Butler is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

of Taylor County,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, United States. Its population was 1,972 at the 2010 census.

Geography

Butler is located at (32.557, -84.239). The city is located along

U.S. Route 19 U.S. Route 19 (US 19) is a north–south U.S. Highway in the Eastern United States. Despite encroaching Interstate Highways, the route has remained a long-haul road, connecting the Gulf of Mexico with Lake Erie. The highway's southern ...

, which is the main route through the city. U.S. 19 leads north 28 mi (45 km) to Thomaston and south 24 mi (39 km) to Ellaville. The

Fall Line Freeway The Fall Line Freeway (FLF; also signed as State Route 540 (SR 540)) is a highway designed to span the width of the U.S. state of Georgia from Columbus at the Alabama state line to Augusta, travelling through several cities includi ...

(GA-540) runs from west to east through the southern part of the city, concurrent with

Georgia State Route 96 State Route 96 (SR 96) is a state highway that travels west-to-east through portions of Talbot, Taylor, Crawford, Peach, Houston, Twiggs, and Wilkinson counties in the west-central and central parts of the U.S. state of Georgia. The h ...

. GA-540 and GA-96 lead east 9 mi (14 km) to

Reynolds Reynolds may refer to: Places Australia *Hundred of Reynolds, a cadastral unit in South Australia *Hundred of Reynolds (Northern Territory), a cadastral unit in the Northern Territory of Australia United States * Reynolds, Mendocino County, Calif ...

and west 14 mi (23 km) to Junction City.

Georgia State Route 137 State Route 137 (SR 137) is a southwest-to-northeast state highway in the west-central part of the U.S. state of Georgia. The highway connects Cusseta with Buena Vista and Butler. It travels through the southeastern portion of Fort Ben ...

also runs through the city, leading northeast 20 mi (32 km) to

Roberta ''Roberta'' is a musical from 1933 with music by Jerome Kern, and lyrics and book by Otto Harbach. The musical is based on the novel ''Gowns by Roberta'' by Alice Duer Miller. It features the songs " Yesterdays", "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", "Let ...

and southwest 25 mi (40 km) to

Buena Vista Buena Vista, meaning "good view" in Spanish, may refer to: Places Canada *Bonavista, Newfoundland and Labrador, with the name being originally derived from “Buena Vista” *Buena Vista, Saskatchewan *Buena Vista, Saskatoon, a neighborhood in ...

. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and 0.31% is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 1,881 people, 762 households, and 447 families residing in the city.

2009

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2009, there were 1,775 people, 722 households, and 488 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 851 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 50.03%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 48.93%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.10% Native American, 0.05%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.52% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.37% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

people of any race were 1.15% of the population. There were 722 households, out of which 33.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.5% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 27.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.13. In the city, the population was spread out, with 29.6% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 79.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 72.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $22,105, and the median income for a family was $27,188. Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $20,603 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $13,522. 35.0% of the population and 28.9% of families were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

. Out of the total population, 47.9% of those under the age of 18 and 25.5% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Education

Taylor County School District

The

Taylor County School District The Taylor County School District is a public school district in Taylor County, Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United ...

holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of two elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school. The district has 101 full-time teachers and over 1,735 students. *Taylor County Primary School *Taylor County Upper Elementary *Taylor County Middle School *Taylor County High School The Taylor County Girls' basketball team (1967 - 1972) holds the record for the nation's longest girl's high school basketball winning streak by winning 132 consecutive games, going undefeated for five years and winning five back-to-back state championships.

History

The

Central of Georgia Railway The Central of Georgia Railway started as the Central Rail Road and Canal Company in 1833. As a way to better attract investment capital, the railroad changed its name to Central Rail Road and Banking Company of Georgia. This railroad was cons ...

was built through the present area of Butler about 1850. The line is currently owned by

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway (U.S.), Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the ...

and hosts three to four trains per day. Butler was incorporated on February 8, 1854, but the charter was not received until 1870. Taylor County was carved from the

Creek Indian The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southe ...

territory which had in earlier years become the counties of Marion, Talbot, and Macon. The chosen location of Butler was known as the "Fifty Mile Station" on the railroad because it was the geographical center of the railroad between Macon and

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

. Each town is approximately in either direction of Butler. The city of Butler, Georgia, was named for General William Orlando Butler, a distinguished soldier of the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

and a candidate for

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

on the ticket with General Lewis Cass of

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. In late 2016, a 1070 acre 103 megawatt solar panel facility was completed. The Butler Solar Facility is owned by

First Solar First Solar, Inc. is an American manufacturer of solar panels, and a provider of utility-scale PV power plants and supporting services that include finance, construction, maintenance and end-of-life panel recycling. First Solar uses rigid thi ...

Notable people

Ella Little-Collins Ella Little-Collins (1914 – 1996) was an American civil rights activist and the half-sister of Malcolm X. She was born in Butler, Georgia, to Earl Little and Daisy Little (née Mason); her paternal grandparents were John (Big Pa) Lee Little and E ...

, civil rights activist

Gallery

File:Taylor County, GA Courthouse.JPG, Taylor County Courthouse was built in Butler in 1935. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on June 14, 1995. File:Taylor County, GA Government Complex.JPG, Taylor County Government Complex File:Butler, GA Post Office (31006).JPG, Butler Post Office ( ZIP code: 31006) File:Taylor County, GA School District.JPG, Taylor County Board of Education File:Union Methodist Church Cemetery-Hays Campground Cemetery;.JPG, Located just north of Butler, the Union Methodist Church and cemetery were added to the

on September 6, 2001. File:Taylor County, GA Sheriff's Office.JPG, Taylor County Sheriff's OfficeTaylor County Sheriff's Office
/ref>

References

{{authority control Cities in Georgia (U.S. state) Cities in Taylor County, Georgia County seats in Georgia (U.S. state)