} Murray County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

Northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west— ...

region of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,973. 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 ...

is Chatsworth. Murray County is part of the Dalton, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

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 ...

-Dalton, TN-GA- AL Combined Statistical Area.

History

In December 1832 the

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directl ...

designated the extreme northwestern corner of the state as Murray County. Formerly part of Cherokee County, the area was named for a distinguished Georgia statesman from Lincoln County, Mr. Thomas W. Murray, a former speaker of the Georgia House. Within a short time the legislature found the county was too large to administer properly as the population grew, for the county then included what is now Dade, Walker, Catoosa, Whitfield, Murray, Gordon and parts of Bartow and Chatooga Counties, so further division became necessary. Within two decades, Murray County came to be of land with Spring Place as its county seat until the railroad was built through Chatsworth. With Chatsworth more accessible, the county seat was moved there.

Cherokees

The area was in the heart of the Cherokee Nation at the time the boundary lines were drawn through the territory. Not until after the Cherokees were removed in 1838–39 did white settlers enter the county in large numbers. Spring Place had been established in 1801 as a Moravian mission to the Cherokee and had been a post office since 1810 – the second oldest in North Georgia. After the Cherokee removal, the Moravians relocated with the tribe in what is now Oklahoma to establish New Springplace near the town of Oaks, Oklahoma. Sometime during the late 19th century, James B. Brackett donated the land upon which the Brackett Indian School was built. The school did not always function as a segregated Indian school. At one point in its previously integrated history it was referred to as the Lone Cherry School. The Brackets were a notable Eastern Cherokee family that lived along Brackett's Ridges, amongst several other American Indian families, several of which were also Eastern Cherokee. Most of the Brackets were forced to leave Georgia during the Trail of Tears earlier in the 19th century; however, some of them returned to Georgia several years later. James Brackett's brother Adam Brackett, along with several other siblings show up on the Dawes Rolls as being enrolled members of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

Civil War

At the outbreak of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, Murray County had no industry and very little wealth. When Georgia seceded from the Union, hundreds of men and boys from Murray enlisted in the Confederate Army. The following units were from Murray County: * 3rd Battalion, Georgia Infantry, Company B, Spring Place Volunteers * 11th Regiment, Georgia Infantry, Company C, Murray Rifle Company * 22nd Regiment, Georgia Infantry, Company D * 37th Regiment, Georgia Infantry, Company A * 39th Regiment, Georgia Infantry, Company A, Cohutta Rangers * 39th Regiment, Georgia Infantry, Company B * 19th State Troops – Capt. John Oats Company In 1864, two skirmishes between Union and Confederate soldiers took place just to the west of Spring Place, one of which took place on June 25, 1864, with the 8th Michigan Cavalry US. The First Tennessee Cavalry CS also skirmished about 5 miles north of Spring Place on April 19, 1864. Another skirmish took place near Westfield late during the night of August 22, 1864. Captain Woody of the Murray County Home Guard was reported wounded. On February 27, 1865, and April 20, 1865, there was a skirmish at Spring Place between Confederates and the 145th Indiana Infantry US. This was followed by a skirmish on Holly Creek on March 1, 1865. By 1865 Spring Place was known as an area occupied by Confederate Guerrillas. During March 20–22, 1865 Union soldiers made an attempt to suppress this activity.

Railroad

In 1906, after two earlier attempts at building a railroad in Murray County had failed, the Louisville and Nashville line was built to run north to south through the entire length of the county. Murray grew, with new towns developing along the railroad. One of these new towns was named Chatsworth. With the new railroad line in place, timber could be shipped out of the mountains, and talc deposits, discovered in the 1870s, was able to be mined and the ore shipped throughout the country. The old county seat of Spring Place was bypassed by the railroad. Some Murray Countians began an effort to move the county seat to the more central and accessible railroad town of Chatsworth. Much dissention was caused by this effort. A county-wide referendum was held on the matter in 1912, which resulted in Chatsworth being named as the seat of local government, where it remains to present day. Into the twentieth century, Murray remained predominantly agricultural. Shortly after World War II the textile industry, prevalent in neighboring Whitfield County, began to move into Murray. Today, the carpet industry is the predominant employer in Murray County.

Geography

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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.6%) is water. The majority of Murray County is located in the

Conasauga River The Conasauga River is a river that runs through southeast Tennessee and northwest Georgia. The Conasauga River is longU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 27, 2011 an ...

sub-basin in the ACT River Basin (Coosa-Tallapoosa River Basin), and the southeastern corner of the county is located in the Coosawattee River sub-basin of the same larger ACT River Basin.

Major highways

U.S. Route 76 * US 411

U.S. Route 411 * Georgia 2

State Route 2 * Georgia 52

State Route 52 * Georgia 52 Alternate

State Route 52 Alternate * Georgia 61

State Route 61 * Georgia 136

State Route 136 * Georgia 225

State Route 225 * Georgia 282

State Route 282 * Georgia 286

State Route 286

Adjacent counties

* Polk County,

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

(northeast) * Fannin County (east-northeast) * Gilmer County (east) * Gordon County (south) * Whitfield County (west) * Bradley County,

(northwest)

National protected area

Chattahoochee National Forest The Chattahoochee River () is a river in the Southeastern United States. It forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida and Georgia border. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a rela ...

