwatch League
The Overwatch League (OWL) is a professional esports league for the video game ''Overwatch (video game), Overwatch'', produced by its developer Blizzard Entertainment. The Overwatch League follows the model of other traditional North American pr ...
team, Atlanta Reign
Atlanta Reign is an American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the United States
The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United Sta ...
.
Atlanta has long been known as the "capital" of college football in America. Also, Atlanta is within a few hours driving distance of many of the universities that make up the Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference
An athletic conference is a collection of sports team
A sports team is a group of individuals who play sport
Sport pertains to any form of Competition, comp ...
, college football's most profitable and popular conference, and annually hosts the SEC Championship Game
The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular A ...
. Other annual college football events include the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game
The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game is an annual series of college football
College football is gridiron football consisting of American football in the United States, American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Higher educati ...
, the Celebration Bowl
The Celebration Bowl is a postseason college football bowl game, first played in the 2015 season, contested between the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC)—the two prominent ...
, the MEAC/SWAC Challenge
The MEAC/SWAC Challenge is an annual Historically black colleges and universities, historically black college college football game showcasing a team from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and a team from the Southwestern Athletic Confer ...
, and the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was offici ...
which is one of College Football's major New Year's Six Bowl games and a college football playoff bowl. Atlanta additionally hosted the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship.
Atlanta regularly hosts a variety of sporting events. Most famous was the Centennial 1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, commonly known as Atlanta 1996, and also referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games, was an international multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized s ...
. The city has hosted the super bowl three times: Super Bowl XXVIII
Super Bowl XXVIII was an American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American footb ...
in 1994, Super Bowl XXXIV
Super Bowl XXXIV was an American football
American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American footba ...
in 2000, and Super Bowl LIII
Super Bowl LIII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2018 NFL season, 2018 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion 2018 New England Patriots season, New Eng ...

in 2019. In professional golf, The Tour Championship
The Tour Championship (stylized as the TOUR Championship) is a golf tournament
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit Golf ball, balls into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few stro ...
, the final PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letter
Letter case is the distinction between the letters
Letter, letters, or literature may refer to:
Characters typeface
* Letter (alphabet)
A letter is a segmental symbol
A symbol is a ...
event of the season, is played annually at East Lake Golf Club
East Lake Golf Club is a private golf club located approximately 5 miles east of downtown Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia ...

. In 2001 and 2011, Atlanta hosted the PGA Championship
The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental Un ...
, one of the four major championships
Major is a military rank.
Major, majors or The Major may also refer to:
* Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits
* Major and minor in music, an interval, chord, scale, or key
Arts and entertainm ...
in men's professional golf, at the Atlanta Athletic Club
Atlanta Athletic Club (AAC), founded in 1898, is a private athletic club in Johns Creek, Georgia, a suburb 23 miles north of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populou ...
. In 2011, Atlanta hosted professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a form of entertainment and performing art, which combines athletics with performance. It comprises of exhibitions, called 'matches', held by touring companies called Professional wrestling promotion, promotions, in ...
's annual WrestleMania
WrestleMania is a professional wrestling event produced annually between mid-March and mid-April by WWE, an American professional wrestling promotion based in Stamford, Connecticut. WWE first produced the event in WrestleMania 1, 1985 and has s ...
. In soccer, Atlanta has hosted numerous international friendlies and CONCACAF Gold Cup
The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football
Association football, more commonly known as simply football or soccer, is a team sport played with a sphere, spheri ...
matches. The city has hosted the NCAA Final Four Men's Basketball Championship five times, most recently in 2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic is an ongoing global pandemic
A pandemic (from Greek#REDIRECT Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece
Greece ( el, Ε ...
.
Running
Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion
Terrestrial locomotion has evolved
Evolution is change in the heritable
Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of Phenotypic trait, traits from ...

