The city of Sandersville is the county seat
of
Washington 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 5,912 at the 2010 census. It is also a part of the Central Savannah River Area.
Sandersville is known as the "Kaolin Capital of the World" due to its abundance of
kaolin
Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral ...
.
Geography
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 (0.87%) is water. The area is along the "Fall Line" that separates the Piedmont Plateau and the Atlantic Coastal Plain and is characterized by rolling hills, red clay, pine and hardwood forest, swamplands, and sand beds. The area tapers off from North to South and becomes more flat. Heading north it becomes more hilly with higher elevations.
Climate
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 5,813 people, 2,213 households, and 1,425 families residing in the city.
2011
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 2011, there were 6,097 people, 2,315 households, and 1,568 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 2,566 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 59.03%
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 ...
, 39.76%
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 ...
, 0.11%
Native American, 0.60%
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 ...
, 0.05%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 0.03% 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 0.41% 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 ...
or
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 ...
of any race were 0.24% of the population.
There were 2,362 households, out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.2% 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, 25.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.6% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.0% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 79.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 72.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,201, and the median income for a family was $32,462. Males had a median income of $36,089 versus $21,765 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 $18,226. About 24.3% of families and 27.5% 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 t ...
, including 36.2% of those under age 18 and 24.1% of those age 65 or over.
History
Established by British settlers in Creek territory in the 18th century, shortly after the American Revolution, the town of Sandersville became the county seat of Washington County in 1796.
Creek leaders had not yet ceded their territory when Sandersville was settled. According to a book on Georgia place-names, the city was named after M. Saunders, a local store owner. The settlement was located at an intersection of Native American Indian trails, and later the site of Saunders' general store.
The town appears on Anthony Finley's 1827 map of Georgia.
In 1864, during the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
, General
William T. Sherman
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
skirmished and then paused in Sandersville during his
March to the Sea. Brief resistance to the advancing Union forces was centered on the courthouse. As they left, Sherman's troops burned both it and jail, but left the rest of the town intact.
A new
Washington County Courthouse was built in 1869.
The
Sandersville Railroad
The Sandersville Railroad was originally operated from Tennille, Georgia, to Sandersville, Georgia and chartered in 1893 as a subsidiary of the Central of Georgia Railroad.
Location
It was extended north five miles from Sandersville to a kaolin ...
was built in 1893 as a part of the Central of Georgia Railway, but still operates today as a private owned shortline that connects to Norfolk Southern Railway's Georgia Division Savannah District at Tennille, Georgia 4 miles to the South.
According to the U.S. National Archive, Nation of Islam leader Elijah Mohammad grew up in Sandersville in the 1890s and 1900s. He is reported to have said that, in Sandersville, he witnessed three lynchings before the age of 10.
Economy
The economy of Sandersville was based on agriculture, particularly cotton, for many years. In the 1950s, an industry developed based on the mining and processing of
kaolin
Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral ...
found in the area.
Education
Washington County School District
The
Washington County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of a primary and elementary school, a middle school, and a high school. The district has 220 full-time teachers and over 3,821 students.
*Ridge Road Primary School
*Ridge Road Elementary School
*T. J. Elder Middle School
*
Washington County High School
Private education
*
Brentwood School (grades K-3 through 12)
Higher education
*
Oconee Fall Line Technical College
Oconee Fall Line Technical College (OFTC) is a public community college with its main campuses in Sandersville and Dublin, Georgia. It is part of the Technical College System of Georgia and provides education services for an eleven-county servic ...
- Main Campus
North Campus
*
Georgia Military College
Georgia Military College (GMC) is a public military junior college in Milledgeville, Georgia. It is divided into the junior college, a military junior college program, high school, middle school, and elementary school. It was originally known as M ...
- Extension Centre
Sports
Sandersville was home to the
minor league baseball teams, the
Sandersville Giants (1955-1956) and
Sandersville Wacos (1953-1954). Sandersville played in the Class D
Georgia State League
The Georgia State League was an American Class D minor league in professional baseball that existed in 1906, 1914, 1920–1921 and 1948–1956. During its last incarnation, it existed alongside two nearby Class D circuits, the Georgia–Florida Le ...
