Echols County (/ˈɛkəlz/) is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,697. The county seat is Statenville.[1] Since 2008,[2] Statenville is a disincorporated municipality. Echols and Webster counties are the only two counties in Georgia to currently have no incorporated municipalities. The county was established in 1858 and named in honor of Robert Milner Echols[3] (1798–1847).
Echols County | |
|---|---|
 Echols County Courthouse in Statenville | |
 Flag | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Georgia | |
 Georgia's location within the U.S. | |
| Coordinates: 30°43′N 82°54′W / 30.72°N 82.9°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Georgia |
| Founded | December 13, 1858 |
| Named for | Robert Milner Echols |
| Seat | Statenville |
| Largest community | Statenville |
| Area | |
• Total | 421 sq mi (1,090 km2) |
| • Land | 415 sq mi (1,070 km2) |
| • Water | 5.8 sq mi (15 km2) 1.4% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 3,697 |
| • Density | 9/sq mi (3/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 1st |
| Website | echolscountyga |
Echols County is part of the Valdosta, GA metropolitan statistical area.
History
editOn December 13, 1858, the Georgia General Assembly passed a bill establishing Echols County from a south-eastern section of Lowndes County and a south-western section Clinch County. The original borders of the county were a line from the mouth of the Suwanoochee Creek directly south to the state line, then along the state line, then north to the junction of Grand Bay Creek and Mud Swamp, then up the course of Grand Bay Creek to Carter's Ford, then a direct line to where Cow's Creek enters the Alapaha River, then up the creek to Griffins' Mill, then a direct line to Jack's Fort on Suwanoochee Creek, and then down Suwanoochee Creek to its mouth. With the exception of some minor adjustments of the border Echols shares with Lowndes and the loss of a thin strip to Florida following Florida v. Georgia, the borders of Echols County has changed little since its establishment. Statenville was declared the county seat in 1859.
At the time of the 1860 census, Echols County had a white population of 1,177, with 314 slaves, and no free people of color.[4]
Echols County became notable as it has served as a place of banishment for many of Georgia's criminals. As the Georgia State Constitution forbids banishment beyond the borders of the state, officials instead ban the offender from 158 of Georgia's 159 counties, with Echols remaining as their only option.[5] Few criminals have been documented as actually moving to Echols.[6] This is because almost all banished criminals choose to leave the state instead of moving to Echols County.[7]
Banishment, including 158-county banishment, has repeatedly been upheld by Georgia courts. The first case when banishment was upheld was in the 1974 case State v Collett, when the Georgia Supreme Court upheld the banishment of a drug dealer from seven counties.[8] The most recent time banishment was upheld, in 2011, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled it was constitutional to banish David Nathan Thompson (a mentally ill man who was convicted of firing a gun into a home, although no one was injured) from all but one county in Georgia.[9]
Geography
editAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 421 square miles (1,090 km2), of which 415 square miles (1,070 km2) is land and 5.8 square miles (15 km2) (1.4%) is water.[10] The county contains a notable swamp, Whitehead Bay.[11]
The western half of Echols County is located in the Alapaha River sub-basin of the Suwannee River basin. The eastern half of the county, from well east of Statenville to just west of Fargo, is located in the Upper Suwannee River sub-basin of the same Suwannee River basin.[12]
Major highways
edit
Major waterways
edit- Alapaha River
- Alapahoochee River
- Grand Bay Creek (known in the 1800s as Irwin's River and later as Irwin's Creek)
- Suwannee River
- Suwanoochee Creek
Railways
edit- Georgia Southern and Florida Railway
- Seaboard Coast Line Railroad
- Plant System (now part of CSX)
- Statenville Railway (Defunct, it was used from 1910 to 1924. It ran from Statenville to Haylow, Georgia)
Adjacent counties
edit- Clinch County – northeast
- Columbia County, Florida – southeast
- Hamilton County, Florida – south
- Lowndes County – west
- Lanier County – north
Unincorporated communities
edit- Fruitland
- Howell
- Needmore
- Statenville (county seat)
Extinct town
edit- Tarver (formerly Statenville Station and Huckleberry)
Demographics
edit| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1860 | 1,491 | — | |
| 1870 | 1,978 | 32.7% | |
| 1880 | 2,553 | 29.1% | |
| 1890 | 3,079 | 20.6% | |
| 1900 | 3,209 | 4.2% | |
| 1910 | 3,309 | 3.1% | |
| 1920 | 3,313 | 0.1% | |
| 1930 | 2,744 | −17.2% | |
| 1940 | 2,964 | 8.0% | |
| 1950 | 2,494 | −15.9% | |
| 1960 | 1,876 | −24.8% | |
| 1970 | 1,924 | 2.6% | |
| 1980 | 2,297 | 19.4% | |
| 1990 | 2,334 | 1.6% | |
| 2000 | 3,754 | 60.8% | |
| 2010 | 4,034 | 7.5% | |
| 2020 | 3,697 | −8.4% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 3,709 | [13] | 0.3% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[14] 1790-1880[15] 1890-1910[16] 1920-1930[17] 1930-1940[18] 1940-1950[19] 1960-1980[20] 1980-2000[21] 2010[22] 2020[23] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2000[24] | Pop 2010[22] | Pop 2020[23] | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 2,688 | 2,555 | 2,328 | 71.60% | 63.34% | 62.97% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 252 | 163 | 147 | 6.71% | 4.04% | 3.98% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 43 | 55 | 37 | 1.15% | 1.36% | 1.00% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 3 | 12 | 8 | 0.08% | 0.30% | 0.22% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 0.02% | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 1 | 9 | 2 | 0.03% | 0.22% | 0.05% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | 28 | 56 | 84 | 0.75% | 1.39% | 2.27% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 739 | 1,183 | 1,091 | 19.69% | 29.33% | 29.51% |
| Total | 3,754 | 4,034 | 3,697 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the 2020 United States Census, there were 3,697 people, 1,561 households, and 1,097 families residing in the county.
