Morgan County, Georgia
County in Georgia, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Morgan County is a county located in the north central Piedmont region and the lake country region of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,097.[1] The county seat is Madison.[2]
Morgan County, Georgia | |
|---|---|
Morgan County Courthouse in Madison | |
 Location within the U.S. state of Georgia | |
| Coordinates: 33°35′N 83°29′W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Georgia |
| Founded | December 10, 1807 |
| Seat | Madison |
| Largest city | Madison |
| Area | |
• Total | 361 sq mi (930 km2) |
| • Land | 345 sq mi (890 km2) |
| • Water | 16 sq mi (41 km2) 4.4% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 20,097 |
• Estimate (2025) | 22,095  |
| • Density | 58/sq mi (22/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 10th |
| Website | www |
Since the early 21st century, the county has had a housing boom. It has proximity to Lake Oconee, a recreation site, as well as to major employment centers such as Atlanta, Athens, Augusta and Macon.
History
Morgan County was created on December 10, 1807. It was named for renowned Revolutionary War commander Daniel Morgan. During the American Civil War, the county provided the Panola Guards, which was a part of Cobb's Legion.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 355 square miles (920 km2), of which 347 square miles (900 km2) is land and 7.3 square miles (19 km2) (2.1%) is water.[3] The entirety of Morgan County is located in the Upper Oconee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin.[4]
Major highways
I-20 / SR 402 – SR 402 is the unsigned designation for I-20
US 129 / US 441 / SR 24
US 129 Byp. / US 441 Byp. / SR 24 Byp. (Madison)
US 278 / SR 12
US 278 Truck / SR 12 Truck (Madison)
SR 83
SR 186
Adjacent counties
- Oconee County (north)
- Greene County (east)
- Putnam County (southeast)
- Jasper County (southwest)
- Newton County (west)
- Walton County (northwest)
National protected area
- Oconee National Forest (part)
Communities
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1810 | 8,369 | — | |
| 1820 | 13,520 | 61.5% | |
| 1830 | 12,046 | −10.9% | |
| 1840 | 9,121 | −24.3% | |
| 1850 | 10,744 | 17.8% | |
| 1860 | 9,997 | −7.0% | |
| 1870 | 10,696 | 7.0% | |
| 1880 | 14,032 | 31.2% | |
| 1890 | 16,041 | 14.3% | |
| 1900 | 15,813 | −1.4% | |
| 1910 | 19,717 | 24.7% | |
| 1920 | 20,143 | 2.2% | |
| 1930 | 12,488 | −38.0% | |
| 1940 | 12,713 | 1.8% | |
| 1950 | 11,899 | −6.4% | |
| 1960 | 10,280 | −13.6% | |
| 1970 | 9,904 | −3.7% | |
| 1980 | 11,572 | 16.8% | |
| 1990 | 12,883 | 11.3% | |
| 2000 | 15,457 | 20.0% | |
| 2010 | 17,868 | 15.6% | |
| 2020 | 20,097 | 12.5% | |
| 2025 (est.) | 22,095 | [5] | 9.9% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[6] 1790-1880[7] 1890-1910[8] 1920-1930[9] 1930-1940[10] 1940-1950[11] 1960-1980[12] 1980-2000[13] 2010[14] | |||
Racial and ethnic composition
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980[15] | Pop 1990[16] | Pop 2000[17] | Pop 2010[18] | Pop 2020[19] | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 6,761 | 8,293 | 10,619 | 12,814 | 14,487 | 58.43% | 64.37% | 68.70% | 71.71% | 72.09% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 4,689 | 4,436 | 4,385 | 4,199 | 4,105 | 40.52% | 34.43% | 28.37% | 23.50% | 20.43% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 9 | 11 | 21 | 45 | 42 | 0.08% | 0.09% | 0.14% | 0.25% | 0.21% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 10 | 26 | 51 | 106 | 122 | 0.09% | 0.20% | 0.33% | 0.59% | 0.61% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x [20] | x [21] | 1 | 0 | 1 | x | x | 0.01% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 0 | 0 | 12 | 17 | 68 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.08% | 0.10% | 0.34% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x [22] | x [23] | 120 | 193 | 560 | x | x | 0.78% | 1.08% | 2.79% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 103 | 117 | 248 | 494 | 712 | 0.89% | 0.91% | 1.60% | 2.76% | 3.54% |