(GSL) from 1953 to 1956 and played at Sandersville Baseball Park.
Baseball Hall of Fame
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...
inductee
Willie McCovey
Willie Lee McCovey (January 10, 1938 – October 31, 2018), nicknamed "Stretch", "Mac" and "Willie Mac", was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman from 1959 to 1980, most notably as a mem ...
played for the Sandersville Giants in 1955. The team folded along with the Georgia State League following the 1956 season. Sandersville was an affiliate of the
Milwaukee Braves
The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bost ...
(1953) and
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
(1955-1956).
Newspaper
Sandersville has two newspapers: ''The Sandersville Progress'' and "The Spotlight". They both are published weekly. The Sandersville Progress began publication in 1870.
Notable people
*
Nathan Deal
John Nathan Deal (born August 25, 1942) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 82nd governor of Georgia from 2011 to 2019. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party in 1992 a ...
, 82nd
Governor of Georgia
The governor of Georgia is the head of government of Georgia and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor also has a duty to enforce state laws, the power to either veto or approve bills passed by the Georgia Legisl ...
*
Doris Duke
Doris Duke (November 22, 1912 – October 28, 1993) was an American billionaire tobacco heiress, philanthropist, art collector, Horticulture, horticulturalist, and socialite. She was often called "the richest girl in the world". Her great wealt ...
, soul singer
*
Robert Edwards, professional football player
*
Terrence Edwards
Terrence Edwards (born April 20, 1979) is a former Canadian football wide receiver who played for nine seasons with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. He was originally signed by the Atlanta Falcons ...
, professional football player
*
Thomas W. Hardwick, lawyer and 63rd
Governor of Georgia
The governor of Georgia is the head of government of Georgia and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor also has a duty to enforce state laws, the power to either veto or approve bills passed by the Georgia Legisl ...
*
Herbert Jefferson Jr.
{{BLP sources, date=March 2013
{{Infobox person
, name = Herbert Jefferson, Jr.
, image = Herbert Jefferson, Jr. by Gage Skidmore.jpg
, caption = Herbert Jefferson, Jr., at the 2012 Phoenix Comicon
, birth_date = {{birth date and age, mf=yes, 19 ...
, actor
*
Marvin Lane
Marvin Lane (born January 18, 1950), is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played from to and in with the Detroit Tigers.
Early years
Lane was born in Sandersville, Georgia in 1950 and attended Pershing High School in Detroit, Mich ...
, professional baseball player
*
Greg Minor
Greg Magado Minor (born September 18, 1971) is an American basketball coach and a former National Basketball Association player who spent five seasons with the Boston Celtics. Born in Sandersville, Georgia he played basketball for Washington Coun ...
, professional basketball player
*
Elijah Muhammad
Elijah Muhammad (born Elijah Robert Poole; October 7, 1897 – February 25, 1975) was an African American religious leader, black separatist, and self-proclaimed Messenger of Allah, who led the Nation of Islam (NOI) from 1934 until his de ...
, Leader of the Nation of Islam
*
Takeo Spikes
Takeo Gerard Spikes (; born December 17, 1976) is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Auburn University. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals 13th overall in ...
, professional football player
*
Coot Veal, professional baseball player
*
Allisha Gray, professional basketball player
See also
*
Central Savannah River Area
The Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) is a Media market, trading and marketing region in the U.S. states of Georgia (U.S. State), Georgia and South Carolina, spanning fourteen counties in Georgia and seven in South Carolina. The term was coined ...
hometown of Private Willie Duckworth Inventor of the military cadence
References
External links
Official website for the City of SandersvilleSandersville page on Georgia.govOfficial website for the Washington County Board of Education
{{authority control
Cities in Georgia (U.S. state)
Cities in Washington County, Georgia
County seats in Georgia (U.S. state)