is a popular local sport, and the city declares itself to be "Running City USA". The city hosts the Peachtree Road Race
The Peachtree Road Race (branded The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, AJC Peachtree Road Race for sponsorship reasons) is a 10K run, 10-kilometer run held annually in Atlanta, Georgia. After being held on Independence Day (United States), Independenc ...
, the world's largest race, annually on Independence Day
An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary
An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that ...
. Atlanta also hosts the nation's largest Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday
A holiday is a day set aside by Norm (social), custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow ...
day half marathon #REDIRECT Half marathon #REDIRECT Half marathon#REDIRECT Half marathon
A half marathon is a road running event of 21.0975 km (13 mi 192½ yd)—half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrentl ...
, which starts and ends at Georgia State Stadium
Center Parc Credit Union Stadium (short name Center Parc Stadium) is a college football
College football is gridiron football consisting of American football in the United States, American football played by teams of student athletes fielded ...
. The Atlanta Marathon
The Atlanta Marathon (branded Publix Atlanta Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon originally held in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city ...

, which starts and ends at Centennial Olympic Park
Centennial Olympic Park is a public park located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), G ...

, routes through many of the city's historic landmarks, and its 2020 running will coincide with the U.S. Olympic marathon trials for the 2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the , and also known as
, is an upcoming international multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized sporting
Sporting may refer to:
*Sport, recreational games and play
*Sporting (neighborhood), in Alexandria, Egy ...
.
Parks and recreation
Atlanta's 343 parks, nature preserves, and gardens cover , which amounts to only 5.6% of the city's total acreage, compared to the national average of just over 10%. However, 64% of Atlantans live within a 10-minute walk of a park, a percentage equal to the national average. In its 2013 ParkScore ranking, The Trust for Public Land
The Trust for Public Land is a U.S. nonprofit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, pub ...
reported that among the park systems of the 50 most populous U.S. cities, Atlanta's park system received a ranking of 31. Piedmont Park
Piedmont Park is an urban park in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimated 2019 ...

, in , is Atlanta's most iconic green space. The park, which underwent a major renovation and expansion in recent years, attracts visitors from across the region and hosts cultural events throughout the year. Other notable city parks include Centennial Olympic Park
Centennial Olympic Park is a public park located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), G ...

, a legacy of the 1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, commonly known as Atlanta 1996, and also referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games, was an international multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized s ...
that forms the centerpiece of the city's tourist district; Woodruff Park
Image:Woodruff Park Atlanta 2.jpg, International Peace Fountain on the park's northern edge
Woodruff Park, named for Robert W. Woodruff, is located in the heart of Downtown Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The park's are north of Edgewo ...
, which anchors the campus of Georgia State University
Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a public
In public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization
An organization, or ...
; Grant Park, home to Zoo Atlanta
Zoo Atlanta (sometimes referred as Atlanta Zoo) is an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoological park in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populou ...
; Chastain Park
Chastain Memorial Park (originally known as the North Fulton Park, commonly known as Chastain Park) is the largest city park in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most popul ...
, which houses an amphitheater used for live music concerts; and the under construction Westside Park at Bellwood Quarry, the 280-acre green space and reservoir project slated to become the city's largest park when fully complete in the 2020s. The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA) preserves a series of sites between Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia ( ...
, in the northwestern corner of the city, preserves a stretch of the river for public recreation opportunities.
The Atlanta Botanical Garden
The Atlanta Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located adjacent to Piedmont Park in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Incorporated in 1976, the garden's mission is to "develop and maintain plant collections for the ...

, adjacent to Piedmont Park, contains formal gardens, including a Japanese garden and a rose garden, woodland areas, and a conservatory that includes indoor exhibits of plants from tropical rainforest
Tropical rainforests are rainforest
Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy
Canopy may refer to:
Plants
* Canopy (biology), aboveground portion of plant community or crop (including forests)
* Canopy (grape ...

s and desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to the processes of ...

s. The BeltLine
The Atlanta BeltLine (also Beltline or Belt Line) is a former railway corridor around the core of Atlanta, Georgia, under development in stages as a multi-use trail. Some portions are already complete, while others are still in a rough state b ...
, a former rail corridor that forms a loop around Atlanta's core, has been transformed into a series of parks
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation
Recreation is an activity of leisure
Leisure has often been defined as a quality of experience or as free time. Free time is tim ...

