Jefferson is a city in Jackson 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. The population was 9,432 at the 2010 census, up from 3,825 at the 2000 census. As of 2019 the estimated population was 12,032. The city 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 Jackson County.

History

Jefferson was founded in 1800. That same year, the seat of Jackson County was transferred to Jefferson from Clarkesboro. Jefferson was incorporated as a town in 1806 and as a city in 1896. The city was named after

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

Geography

Jefferson is located in central Jackson County at (34.126736, -83.590297). It is bordered to the northwest by Pendergrass and to the southeast by

Arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...

U.S. Route 129 U.S. Route 129 (US 129) is an auxiliary route of US 29, which it intersects in Athens, Georgia. US 129 currently runs for from an intersection with US 19/ US 27 ALT/ US 98 in Chiefland, Florida, to an interchang ...

passes through the southwest side of the city, leading northwest to Gainesville and southeast to

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Interstate 85 Interstate 85 (I-85) is a major Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus is an interchange with I-95 in Petersburg, Virginia, ...

runs through the northern end of Jefferson, northwest of the center of town, with access from Exits 137 and 140. I-85 leads southwest to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

and northeast to Greenville, South Carolina. 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 t ...

, Jefferson has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.53%, are water. Curry Creek, a tributary of the

North Oconee River The Oconee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map Accessed April 21, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its origin is in Hall County and it terminates where it joins ...

, flows just to the east of downtown, and the

Middle Oconee River The Oconee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map Accessed April 21, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its origin is in Hall County and it terminates where it joins ...

runs along the western edge of the city.

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 13,233 people, 3,933 households, and 2,885 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 9,432 people, 3,328 households, and 2,531 families residing in the city. There were 3,666 housing units, of which 338, or 9.2%, were vacant. The racial makeup of the city was 83.1%

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 o ...

, 10.0%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 1.6%

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

n, 0.1%

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawa ...

or Pacific Islander, 3.2% some other race, and 1.8% from two or more races. 7.5% of the population were

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, for example, by the United States ...

of any race. Of the 3,328 households, 46.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.3% were headed by married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.9% were non-families. 20.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% were someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.83, and the average family size was 3.28. In the city, 30.9% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.9% were from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males. For the period 2012–2016, the estimated median annual income for a household was $51,419, and the median income for a family was $58,683. 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 $24,376. Male full-time workers had a median income of $49,832, versus $33,567 for females. 12.5% of the population and 11.7% of families were below the poverty line. 8.5% of the population under the age of 18 and 17.3% of those 65 or older were living in poverty.

Education

Jackson County School District

The Jackson County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of six elementary schools, two middle schools, two high schools, and one charter school. As of December 2020, the district had a total of 8,611 students. *East Jackson Elementary School *Gum Springs Elementary School *Maysville Elementary School *North Jackson Elementary School *South Jackson Elementary School *West Jackson Elementary School *East Jackson Middle School *West Jackson Middle School *

East Jackson Comprehensive High School East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

Jackson County Comprehensive High School Jackson County Comprehensive High School (JCCHS) is located in Jefferson, Georgia, United States. It is one of two high schools in the Jackson County School District. It is fed by West Jackson Middle School. The school competes in region 8-AAA ...

*EMPOWER College and Career Center (charter school)

Jefferson City School District

The Jefferson City School District holds kindergarten to grade twelve, and consists of two elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school. The district has 115 full-time teachers and over 1,525 students.School Stats
Retrieved June 5, 2010. *Jefferson Elementary School *Jefferson Academy *Jefferson Middle School * Jefferson High School

Martin Institute

The Martin Institute was a school in Jefferson from 1818 to 1942.

Notable people

* Chris Beck, pitcher for the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

Hiram Parks Bell Hiram Parks Bell (January 19, 1827 – August 16, 1907) was a white supremacist, slave owner, U.S. Representative and a Confederate Representative from the state of Georgia. Early life and education Bell was born January 19, 1827, near ...

, U.S. Representative *

Damon Jesse Gause Damon Jesse Gause (June 17, 1915 – March 9, 1944) was an American military officer who served in the United States Army Air Corps. He was captured and escaped from Bataan, then Corregidor. He served with the Ninth Air Force and flew with the H ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

war hero * Brantley Gilbert, country music singer, songwriter * Crawford W. Long, physician who first used ether for surgical anesthesia * Brandon Mosley, former Auburn University and former New York Giants offensive lineman * Corey Smith, country music singer, songwriter * Malaki Starks, Safety for the Georgia Bulldogs

References

External links

City of Jefferson official website''The Jackson Herald''
local newspaper
Builder of the Nation
historical marker {{authority control Cities in Georgia (U.S. state) Cities in Jackson County, Georgia County seats in Georgia (U.S. state)