Washington 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 ...

located in 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 19,988.U.S. 2020 Census Bureau report, Washington County, Georgia 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 Sandersville. The county was established on February 25, 1784. It was named for Revolutionary War general and

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. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

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 (0.9%) is water. The western portion of Washington County, west of a north-to-south line running through Sandersville, is located in the Lower

Oconee River The Oconee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map Accessed April 21, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its origin is in Hall County and it terminates where it join ...

sub-basin of the

Altamaha River The Altamaha River is a major river in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It flows generally eastward for from its Source (river or stream), origin at the confluence of the Oconee River and Ocmulgee River towards the Atlantic Oce ...

basin. The northeastern portion of the county, north of Riddleville, 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, while the southeastern portion, centered on Harrison, is located in the Ohoopee River sub-basin of the

basin.

Major highways

State Route 15 * Georgia 24

State Route 24 * Georgia 24 Spur

State Route 24 Spur * Georgia 57

State Route 57 * Georgia 68

State Route 68 * Georgia 88

State Route 88 * Georgia 102

State Route 102 * Georgia 231

State Route 231 * Georgia 242

State Route 242 * Georgia 272

State Route 272 * Georgia 540

State Route 540 (Fall Line Freeway)

Adjacent counties

* Glascock County (northeast) * Jefferson County (east) * Johnson County (south) * Wilkinson County (southwest) * Baldwin County (west) * Hancock County (northwest)

Communities

Cities

* Davisboro * Oconee * Sandersville (county seat) * Tennille

Towns

* Deepstep * Harrison * Riddleville

Census-designated places

* Warthen

Other unincorporated communities

Ennis Ennis ( , meaning 'island' or 'river meadow') is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in Cou ...

* Goat Town *

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

* Irwins Crossroads * Pringle * Sun Hill *

Veal Veal is the meat of Calf (animal), calves, in contrast to the beef from older cattle. Veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any List of cattle breeds, breed; however, most veal comes from young male calves of Dairy cattle, dairy b ...

Demographics

2020 Census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 19,988 people, 7,503 households, and 5,315 families residing in the county.

Education

The county is served by the Washington County School District, which includes: * Ridge Road Elementary School * T.J. Elder Middle School * Washington County High School. The county is also the location of one privately run school: * Brentwood School

In popular culture

The 1933 short story " The People's Choice" by

Erskine Caldwell Erskine Preston Caldwell (December 17, 1903 – April 11, 1987) was an American novelist and short story writer. His writings about poverty, racism and social problems in his native Southern United States, in novels such as '' Tobacco Road'' (19 ...

is set in Washington County, where the story's protagonist is a popular local politician elected again and again as the county's tax assessor. In 1992, the Pig Monument was erected in the county, near Oconee off of Georgia State Route 272. The monument commemorates a 1933 event where several residents of the county gathered together to help a local farmer rescue a pig that had fallen down a

dry well A dry well or soak is a structure formed underground that disposes of unwanted water, such as surface runoff water and stormwater. In this process, the water is infiltrated into the ground, further merging with groundwater in the local area. Th ...

. The biography of one of the main characters (Grant Alexander) in the 2011 console game '' X-Men: Destiny'' states that they were born in Sandersville, Georgia.

Politics

Like most other majority-minority counties in the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

, Washington County has primarily backed Democratic Party candidates for most of its history. Democratic margins of victory in presidential elections were far greater prior to 1964, but the county has only failed to back a Democratic presidential candidate five times in its history. However, no candidate of any party since

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

in 1996 has managed to win the county by a margin of 1,000 votes or greater. It was the most Black county in Georgia to vote for

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

in 2024.

References

External links

Official page of Washington County
{{Coord, 32.97, -82.79, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-GA_source:UScensus1990 Georgia (U.S. state) counties 1784 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Populated places established in 1784 Black Belt (U.S. region) Majority-minority counties in Georgia