Jefferson County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the U.S. state of

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,709. 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 ...

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

. The county was created on February 20, 1796, and named for

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

, the main author of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of th ...

who became the third

president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal gove ...

Geography

According to the

U.S. 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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.6%) is water. The small northern portion of Jefferson County, defined by a line running from Stapleton southeast and just south of State Route 80, is located in the Brier Creek sub-basin of the

Savannah River The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the nor ...

basin. The entire rest of the county is located in the Upper

Ogeechee River The Ogeechee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 26, 2011 blackwater river in the U.S. state of Georgia. It heads at the confluence of its North and Sout ...

sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin.

Major highways

U.S. Route 1 * Business plate

U.S. Route 1 Business (Louisville) * Business plate

U.S. Route 1 Business (Wadley) * US 221

U.S. Route 221 * US 319

U.S. Route 319 * Georgia 4

State Route 4 * Georgia 4 Business

State Route 4 Business (Louisville) * Georgia 4 Business

State Route 4 Business (Wadley) * Georgia 17

State Route 17 * Georgia 24

State Route 24 * Georgia 47

State Route 47 * Georgia 78

State Route 78 * Georgia 80

State Route 80 * Georgia 88

State Route 88 * Georgia 102

State Route 102 * Georgia 171

State Route 171 * Georgia 242

State Route 242 * Georgia 296

State Route 296 * Georgia 540

State Route 540 (Fall Line Freeway)

Adjacent counties

* McDuffie County - north * Richmond County - northeast * Burke County - east * Emanuel County - south * Johnson County - southwest * Glascock County - northwest * Washington County - west * Warren County - northwest

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 off ...

, there were 15,709 people, 5,664 households, and 3,598 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators serving ...

, there were 16,930 people, 6,241 households, and 4,407 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,298 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 54.4% black or African American, 42.6% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 1.6% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, and 26.7% were

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

. Of the 6,241 households, 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 23.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.4% were non-families, and 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.16. The median age was 38.8 years. The median income for a household in the county was $29,268 and the median income for a family was $36,980. Males had a median income of $36,284 versus $27,191 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,165. About 19.0% of families and 26.9% of the population 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 ...

, including 40.7% of those under age 18 and 24.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Communities

Cities

* Avera *

(county seat) * Stapleton * Wadley * Wrens

Towns

* Bartow *

Matthews Matthews may refer to: People * Matthews (surname) Places * Matthews Island, Antarctica * Matthews Range, Kenya * Mount Matthews, New Zealand United States * Matthews, Georgia * Matthews, Indiana * Matthews, Maryland * Matthews, Missouri * Mat ...

Politics

References

External links

The Jefferson County Information Center Website

The Friends of Historic Downtown Louisville Website

The Fire House Gallery Website - Contemporary art in Jefferson County

Videos about life in Jefferson County by Fire Team Productions

''←Broken link, December 2015.''

* ttp://www.thenewsandfarmer.com/ ''The News and Farmer and Wadley Herald/ Jefferson Reporter'' the county's weekly newspaper and the oldest weekly in Georgia
The Official Jefferson County Economic Development Website

General Wood's Fort
historical marker
Old Savannah Road
historical marker
Old Town Plantation
historical marker
Rocky Comfort Creek
historical marker
Yazoo Fraud
historical marker {{Coord, 33.05, -82.42, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-GA_source:UScensus1990 Georgia (U.S. state) counties 1796 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Populated places established in 1796 Black Belt (U.S. region) Majority-minority counties in Georgia