(part)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 39,973 people, 14,385 households, and 10,557 families residing in the county.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 39,628 people, 14,080 households, and 10,677 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 15,979 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.1% white, 0.6% black or African American, 0.4% American Indian, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 7.9% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 13.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 40.1% were American, 8.8% were Irish, 7.8% were English, and 5.0% were

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

. Of the 14,080 households, 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 24.2% were non-families, and 19.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.20. The median age was 36.2 years. The median income for a household in the county was $38,226 and the median income for a family was $45,420. Males had a median income of $33,543 versus $27,797 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,925. About 14.3% of families and 17.1% 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 23.1% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

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 36,506 people, 13,286 households, and 10,256 families living in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 14,320 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.30%

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 ...

, 0.62%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 2.64% from other races, and 0.88% from two or more races. 5.49% of the population were

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 of any race. There were 13,286 households, out of which 39.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.80% 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, 11.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.80% were non-families. 18.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.10. In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.00% under the age of 18, 9.50% from 18 to 24, 33.00% from 25 to 44, 21.50% from 45 to 64, and 8.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.50 males. The median income for a household in the county was $36,996, and the median income for a family was $42,155. Males had a median income of $29,812 versus $23,035 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 county was $16,230. About 9.20% of families and 12.70% of the population were below the

, including 15.90% of those under age 18 and 19.40% of those age 65 or over.

Attractions

The

Chief Vann House Historic Site The Chief Vann House is the first brick residence in the Cherokee Nation, and has been called the "Showplace of the Cherokee Nation (19th century), Cherokee Nation". Owned by the Cherokee Chief James Vann, the Vann House is a Georgia Historic S ...

at Spring Place. Constructed in 1805 for James Vann, a Cherokee chief, the two-story red brick home was built alongside the Federal Road, a major early path in northwest Georgia. Fort Mountain State Park. A park in the Cohutta Mountains. Another major asset is the

, which occupies a large portion of northeastern Murray County. Within the forest is the Cohutta Wilderness Area, a roadless, mountainous landscape featuring several of Georgia's premier backpacking trails. Carters Lake, on the Coosawatee River, was formed by the Carter Dam, which is the largest earth-rock dam east of the Mississippi. The lake attracts fishermen, boaters and campers. Lake Conasauga located near the summit of Grassy Mountain was built by the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

in 1940 and is the highest lake in Georgia at above sea level.

Communities

Cities

* Chatsworth (county seat)

Towns

* Eton

Unincorporated communities

* Spring Place * Carters * Tennga *

Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc. (using the trademark Cisco) is an American multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, s ...

The community is located at the intersection of U.S. Route 411,

Georgia State Route 2 State Route 2 (SR 2) is a east-west State highway in the far North-northern part of Georgia. The highway serves southern suburbs of Chattanooga, Tennessee, as well as much of the mountains in the northern part of the state. It trav ...

, and

Georgia State Route 61 State Route 61 (SR 61) is a State highway (US), state highway that travels south-to-north through portions of Carroll County, Georgia, Carroll, Douglas County, Georgia, Douglas, Paulding County, Georgia, Paulding, Bartow County, Geor ...

, north of Chatsworth. Cisco has a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

with ZIP code 30708. A post office called Cisco has been in operation since 1881. The community's name is a shortening and alteration of the name of "Cis" Cockburn, a local storekeeper. * Crandall (incorporated until 1995) The community is located along the concurrent U.S. Route 411,

, and

, north of Chatsworth. Crandall has a

with ZIP code 30711. * Amzi/Treadwell Community *Dennis A post office called Dennis was established in 1882, and remained in operation until 1906. The community was named after Dennis Johnson, a local merchant. *Hasslers Mill A post office was established at Hasslers Mill in 1836, and remained in operation until 1909. The community was named after one William Hassler. Variant names are "Hasler Mill" and "Hassler Mill". *Holley A variant spelling was "Holly". A post office called Holly Creek was established in 1843, the name was changed to Holly in 1894, and the post office closed in 1909. The community derives its name from nearby Holly Creek. *Ramhurstsection Ramhurstsection of U.S. Route 411 and U.S. Route 76, south-southeast of Chatsworth. Ramhurst was first called "Ramsey", after A. K. Ramsey, the proprietor of a local

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that h ...

and country store. *Sumac The community takes its name from nearby Sumac Creek. A variant spelling is "Sumach". A post office called Sumach was established in 1878, and remained in operation until 1907. The town was hit by a tornado on April 12, 2020, which killed eight people in and around the town and was rated EF2.

Media

Murray County, Georgia has been featured in an Independent Lens series documenting bullying.

Politics

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20100207163414/http://murraycountychamber.org/history2.htm * https://web.archive.org/web/20080807015831/http://www.ourchatsworth.com/ * https://www.murraycountymuseum.com * http://www.chatsworthtimes.com
Murray County Genealogy & History

Murray County Website
{{Coord, 34.78, -84.75, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-GA_source:UScensus1990 Georgia (U.S. state) counties 1832 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Populated places established in 1832 Dalton metropolitan area, Georgia Northwest Georgia (U.S.)

History

Cherokees

Civil War

Railroad

Geography

Major highways

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Demographics

2020 census

2010 census

2000 census

Attractions

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Media

Politics

See also

References

External links