Education
edit
Echols County School District, the only school district in the county,[25] operates public schools.
Politics
edit| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2024 | 1,307 | 90.89% | 127 | 8.83% | 4 | 0.28% |
| 2020 | 1,256 | 87.10% | 167 | 11.58% | 19 | 1.32% |
| 2016 | 1,007 | 85.19% | 156 | 13.20% | 19 | 1.61% |
| 2012 | 917 | 82.99% | 173 | 15.66% | 15 | 1.36% |
| 2008 | 981 | 82.58% | 201 | 16.92% | 6 | 0.51% |
| 2004 | 757 | 76.39% | 231 | 23.31% | 3 | 0.30% |
| 2000 | 614 | 68.37% | 272 | 30.29% | 12 | 1.34% |
| 1996 | 335 | 45.09% | 308 | 41.45% | 100 | 13.46% |
| 1992 | 361 | 39.63% | 312 | 34.25% | 238 | 26.13% |
| 1988 | 422 | 62.99% | 245 | 36.57% | 3 | 0.45% |
| 1984 | 453 | 66.62% | 227 | 33.38% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1980 | 259 | 33.08% | 515 | 65.77% | 9 | 1.15% |
| 1976 | 111 | 15.95% | 585 | 84.05% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1972 | 404 | 85.59% | 68 | 14.41% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 53 | 8.26% | 56 | 8.72% | 533 | 83.02% |
| 1964 | 399 | 68.44% | 184 | 31.56% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 108 | 29.59% | 257 | 70.41% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 134 | 20.24% | 528 | 79.76% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 94 | 15.02% | 532 | 84.98% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 32 | 5.14% | 332 | 53.38% | 258 | 41.48% |
| 1944 | 42 | 8.27% | 466 | 91.73% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 18 | 3.91% | 441 | 95.87% | 1 | 0.22% |
| 1936 | 30 | 9.06% | 300 | 90.63% | 1 | 0.30% |
| 1932 | 5 | 1.19% | 414 | 98.81% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1928 | 29 | 8.45% | 314 | 91.55% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 11 | 2.22% | 482 | 97.37% | 2 | 0.40% |
| 1916 | 0 | 0.00% | 173 | 100.00% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1912 | 0 | 0.00% | 144 | 97.30% | 4 | 2.70% |
| 1908 | 15 | 9.68% | 140 | 90.32% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1904 | 12 | 7.02% | 159 | 92.98% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1900 | 38 | 22.62% | 130 | 77.38% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1896 | 52 | 22.91% | 174 | 76.65% | 1 | 0.44% |
| 1892 | 54 | 16.07% | 270 | 80.36% | 12 | 3.57% |
| 1888 | 43 | 21.72% | 150 | 75.76% | 5 | 2.53% |
| 1884 | 91 | 32.85% | 186 | 67.15% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1880 | 40 | 17.78% | 185 | 82.22% | 0 | 0.00% |
See also
edit
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ "QA on the News: Are there any non-partisan commissions in Georgia?". The Atlanta Constitution. November 23, 2010 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp. 113.
- ^ "Lee County Georgia 1860 slaveholders and 1870 African Americans". sites.rootsweb.com. Retrieved January 12, 2019.
- ^ Bynum, Russ (November 11, 2001). "Georgia Communities Put Criminals on First Bus Out of Town". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Isaacs, Lindsay (2015). "Q&A/Rural county baffled by judges' punishment". American City and County. Penton.
- ^ Yung, Corey Rayburn (January 2007). "Banishment by a Thousand Laws: Residency Restrictions on Sex Offenders". Washington Law Review. 85 (1).
The majority opinion in Collett did not address the fact that any of the defendants sentenced to 158-county banishment would likely choose to live in Ware or Echols County. The result of the 158-county banishment sentences, while not technically ordering the defendants to leave the state, has been to cause such an exodus to occur.
- ^ "STATE v. COLLETT". Retrieved December 29, 2015.
- ^ Brumback, Kate. "Judge changes but won't lift Ga. man's banishment". Associated Press. Archived from the original on December 17, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- ^ "Whitehead Bay, Echols County". Retrieved May 26, 2012.
- ^ "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Archived from the original on October 3, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2015.
- ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
- ^ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ "1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1880.
- ^ "1910 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1910.
- ^ "1930 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1930.
- ^ "1940 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1940.
- ^ "1950 Census of Population - Georgia -" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1950.
- ^ "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1980.
- ^ "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000.
- ^ a b "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Echols County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ a b "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Echols County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Echols County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
- ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Echols County, GA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved September 27, 2024. - Text list
- ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
External links
edit- Echols County historical marker
- Wayfare or Cow Creek Church historical marker