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Georgia Counties

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Georgia Counties

Georgia is divided into 159 counties. Under the Georgia Constitution, Counties are granted home rule to deal with issues that are local in nature. Four consolidated city-Counties — Athens (Clarke County), Augusta (Richmond County), Columbus (Muscogee County), and Cusseta (Chattahoochee County) — exist.

Georgia has the second-highest number of Counties of any state in the United States, behind Texas (254). A few Georgia Counties have changed names over time. Jasper County was originally known as Randolph County. Later, the current Randolph County came into being. Webster County was once known as Kinchafoonee County, and Bartow County was formerly known as Cass County.

Hancock County, Georgia

Hancock County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Sparta
Year Organized: 1793
Square Miles: 473

Court House:

Courthouse Square
County Courthouse
Sparta, GA 31087

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Named for the first signer of the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Hancock County was created in 1793. Originally part of Greene and Washington counties, Georgia's 15th county was named for the first signer of the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock.

Millmore Gristmill, which is located within the county, was the site of the historic 1786 peace treaty between the Georgia and the Creek Indian Nation.

Founded in 1795 during Georgia's Greek Revival Period, the City of Sparta was named for the classical Greek city.

Points of Interest

Four Georgia governors have come from Hancock County: Nathaniel Harris, James McDonald, William Northen, and William Rabun.

The Oconee River makes up much of the western border of the county. Located on its banks are the Shoulderbone Indian Mounds, which date back to approximately the fourteenth and fifteenth century.

Lake Sinclair is formed by the impoundment of the Oconee River by the Sinclair Dam.

Notable Citizens

Several other notable people have called Hancock County home including: Lucius H. Holsey. Born a slave, Holsey went on to found Paine College in Augusta; Charles L. Harper, a civil rights leader who founded the Atlanta branch of the NAACP; and David Dixon, who advocated crop rotation, cover crops and other innovative agricultural ideas, until he became known as the "Prince of Farmers."

Neighboring Counties:

Northeast: Taliaferro County; Warren County
East: Glascock County
Southeast: Washington County
Southwest: Baldwin County
West: Putnam County
Northwest: Greene County

Cities and Towns:

- Sparta (County Seat)

city

Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Additional County Info http://www.georgiaplanning.com/CountyPortal/countyportal.asp?FIPS=13141

County Resource Guide

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

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