Houston County (/ˈhaʊstən/ HOW-stən) is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. The population was 163,633 at the 2020 census.[1] Its county seat is Perry; the city of Warner Robins is substantially larger in both area and population.[2]
Houston County | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 32°28′N 83°40′W / 32.46°N 83.67°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Georgia |
Founded | May 15, 1821 |
Named for | John Houstoun |
Seat | Perry |
Largest city | Warner Robins |
Area | |
• Total | 380 sq mi (1,000 km2) |
• Land | 376 sq mi (970 km2) |
• Water | 4.4 sq mi (11 km2) 1.2% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 163,633 |
• Density | 373/sq mi (144/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
Congressional district | 8th |
Website | www |
The county was created on May 15, 1821, along with 4 other counties in the state, and later reduced in size with the formation of Bibb, Crawford, Pulaski, Macon, and Peach counties.[3] It was named after Georgia governor John Houstoun, with the spelling being a common 19th-century variation that later evolved to "Houston".[4] The pronunciation, however, remains to this day "howston."[5] The geographic center of the county was given the name Wattsville, which was later changed to Perry.[5]
Houston County is included in the Warner Robins, GA metropolitan statistical area, which in turn is included in the Macon-Warner Robins-Fort Valley combined statistical area. Flat Creek Public Fishing Area is in Houston County, south west of Perry.
Geography
editAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 380 square miles (980 km2), of which 376 square miles (970 km2) is land and 4.4 square miles (11 km2) (1.2%) is water.[6] The county is located in the upper Atlantic coastal plain region of the state.
The vast majority of Houston County is located in the Lower Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. The very northern edge of the county, north of Centerville and Warner Robins, is located in the Upper Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the same Altamaha River basin. The very southwestern corner of Houston County, well west of Interstate 75, is located in the Middle Flint River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin).[7]
Adjacent counties
edit- Bibb County - north
- Peach County - west
- Twiggs County - east
- Bleckley County - southeast
- Pulaski County - south-southeast
- Dooly County - south
- Macon County - southwest
Communities
editCities
edit- Byron (Partially)
- Centerville
- Perry (Slightly extends into Peach County, Georgia)
- Warner Robins
Census-designated place
editUnincorporated communities
editDemographics
editCensus | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1830 | 7,369 | — | |
1840 | 9,711 | 31.8% | |
1850 | 16,450 | 69.4% | |
1860 | 15,611 | −5.1% | |
1870 | 20,406 | 30.7% | |
1880 | 22,414 | 9.8% | |
1890 | 21,613 | −3.6% | |
1900 | 22,641 | 4.8% | |
1910 | 23,609 | 4.3% | |
1920 | 21,964 | −7.0% | |
1930 | 11,280 | −48.6% | |
1940 | 11,303 | 0.2% | |
1950 | 20,964 | 85.5% | |
1960 | 39,154 | 86.8% | |
1970 | 62,924 | 60.7% | |
1980 | 77,605 | 23.3% | |
1990 | 89,208 | 15.0% | |
2000 | 110,765 | 24.2% | |
2010 | 139,900 | 26.3% | |
2020 | 163,633 | 17.0% | |
2023 (est.) | 171,974 | [8] | 5.1% |
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] |
Race | Num. | Perc. |
---|---|---|
White (non-Hispanic) | 86,211 | 52.69% |
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 51,992 | 31.77% |
Native American | 339 | 0.21% |
Asian | 4,905 | 3.0% |
Pacific Islander | 124 | 0.08% |
Other/Mixed | 8,255 | 5.04% |
Hispanic or Latino | 11,807 | 7.22% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 163,633 people, 58,417 households, and 39,810 families residing in the county.
Education
editHouston County Schools operates public schools.[19]
Politics
editHouston County voted for conservative Democrats for most of the twentieth century, and gradually switched to voting for conservative Republicans closer to the century's end and into the twenty-first. In the 2018 gubernatorial election, while she did not carry Houston County, Stacey Abrams improved on Democratic margins in the county, improving five percent compared to Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential run and by four percent compared to Barack Obama's 2008 run. Houston was one of five counties not carried by Abrams which improved their Democratic margins.[20] In 2020, Joe Biden improved Democratic margins to their best since Jimmy Carter carried it in 1980. He also became the first non-Georgian Democrat to win 40 percent of the county's vote since 1960.