, connected by a multi-use trail, increasing Atlanta's park space by 40%.
Atlanta offers resources and opportunities for amateur and participatory sports and recreation. Golf and tennis are popular in Atlanta, and the city contains six public golf courses and 182 tennis courts. Facilities along the Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Hunts ...

cater to watersports enthusiasts, providing the opportunity for kayaking, canoeing, fishing, boating, or tubing. The city's only skate park, a facility that offers bowls, curbs, and smooth-rolling concrete mounds, is at Historic Fourth Ward Park
Historic Fourth Ward Park is a park built on the site of the old Ponce de Leon amusement park, in the Old Fourth Ward
The Old Fourth Ward, often abbreviated O4W, is an intown neighborhood on the Eastside (Atlanta), eastside of Atlanta, Georgia, ...

.
Government
Atlanta is governed by a mayor and the Atlanta City Council
The Atlanta City Council is the main municipal legislative body for the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state) ...
. The city council consists of 15 representatives—one from each of the city's 12 districts and three at-large positions. The mayor may veto a bill passed by the council, but the council can override the veto with a two-thirds majority. The mayor of Atlanta is Keisha Lance Bottoms
Keisha Lance Bottoms (born January 18, 1970) is an American politician and lawyer who is the 60th mayor of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U. ...
, a Democrat elected on a nonpartisan ballot whose first term in office began on January 2, 2018. Every mayor elected since 1973 has been black. In 2001, Shirley Franklin became the first woman to be elected mayor of Atlanta, and the first African-American woman to serve as mayor of a major Southern city. Atlanta city politics suffered from a notorious reputation for corruption during the 1990s administration of Mayor Bill Campbell, who was convicted by a federal jury in 2006 on three counts of tax evasion in connection with gambling winnings during trips he took with city contractors.
As the state capital
Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital cities
A capital or capital city is the municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having Municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-gov ...
, Atlanta is the site of most of Georgia's state government. The Georgia State Capitol
The Georgia State Capitol is an architecturally and historically significant building in Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgi ...

building, located downtown, houses the offices of the governor
A governor is, in most cases, a public official with the power to govern the Executive (government), executive branch of a non-sovereign or sub-national level of government, ranking under the head of state. In federations, ''governor'' may be t ...
, lieutenant governor and secretary of state, as well as the General Assembly
A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company.
Specific examples of general assembly include:
Churches
* General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presbyt ...
. The Governor's Mansion is in a residential section of Buckhead. Atlanta serves as the regional hub for many arms of the federal bureaucracy, including the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, (informally referred to as the Atlanta Fed and the Bank), is the sixth district of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks of the United States and is headquartered in midtown Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is th ...

and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services
The United States Department of Heal ...
(CDC). The City of Atlanta annexed the CDC into its territory effective January 1, 2018. Atlanta also plays an important role in the federal judiciary system, containing the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (in case citations, 11th Cir.) is a United States federal court, federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the United States district court, district courts in the following United S ...
and the .
Historically, Atlanta has been a stronghold for the Democratic PartyDemocratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Democ ...
. Although municipal elections are officially nonpartisan, nearly all of the city's elected officials are registered Democrats. The city is split among 14 state house districts and four state senate districts, all held by Democrats. At the federal level, Atlanta is split between two congressional districts. Most of the city is in the 5th district, represented by Democrat Nikema Williams. A small portion in the north is in the 11th district, represented by Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or against ...
Barry Loudermilk
Barry Dean Loudermilk (born December 22, 1963) is an American politician
A politician is a person active in party politics
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms ...

