Homer is a town in Banks County,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, United States. The population was 1,141 at the 2010 census. The town is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Banks County.

History

The community was named after Homer Jackson, a pioneer citizen. Homer was founded in 1858 as seat for the newly established Banks County. Homer was incorporated as a town in 1859, and its first courthouse was built in 1863.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.38%, is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 950 people, 366 households, and 249 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 406 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 84.32%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 11.79%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.16% Native American, 0.84% Asian, 1.16% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino people of any race were 2.00% of the population. There were 366 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.16. In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.1% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $35,500, and the median income for a family was $41,667. Males had a median income of $30,147 versus $23,438 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $17,353. About 8.9% of families and 13.3% 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 14.3% of those under age 18 and 21.1% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Homer is among the earliest to hold the world record for an

Easter egg hunt An egg hunt is a treasure hunt played at Easter during which children look for hidden decorated eggs or Easter eggs. Real hard-boiled eggs, which are typically dyed or painted, artificial eggs made of plastic filled with chocolate or candies, ...

- 80,000 eggs, listed in the 1985

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

. The event in the small town of 1,100 people is an Easter Sunday tradition that has lasted 47 years. The egg hunt each year draws about 5,000 egg hunters, children and adults. Even though it no longer holds the record, Homer has long touted its annual hunt as the world's largest.

Education

Banks County students in kindergarten to grade twelve are in the Banks County School District, which consists of two elementary schools, a middle school and a high school. The district has 150 full-time teachers and over 2,428 students.School Stats
Retrieved May 30, 2010. *Banks County Elementary School *Banks County Primary School *Banks County Middle School * Banks County High School Image:HomerGeorgiaDownTownMainStreet.jpg, A view of downtown Homer's main street Image:HomerGeorgiaDownTownParkLookingTowardsOldCourtHouse.jpg, Looking across the park downtown towards the old Banks County Courthouse, the large brick building in the left background Image:HomerGeorgiaOldBanksCountyCourtHouse.jpg, A closeup of the Old Banks County Courthouse, now a tourist attraction Image:HomerGeorgiaSideStreetBaptistChurch.jpg, A view down a side street off the main street of Homer. The church is the First Baptist Church of Homer.

References

{{authority control Towns in Banks County, Georgia Towns in Georgia (U.S. state) County seats in Georgia (U.S. state)