Lithia Springs () is an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
and
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
, formerly incorporated as a city, located in northeastern
Douglas 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. As of the
2020 census, the community had a population of 16,644. The area is named for its historic
lithia mineral water
springs.
Incorporated in 1882, Lithia Springs was dissolved the first time in 1933. Lithia Springs became incorporated again in 1994, to be Douglas County's second completely internal municipality, but disincorporated again in 2000.
In 2000, the citizens voted (80% yea, 20% nay) on December 20 to dissolve the city charter and de-incorporate the city, transferring all assets to the county. The referendum that ended the town was part of the settlement in a lawsuit brought by city residents charging the city should be dissolved because it did not deliver enough services to justify its existence under state law. During its incorporation until 2000, the former city had five mayors.
Lithia Springs is assigned the United States Postal Service
ZIP code of 30122.
History

The history of the community began with Lithia Springs, a natural
lithia water spring. So popular were the curative waters that flowed from Lithia Springs that people came for miles to drink it. The neighboring city of
Austell was also founded due to the spring's popularity.
In 1887 Judge Bowden bought the springs with a group of investors and started bottling and selling Bowden lithia spring water. That same year the Sweet Water Hotel, a 300-room luxury health resort, opened in Lithia Springs.
[Davis, Fannie Mae (1987). ''From Indian Trail to Interstate 20'', Douglas County History.] The hotel and its famous lithia spring water were so popular that
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...
, members of the
Vanderbilt family
The Vanderbilt family is an American family who gained prominence during the Gilded Age. Their success began with the shipping and railroad empires of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and the family expanded into various other areas of industry and philanth ...
, and Presidents
Cleveland
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...
,
Taft,
McKinley McKinley may refer to:
People
*McKinley (name), a page for people with the surname and given name "McKinley"
**William McKinley, 25th president of the United States.
Places Philippines
* Fort William McKinley (now Fort Bonifacio) in Metro Ma ...
and
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
all enjoyed the many amenities of the resort, which included the world-famous Lithia Vapor Baths.
In 1888, the Piedmont
Chautauqua
Chautauqua ( ) is an adult education and social movement in the United States that peaked in popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Cha ...
Institute opened in Lithia Springs.
Henry W. Grady
Henry Woodfin Grady (May 24, 1850 – December 23, 1889) was an American journalist and orator who helped reintegrate the states of the Confederacy (American Civil War), Confederacy into the Union (American Civil War), Union after the American C ...
,
editor
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, organization, a ...
of the ''
Atlanta Constitution
''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in Atlanta metropolitan area, metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Jo ...
'', was the founder and gave the institute the motto "Enlightenment of the People". In 1888, over 30,000 tourists, sightseers, and health-seekers visited Lithia Springs.
The only remnants of this time that have survived are the natural springs and its historic lithia water under the name brand
Lithia, which is still bottled and sold in restaurants and health food stores.
Geography
Lithia Springs is located in the northeastern corner of Douglas County, bordered to the north and east by the
Cobb County line and to the south by East County Line Road, Cedar Terrace Road, and Factory Shoals Road.
Sweetwater Creek, a tributary of the
Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River () is a river in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida and Georgia border. It ...
, flows through the eastern part of the community, and Sweetwater Creek State Park is along its southern edge.
Some of the incorporated limits of
Douglasville
The city of Douglasville is the county seat of and largest city in Douglas County, Georgia, United States. , the city had a population of 34,650, up from 30,961 in 2010 United States census, 2010 and 20,065 in 2000 United States census, 2000.
...
occupy some of the territory around Lithia Springs, along Interstate 20, Blair Bridge Road, Lee Road and Thornton Road.
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, 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 U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...
, the Lithia Springs CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.37%, is water.
Demographics
Lithia Springs was first listed as a
census designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
in the
1980 U.S. census
The 1980 United States census, conducted by the United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 226,545,805, an increase of 11.4% over the 203,184,772 persons Enumeration, enumerated dur ...
.
After incorporation in 1994, it was delineated as a city with 2,072 people in the
2000 U.S. census.
After the city was dissolved, it was redesignated as a CDP in the
2010 U.S. census.
As of the
2020 United States census, there were 16,644 people, 6,435 households, and 4,159 families residing in the CDP.
Parks
Sweetwater Creek State Park is Lithia Springs' main recreational area. The park is home to the George Sparks Reservoir, owned and maintained by the City of East Point. It is home to hiking trails, picnic pavilions, playgrounds and the ruins of the Manchester Mill, a mill destroyed by
Sherman's Atlanta Campaign in 1864.
Several movies have filmed scenes in this park, including ''Avengers: Infinity War'', ''The Hunger Games'', ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'', ''The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1'' and ''No Good Deed''.
In 2005, the remnants of
Hurricane Dennis damaged the bridge over the reservoir, the main road into and out of the park. The bridge was rebuilt and the road was reopened in 2006. The park is located off Mount Vernon Road in Lithia Springs.
Woodrow Wilson Park/Lithia Springs Girls Ball Field was a small park surrounded by homes and apartments. The park was well known in the area for its location next to Sweetwater Creek. When heavy rains occurred in the area, the park was prone to flooding. It was flooded during the
2009 Southeastern United States floods. It is not currently scheduled to be rebuilt, and has been dismantled. The park was located off Mount Vernon Road near Skyview Drive.
Schools
Douglas County School System is the sole school district in the county.
Lithia Springs is home to six schools operated by the school district:
*Annette Winn Elementary off US. Hwy 78
*Lithia Springs Elementary off Junior High Dr.
*Sweetwater Elementary off E. County Line Rd.
*Turner Middle School next to Lithia Elementary
*Chestnut Log Middle School off Hwy. 92
*
Lithia Springs Comprehensive High School across the street from Sweetwater Elementary
Library
Lithia Springs has one library, Betty C. Hagler Public Library, also known as Lithia Springs Public Library.
Economy
There are multiple datacenters in Lithia Springs.
Notable people
*
Ruth Blair - first woman state historian of Georgia; grew up here
*
Sawyer Gipson-Long - professional baseball player
*
Walton Goggins
Walton Sanders Goggins Jr. (born November 10, 1971) is an American actor. He has starred in various television series, including ''The Shield'' (2002–2008), ''Justified (TV series), Justified'' (2010–2015), ''Vice Principals'' (2016–2017), ...
- moved to Lithia Springs at a young age and grew up in the area
*
Lil Nas X
Montero Lamar Hill (born April 9, 1999), better known by his stage name Lil Nas X ( ), is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his 2018 country rap single "Old Town Road," the longest-running nu ...
- rapper; born in Lithia Springs
*
Elana Meyers - Olympian; attended Lithia Springs High School
*
Calvin Pace -
NFL player; attended Lithia Springs High School 1994–1998
See also
*
Lithia Spring Water, a brand of bottled natural lithia water sourced from Lithia Springs since 1888
References
Further reading
Maps of the incorporated city:
* - The shape differs from that of the CDP
Maps of
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
:
*
*
Page 1an
Page 2*
1990 U.S. CensusIndex map page
3an
4Page A
External links
Douglas County website
{{authority control
Unincorporated communities in Georgia (U.S. state)
Census-designated places in Douglas County, Georgia
Former municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state)
Census-designated places in Georgia (U.S. state)
Populated places disestablished in 2001