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2024 | 45,090 | 55.14% | 35,907 | 43.91% | 784 | 0.96% |
2020 | 41,540 | 55.48% | 32,239 | 43.06% | 1,093 | 1.46% |
2016 | 35,430 | 58.65% | 22,553 | 37.34% | 2,423 | 4.01% |
2012 | 34,662 | 59.58% | 22,702 | 39.02% | 811 | 1.39% |
2008 | 33,392 | 59.59% | 22,094 | 39.43% | 548 | 0.98% |
2004 | 29,862 | 66.03% | 15,054 | 33.29% | 310 | 0.69% |
2000 | 23,174 | 62.65% | 13,301 | 35.96% | 513 | 1.39% |
1996 | 17,050 | 52.18% | 12,760 | 39.05% | 2,868 | 8.78% |
1992 | 14,119 | 43.11% | 12,270 | 37.47% | 6,359 | 19.42% |
1988 | 15,748 | 64.02% | 8,664 | 35.22% | 185 | 0.75% |
1984 | 14,255 | 60.71% | 9,226 | 39.29% | 0 | 0.00% |
1980 | 9,005 | 43.51% | 10,915 | 52.74% | 775 | 3.74% |
1976 | 5,404 | 29.10% | 13,164 | 70.90% | 0 | 0.00% |
1972 | 13,576 | 84.16% | 2,556 | 15.84% | 0 | 0.00% |
1968 | 4,285 | 29.64% | 2,833 | 19.60% | 7,339 | 50.76% |
1964 | 6,532 | 60.53% | 4,258 | 39.46% | 1 | 0.01% |
1960 | 1,757 | 30.35% | 4,033 | 69.65% | 0 | 0.00% |
1956 | 1,060 | 19.12% | 4,483 | 80.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
1952 | 511 | 15.48% | 2,789 | 84.52% | 0 | 0.00% |
1948 | 204 | 9.85% | 1,437 | 69.35% | 431 | 20.80% |
1944 | 190 | 26.21% | 535 | 73.79% | 0 | 0.00% |
1940 | 149 | 19.30% | 622 | 80.57% | 1 | 0.13% |
1936 | 37 | 4.44% | 796 | 95.56% | 0 | 0.00% |
1932 | 27 | 5.54% | 460 | 94.46% | 0 | 0.00% |
1928 | 92 | 22.17% | 323 | 77.83% | 0 | 0.00% |
1924 | 75 | 4.39% | 1,611 | 94.27% | 23 | 1.35% |
1920 | 39 | 5.12% | 723 | 94.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
1916 | 52 | 5.98% | 806 | 92.64% | 12 | 1.38% |
1912 | 24 | 3.00% | 760 | 95.00% | 16 | 2.00% |
1908 | 27 | 2.58% | 855 | 81.58% | 166 | 15.84% |
1904 | 78 | 8.99% | 768 | 88.48% | 22 | 2.53% |
1900 | 81 | 9.11% | 798 | 89.76% | 10 | 1.12% |
1896 | 192 | 17.63% | 875 | 80.35% | 22 | 2.02% |
1892 | 507 | 20.48% | 1,953 | 78.88% | 16 | 0.65% |
1888 | 466 | 32.86% | 949 | 66.93% | 3 | 0.21% |
1884 | 433 | 24.99% | 1,300 | 75.01% | 0 | 0.00% |
1880 | 909 | 39.68% | 1,382 | 60.32% | 0 | 0.00% |
Transportation
editMajor highways
edit- Interstate 75
- U.S. Route 41
- U.S. Route 129
- U.S. Route 341
- State Route 7
- State Route 7 Spur
- State Route 11
- State Route 11 Business
- State Route 11 Connector
- State Route 26
- State Route 49
- State Route 96
- State Route 127
- State Route 224
- State Route 247
- State Route 247 Connector
- State Route 247 Spur
- State Route 329
- State Route 401 (unsigned designation for I-75)
Pedestrians and cycling
edit- Big Indian Creek Trail (Proposed)[22]
- Walker's Pond Trail
- Wellston Trail
- The Walk at Sandy Run Creek
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Census - Geography Profile: Houston County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ "Houston County". The New Georgia Encyclopedia. Georgia Humanities Council, in partnership with the University of Georgia Press, the University System of Georgia/GALILEO, and the Office of the Governor. Retrieved September 24, 2008.
- ^ "Houston County, Georgia - Centerville, Perry, Warner Robins - Georgia's Most Progressive County!".
- ^ a b "Houston County". The New Georgia Encyclopedia. Georgia Humanities Council, in partnership with the University of Georgia Press, the University System of Georgia/GALILEO, and the Office of the Governor. Retrieved September 1, 2016.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- ^ "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 24, 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.
- ^ "2016 Population Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
- ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- ^ "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Houston County, GA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022. - Text list
- ^ Regan-Porter, Tim (November 13, 2018). "Is Georgia red, blue or purple? Data shows rural, metro voters more divided than ever". Macon Telegraph. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
- ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
- ^ "Perry, Houston County considering 7.5 mile recreation trail".
External links
edit- Ripley, George; Dana, Charles A., eds. (1879). The American Cyclopædia. .
- Flint Electric Membership Corporation historical marker
- Houston County historical marker