.
Law enforcement, fire, and EMS services
The city is served by the Atlanta Police Department
The Atlanta Police Department (APD) is a law enforcement agency in the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state) ...
, which numbers 2,000 officers and oversaw a 40% decrease in the city's crime rate between 2001 and 2009. Specifically, homicide decreased by 57%, rape by 72%, and violent crime overall by 55%. Crime is down across the country, but Atlanta's improvement has occurred at more than twice the national rate. Nevertheless, Forbes ranked Atlanta as the sixth most dangerous city in the United States in 2012. Aggravated assaults, burglaries and robberies were down from 2014. Mexican drug cartels thrive in Atlanta. 145 gangs operate in Atlanta.
The Atlanta Fire Rescue Department provides fire protection and first responder emergency medical services to the city from its 35 fire stations. In 2017, AFRD responded to over 100,000 calls for service over a coverage area of . The department also protects Hartsfield–Jackson with 5 fire stations on the property; serving over 1 million passengers from over 100 different countries. The department protects over 3000 highrise buildings, of the rapid rail system, and of interstate highway.
Emergency ambulance services are provided to city residents by hospital based Grady EMS (Fulton County), and American Medical Response (DeKalb County).
Atlanta in January 2017 declared the city was a "welcoming city" and "will remain open and welcoming to all". Nonetheless, Atlanta does not consider itself to be a "sanctuary city". Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms
Keisha Lance Bottoms (born January 18, 1970) is an American politician and lawyer who is the 60th mayor of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U. ...
said: "Our city does not support U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE. We don't have a relationship with the U.S. Marshal[s] Service. We closed our detention center to ICE detainees, and we would not pick up people on an immigration violation."
Education
Tertiary education
Due to more than 15 colleges and universities in Atlanta, it is considered one of the nation's largest hubs for higher education.
The Georgia Institute of Technology is a prominent public research university in . It offers highly ranked degree programs in engineering, design, industrial management, the sciences, and architecture.
The University of Georgia
, mottoeng = To teach and to inquire into the nature of things.'To serve' was later added to the motto without changing the seal, so the university motto in English now is "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of thi ...
, chartered in 1785, is one of the top public research universities in the nation with Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, "Highest Research Activity" and based about an hour away in Athens
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; however, the Atlanta Center of its Terry College of Business is in the Buckhead area of Atlanta and the university has a metropolitan Atlanta Gwinnett Campus that occupies 60,000 square feet of the Intellicenter.
Georgia State University
Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a public
In public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization
An organization, or ...
is a major public research university in Downtown Atlanta
Downtown Atlanta is the central business district of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimate ...

