McDuffie County, Georgia
County in Georgia, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
McDuffie County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,632.[1] The county seat is Thomson.[2] The county was created on October 18, 1870[3] and named after the South Carolina governor and senator George McDuffie.[4]
McDuffie County, Georgia | |
|---|---|
McDuffie County Courthouse in Thomson | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Georgia | |
| Coordinates: 33°29′N 82°29′W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Georgia |
| Founded | 1870 |
| Named after | George McDuffie |
| Seat | Thomson |
| Largest city | Thomson |
| Area | |
• Total | 266 sq mi (690 km2) |
| • Land | 257 sq mi (670 km2) |
| • Water | 8.9 sq mi (23 km2) 3.4% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 21,632 |
• Estimate (2025) | 21,640  |
| • Density | 84/sq mi (32/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 10th |
| Website | www |
McDuffie County is part of the Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC metropolitan statistical area.
History
Most communities located in the county were founded before the county was created. Some have faded into obscurity. The Historic Wrightsborough Foundation preserves the memory of the early 12,000 acre settlement of Wrightborough, which was occupied 1768 to 1920.[5]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 266 square miles (690 km2), of which 257 square miles (670 km2) is land and 8.9 square miles (23 km2) (3.4%) is water.[6]
Most of the southern half of McDuffie County, south of Thomson, is located in the Brier Creek sub-basin of the Savannah River basin, except for a slice of the eastern portion of the county, north of Dearing and along a north–south line running through Boneville, which is located in the Middle Savannah River sub-basin of the Savannah River basin. The northern half of McDuffie County, north of Thomson, is located in the Little River sub-basin of the same Savannah River basin.[7]
Major highways
Adjacent counties
- Lincoln County (northeast)
- Columbia County (east)
- Richmond County (southeast)
- Jefferson County (south)
- Warren County (west)
- Wilkes County (northwest)
Communities
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 9,449 | — | |
| 1890 | 8,789 | −7.0% | |
| 1900 | 9,804 | 11.5% | |
| 1910 | 10,325 | 5.3% | |
| 1920 | 11,509 | 11.5% | |
| 1930 | 9,014 | −21.7% | |
| 1940 | 10,878 | 20.7% | |
| 1950 | 11,443 | 5.2% | |
| 1960 | 12,627 | 10.3% | |
| 1970 | 15,276 | 21.0% | |
| 1980 | 18,546 | 21.4% | |
| 1990 | 20,119 | 8.5% | |
| 2000 | 21,231 | 5.5% | |
| 2010 | 21,875 | 3.0% | |
| 2020 | 21,632 | −1.1% | |
| 2025 (est.) | 21,640 | [8] | 0.0% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[9] 1790-1880[10] 1890-1910[11] 1920-1930[12] 1930-1940[13] 1940-1950[14] 1960-1980[15] 1980-2000[16] 2010[17] | |||
Racial and ethnic composition
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[18] | Pop 1990[19] | Pop 2000[20] | Pop 2010[21] | Pop 2020[22] | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 11,702 | 12,662 | 12,795 | 12,310 | 11,417 | 63.10% | 62.94% | 60.27% | 56.27% | 52.78% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 6,544 | 7,307 | 7,909 | 8,661 | 8,644 | 35.29% | 36.32% | 37.25% | 39.59% | 39.96% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 22 | 38 | 38 | 56 | 45 | 0.12% | 0.19% | 0.18% | 0.26% | 0.21% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 19 | 28 | 68 | 74 | 76 | 0.10% | 0.14% | 0.32% | 0.34% | 0.35% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x [23] | x [24] | 7 | 15 | 13 | x | x | 0.03% | 0.07% | 0.06% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 7 | 0 | 3 | 23 | 37 | 0.04% | 0.00% | 0.01% | 0.11% | 0.17% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x [25] | x [26] | 127 | 261 | 610 | x | x | 0.60% | 1.19% | 2.82% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 252 | 84 | 284 | 475 | 790 | 1.36% | 0.42% | 1.34% | 2.17% | 3.65% |
| Total | 18,546 | 20,119 | 21,231 | 21,875 | 21,632 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 21,632 and 5,770 families. The median age was 42.1 years. 23.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older.[27][28]
For every 100 females there were 88.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 85.2 males age 18 and over. 40.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 59.4% lived in rural areas.[27][28]