| Total | 11,572 | 12,883 | 15,457 | 17,868 | 20,097 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 20,097. The median age was 43.1 years. 22.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.6 males age 18 and over. 23.4% of residents lived in urban areas, while 76.6% lived in rural areas.[24][25][26]
The racial makeup of the county was 72.7% White, 20.5% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.9% from some other race, and 4.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.5% of the population.[26]
There were 7,534 households in the county, of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 21.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[25]
There were 8,318 housing units, of which 9.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 76.1% were owner-occupied and 23.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.5%.[25]
Politics
As of the 2020s, Morgan County is a strongly Republican voting county, voting 72% for Donald Trump in 2024. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Morgan County is part of Georgia's 10th congressional district, currently represented by Mike Collins. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Morgan County is part of District 42.[27] For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Morgan County is part of District 114.[28]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 37 | 6.19% | 537 | 89.80% | 24 | 4.01% |
| 1916 | 58 | 7.63% | 643 | 84.61% | 59 | 7.76% |
| 1920 | 176 | 28.12% | 450 | 71.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 126 | 16.41% | 598 | 77.86% | 44 | 5.73% |
| 1928 | 208 | 20.57% | 803 | 79.43% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 74 | 7.36% | 923 | 91.75% | 9 | 0.89% |
| 1936 | 37 | 3.17% | 1,130 | 96.66% | 2 | 0.17% |
| 1940 | 24 | 4.72% | 484 | 95.28% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1944 | 51 | 4.18% | 1,166 | 95.50% | 4 | 0.33% |
| 1948 | 115 | 8.18% | 1,147 | 81.58% | 144 | 10.24% |
| 1952 | 247 | 13.03% | 1,649 | 86.97% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 246 | 14.15% | 1,492 | 85.85% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 373 | 20.04% | 1,488 | 79.96% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 1,485 | 47.31% | 1,654 | 52.69% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1968 | 616 | 20.67% | 973 | 32.65% | 1,391 | 46.68% |
| 1972 | 2,007 | 75.03% | 668 | 24.97% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1976 | 904 | 28.45% | 2,274 | 71.55% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1980 | 1,323 | 36.04% | 2,276 | 62.00% | 72 | 1.96% |
| 1984 | 2,301 | 57.31% | 1,714 | 42.69% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1988 | 2,108 | 58.10% | 1,508 | 41.57% | 12 | 0.33% |
| 1992 | 1,797 | 40.34% | 2,057 | 46.17% | 601 | 13.49% |
| 1996 | 2,118 | 45.92% | 2,111 | 45.77% | 383 | 8.30% |
| 2000 | 3,524 | 59.71% | 2,238 | 37.92% | 140 | 2.37% |
| 2004 | 4,902 | 67.64% | 2,304 | 31.79% | 41 | 0.57% |
| 2008 | 5,987 | 65.32% | 3,091 | 33.73% | 87 | 0.95% |
| 2012 | 6,186 | 68.42% | 2,753 | 30.45% | 102 | 1.13% |
| 2016 | 6,559 | 69.22% | 2,663 | 28.11% | 253 | 2.67% |
| 2020 | 8,231 | 70.29% | 3,353 | 28.63% | 126 | 1.08% |
| 2024 | 9,589 | 72.75% | 3,533 | 26.80% | 59 | 0.45% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 8,259 | 71.03% | 3,151 | 27.10% | 217 | 1.87% |
| 2020 | 7,730 | 71.40% | 3,097 | 28.60% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 4,360 | 37.68% | 2,392 | 20.67% | 4,818 | 41.64% |
| 2020 | 7,696 | 71.09% | 3,129 | 28.91% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2022 | 7,322 | 71.38% | 2,762 | 26.93% | 174 | 1.70% |
| 2022 | 6,851 | 72.10% | 2,651 | 27.90% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2022 | 7,764 | 75.19% | 2,473 | 23.95% | 89 | 0.86% |
Education
Public education is provided by the Morgan County School District.