; it is the largest in student population of the 29 public colleges and universities in the University System of Georgia and is a significant contributor to the revitalization of the city's central business district.
Atlanta is home to nationally renowned private colleges and universities, most notably Emory University, a leading liberal arts and research institution that operates Emory Healthcare, the largest health care system in Georgia
Georgia usually refers to:
* Georgia (country)
Georgia (, ; ) is a country located at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region, bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north and east by ...
. The City of Atlanta annexed Emory into its territory effective January 1, 2018.[
The ]Atlanta University Center
The Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUC Consortium) is the oldest and largest contiguous consortium
A consortium (plural: consortia) is an association
Association may refer to:
*Club (organization), an association of two or more people ...
is also in the city; it is the oldest and largest contiguous consortium of Historically black colleges and universities, historically black colleges in the nation, comprising Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, Morehouse College, and Morehouse School of Medicine. Atlanta contains a campus of the Savannah College of Art and Design, a private art and design university that has proven to be a major factor in the recent growth of Atlanta's visual art community. Atlanta and nearby Athens also boast American Bar Association accredited law schools: Atlanta's John Marshall Law School, Emory University School of Law, Georgia State University College of Law and University of Georgia School of Law.
The Atlanta Regional Council of Higher Education (ARCHE) is dedicated to strengthening synergy among 19 public and private colleges and universities in the Atlanta region. Participating Atlanta region colleges and universities partner on Double degree, joint-degree programs, cross-registration, library services, and cultural events.
Primary and secondary education
Fifty-five thousand students are enrolled in 106 schools in Atlanta Public Schools (APS), some of which are operated as charter schools.[School Stats](_blank)
, Retrieved June 9, 2010. Atlanta is served by many private schools including, without limitation, Atlanta Jewish Academy, Atlanta International School, The Westminster Schools, Pace Academy, The Lovett School, The Paideia School, Holy Innocents' Episcopal School and Catholic Church, Roman Catholic parochial schools operated by the Archdiocese of Atlanta.
In 2018 the City of Atlanta annexed a portion of DeKalb County containing the Centers for Disease Control and Emory University; this portion will be zoned to the DeKalb County School District until 2024, when it will transition into APS. In 2017 the number of children living in the annexed territory who attended public schools was nine.
Media
The primary network-affiliated television stations in Atlanta are WXIA-TV 11 (NBC), WGCL-TV 46 (CBS), WSB-TV 2 (American Broadcasting Company, ABC), and WAGA-TV 5 (Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox). Other major commercial stations include WPXA-TV 14 (Ion Television, Ion), WPCH-TV 17 (Independent station (North America), Ind.), WUVG-TV 34 (Univision), WUPA 69 (The CW, CW), and WATL 36 (MyNetworkTV). WPXA-TV, WUVG-TV, WAGA-TV and WUPA are network Owned-and-operated station, O&O's. The Atlanta metropolitan area is served by two public television stations (both PBS member stations), and two public radio stations. WGTV 8 is the flagship station of the statewide Georgia Public Television network, while WPBA (TV), WPBA is owned by Atlanta Public Schools. Georgia Public Radio is listener-funded and comprises one NPR member station, WABE, a classical music station operated by Atlanta Public Schools. The second public radio, listerner-funded NPR member station is WCLK, a jazz music station owned and operated by Clark Atlanta University.
Atlanta is served by ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'', its only major daily newspaper with wide distribution. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of a 1950 merger between ''The Atlanta Journal'' and ''The Atlanta Constitution'', with staff consolidation occurring in 1982 and separate publication of the morning ''Constitution'' and afternoon ''Journal'' ceasing in 2001. Alternative weekly newspapers include ''Creative Loafing (Atlanta), Creative Loafing'', which has a weekly print circulation of 80,000. ''Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. With an estimated 2019 population of 506,811, it is also the List of United ...
'' magazine is an award-winning, monthly general-interest magazine based in and covering Atlanta.
Transportation
Atlanta's transportation infrastructure comprises a complex network that includes a heavy rail rapid transit system, a light rail streetcar loop, a multi-county bus system, Amtrak service via the Crescent (train), Crescent, multiple freight train lines, an Interstate Highway System, several airports, including the world's busiest, and over of bike paths.
Atlanta has a network of freeways that radiate out from the city, and automobiles are the dominant means of transportation in the region. Three major interstate highways converge in Atlanta: Interstate 20, I-20 (east-west), Interstate 75, I-75 (northwest-southeast), and Interstate 85, I-85 (northeast-southwest). The latter two combine in the middle of the city to form the Downtown Connector (I-75/85), which carries more than 340,000 vehicles per day and is one of the most congested segments of interstate highway in the United States. Atlanta is mostly encircled by Interstate 285 (Georgia), Interstate 285, a beltway locally known as "the Perimeter" that has come to mark the boundary between "Inside the Perimeter" (ITP), the city and close-in suburbs, and "Outside the Perimeter" (OTP), the outer suburbs and exurbs. The heavy reliance on automobiles for transportation in Atlanta has resulted in traffic, commute, and air pollution rates that rank among the worst in the country. The City of Atlanta has a higher than average percentage of households without a car. In 2015, 15.2 percent of Atlanta households lacked a car, and increased slightly to 16.4 percent in 2016. The national average is 8.7 percent in 2016. Atlanta averaged 1.31 cars per household in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8.
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) provides public transportation in the form of buses, heavy rail, and a downtown light rail loop. Notwithstanding heavy automotive usage in Atlanta, the city's rapid transit, subway system is the List of United States Rapid Transit systems by Ridership, eighth busiest in the country. MARTA rail lines connect key destinations, such as the airport, Downtown, Midtown, Buckhead, and Perimeter Center. However, significant destinations, such as Emory University and Cumberland, Georgia, Cumberland, remain unserved. As a result, a 2011 Brookings Institution study placed Atlanta 91st of 100 metro areas for transit accessibility. Emory University operates its The Cliff (Emory), Cliff shuttle buses with 200,000 boardings per month, while private minibuses supply Buford Highway
Buford Highway (also Buford Highway Corridor), a.k.a. the DeKalb International Corridor, and in the 1990-2000's as the DeKalb County International Village district, is a community northeast of the city of Atlanta
Atlanta () is the capita ...