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 11,417 | 52.78% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 8,644 | 39.96% |
| Native American | 45 | 0.21% |
| Asian | 76 | 0.35% |
| Pacific Islander | 13 | 0.06% |
| Other/Mixed | 647 | 2.99% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 790 | 3.65% |
The racial makeup of the county was 53.5% White, 40.1% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.6% from some other race, and 4.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.7% of the population.[30]
There were 8,589 households in the county, of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 34.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[28]
There were 9,390 housing units, of which 8.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 66.0% were owner-occupied and 34.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.8%.[28]
Education
Politics
Typical of many counties in Georgia and the Solid South, McDuffie County mainly backed candidates of the Democratic Party in presidential elections by wide margins prior to 1964. There were several exceptions to this, firstly between 1892 and 1908 when it supported Republican William McKinley and the Populist candidacies of James B. Weaver and favorite son Thomas E. Watson.[31]
As of the 2020s, McDuffie County is a strongly Republican voting county, voting 62% for Donald Trump in 2024. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, McDuffie County is part of Georgia's 12th congressional district, currently represented by Rick Allen. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, McDuffie County is part of District 25.[32] For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, McDuffie County is divided between districts 125 and 128.[33]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 9 | 2.33% | 271 | 70.21% | 106 | 27.46% |
| 1916 | 70 | 11.65% | 466 | 77.54% | 65 | 10.82% |
| 1920 | 109 | 22.20% | 382 | 77.80% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 37 | 6.61% | 267 | 47.68% | 256 | 45.71% |
| 1928 | 381 | 55.62% | 304 | 44.38% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 29 | 4.80% | 568 | 94.04% | 7 | 1.16% |
| 1936 | 98 | 12.11% | 705 | 87.14% | 6 | 0.74% |
| 1940 | 75 | 7.20% | 959 | 92.12% | 7 | 0.67% |
| 1944 | 187 | 19.04% | 795 | 80.96% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 58 | 3.87% | 182 | 12.13% | 1,260 | 84.00% |
| 1952 | 933 | 44.32% | 1,172 | 55.68% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 649 | 38.45% | 1,039 | 61.55% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 1,039 | 49.06% | 1,079 | 50.94% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 2,657 | 70.27% | 1,124 | 29.73% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 1,324 | 32.89% | 992 | 24.65% | 1,709 | 42.46% |
| 1972 | 2,990 | 75.01% | 996 | 24.99% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1976 | 1,694 | 35.91% | 3,024 | 64.09% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1980 | 1,928 | 41.17% | 2,667 | 56.95% | 88 | 1.88% |
| 1984 | 3,284 | 62.08% | 2,006 | 37.92% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1988 | 3,231 | 65.04% | 1,704 | 34.30% | 33 | 0.66% |
| 1992 | 2,955 | 45.69% | 2,640 | 40.82% | 873 | 13.50% |
| 1996 | 3,254 | 50.96% | 2,725 | 42.68% | 406 | 6.36% |
| 2000 | 3,926 | 59.94% | 2,580 | 39.39% | 44 | 0.67% |
| 2004 | 4,846 | 62.29% | 2,899 | 37.26% | 35 | 0.45% |
| 2008 | 5,400 | 57.11% | 3,989 | 42.19% | 66 | 0.70% |
| 2012 | 5,475 | 57.00% | 4,044 | 42.10% | 86 | 0.90% |
| 2016 | 5,432 | 58.27% | 3,699 | 39.68% | 191 | 2.05% |
| 2020 | 6,169 | 59.00% | 4,168 | 39.86% | 119 | 1.14% |
| 2024 | 6,562 | 62.01% | 3,937 | 37.20% | 83 | 0.78% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 6,198 | 59.77% | 3,968 | 38.26% | 204 | 1.97% |
| 2020 | 5,502 | 59.58% | 3,733 | 40.42% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 3,503 | 34.00% | 2,387 | 23.17% | 4,412 | 42.83% |
| 2020 | 5,480 | 59.36% | 3,752 | 40.64% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2022 | 5,067 | 61.04% | 3,103 | 37.38% | 131 | 1.58% |
| 2022 | 4,717 | 61.18% | 2,993 | 38.82% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2022 | 5,283 | 63.52% | 2,978 | 35.81% | 56 | 0.67% |