. Amtrak, the national rail passenger system, provides service to Atlanta via the ''Crescent (train), Crescent train'' (New York–New Orleans), which stops at Peachtree Station. In 2014, the Atlanta Streetcar opened to the public. The streetcar's line, which is also known as the Downtown Loop, runs around the downtown tourist areas of Peachtree Center, Centennial Olympic Park
Centennial Olympic Park is a public park located in downtown Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta () is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), G ...

, the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, and Sweet Auburn. The Atlanta Streetcar line is also being expanded on in the coming years to include a wider range of Atlanta's neighborhoods and important places of interest, with a total of over of track in the plan.
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport , also known as Atlanta Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport, Atlanta Airport, Hartsfield, Hartsfield–Jackson or by its airport code ATL, is the primary international airport serving At ...
is the world's busiest airport as measured by World's busiest airports by passenger traffic, passenger traffic and World's busiest airports by traffic movements, aircraft traffic. The facility offers air service to over 150 U.S. destinations and more than 75 international destinations in 50 countries, with over 2,500 arrivals and departures daily. Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States
Major is a military rank
Military ranks are a system of hierarchical
A hierarchy (from the Greek: , from , 'president of sa ...
maintains its largest hub at the airport. Situated () south of downtown, the airport covers most of the land inside a wedge formed by Interstate 75, Interstate 85, and Interstate 285 (Georgia), Interstate 285.
Cycling in Atlanta, Cycling is a growing mode of transportation in Atlanta, more than doubling since 2009, when it comprised 1.1% of all commutes (up from 0.3% in 2000). Although Atlanta's lack of bike lanes and hilly topography may deter many residents from cycling, the city's transportation plan calls for the construction of of bike lanes by 2020, with the BeltLine helping to achieve this goal. In 2012, Atlanta's first "bike track" was constructed on 10th Street in Midtown. The two lane bike track runs from Monroe Drive west to Charles Allen Drive, with connections to the Beltline and Piedmont Park. Starting in June 2016, Atlanta received a bike sharing program, known as Relay Bike Share, with 100 bikes in Downtown and Midtown, which expanded to 500 bikes at 65 stations as of April 2017.
According to the 2016 American Community Survey (five-year average), 68.6% of working city of Atlanta residents commuted by driving alone, 7% carpooled, 10% used public transportation, and 4.6% walked. About 2.1% used all other forms of transportation, including taxi, bicycle, and motorcycle. About 7.6% worked at home.
The city has also become one of a handful of "scooter capitals", where companies like Lime (transportation company), Lime and Bird (company), Bird have gained a major foothold by placing electric scooters on street corners and byways.
Tree canopy
Atlanta has a reputation as a "city in a forest" due to an abundance of trees that is rare among major cities. The city's Peachtree Street, main street is named after a Peach, tree, and beyond the Downtown, Midtown, and Buckhead business districts, the skyline gives way to a dense canopy of woods that spreads into the suburbs. The city is home to the Atlanta Dogwood Festival
The Atlanta Dogwood Festival is an arts and crafts festival held each spring at Piedmont Park in Atlanta, Georgia, Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, established in 1933. Originally held for nine days across two weekends and the weekdays betwee ...
, an annual arts and crafts festival held one weekend during early April, when the native Cornus (genus), dogwoods are in bloom. The nickname is factually accurate, as vegetation covers 47.9% of the city as of 2017, the highest among all major American cities, and well above the national average of 27%. Atlanta's tree coverage does not go unnoticed—it was the main reason cited by ''National Geographic (magazine), National Geographic'' in naming Atlanta a "Place of a Lifetime".[
The city's lush tree canopy, which filters out pollutants and cools sidewalks and buildings, has increasingly been under assault from man and nature due to heavy rains, drought, aged forests, new pests, and urban construction. A 2001 study found Atlanta's heavy tree cover declined from 48% in 1974 to 38% in 1996. Community organizations and the city government are addressing the problem. Trees Atlanta, a non-profit organization founded in 1985, has planted and distributed over 113,000 shade trees in the city, and Atlanta's government has awarded $130,000 in grants to neighborhood groups to plant trees.] Fees are additionally imposed on developers that remove trees on their property per a citywide ordinance, active since 1993.
Notable people
Sister cities
Atlanta's sister cities are:
* Montego Bay, Jamaica (1972)
* Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1972)
* Lagos, Nigeria (1974)
* Toulouse, France (1974)
* Newcastle upon Tyne, England, UK (1977)
* Taipei, Taiwan (1979)
* Daegu, South Korea (1981)
* Brussels, Belgium (1983)
* Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (1987)
* Tbilisi, Georgia (1988)
* Olympia, Greece, Olympia, Greece (1994)
* Bucharest, Romania (1994)
* Cotonou, Benin (1995)
* Salcedo, Dominican Republic, Salcedo, Dominican Republic (1996)
* Nuremberg, Germany (1998)
* Ra'anana, Israel (2000)
* Fukuoka, Japan (2005)
See also
* Urban forest
Notes
References
Further reading
* Atlanta and Environs: A Chronicle of Its People and Events: Years of Change and Challenge, 1940–1976 by Franklin M. Garrett, Harold H. Martin
*
* Darlene R. Roth and Andy Ambrose. ''Metropolitan Frontiers: A Short History of Atlanta''. Atlanta: Longstreet Press, 1996. An overview of the city's history with an emphasis on its growth.
* Sjoquist, Dave (ed.) ''The Atlanta Paradox''. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. 2000.
* Stone, Clarence. ''Regime Politics: Governing Atlanta, 1946–1988''. University Press of Kansas. 1989.
* Elise Reid Boylston. ''Atlanta: Its Lore, Legends and Laughter''. Doraville: privately printed, 1968. Many anecdotes about the history of the city.
* Frederick Allen. ''Atlanta Rising''. Atlanta: Longstreet Press, 1996. A detailed history of Atlanta from 1946 to 1996, with much about City Councilman, later Mayor, William B. Hartsfield's work in making Atlanta a major air transport hub, and about the civil rights movement
The 1954–1968 civil rights movement in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North ...
as it affected (and was affected by) Atlanta.
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External links
Official city website
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Atlanta Department of Watershed Management
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Atlanta Police Department
Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau
Atlanta entry
in the ''New Georgia Encyclopedia''
Atlanta Historic Newspapers Archive
from the Digital Library of Georgia
Atlanta History Photograph Collection
from the Atlanta History Center
Atlanta, Georgia, a National Park Service ''Discover Our Shared Heritage'' Travel Itinerary
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Atlanta,
Cities in Georgia (U.S. state)
Cities in DeKalb County, Georgia
Cities in Fulton County, Georgia
1837 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)
Cities in the Atlanta metropolitan area
County seats in Georgia (U.S. state)
Municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state)
Populated places established in 1837
Georgia populated places on the Chattahoochee River