Forest Park is a city in Clayton County, Georgia, United States. It is located approximately south of Atlanta and is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,932.
In the 1800s, Forest Park was named Stump Town, due to the large number of stumps left behind from trees being cut for fuel for the trains passing to and from Atlanta. After being charted and incorporated in 1908, it became known as several names, such as Quick Station, Aster, and Forrest Station. Until the 1950s, Forest Park was spelled with two "R's" instead of just one.
History
Forest Park has its origins as a "wood and water stop" for the nation's burgeoning railroad system in the early to mid-1800s. Originally the third stop from Atlanta on the Macon and Western Railroad, the city was incorporated in 1908. The community was named for the parklike setting of the original town site. The Fort Gillem was founded nearby in 1941 and was annexed into the city in 1973.
Geography
Forest Park is located at .
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.43%) is water.
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Forest Park city, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>
!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>
!Pop. 2000
!Pop. 2010
!
!% 2000
!% 2010
!
|-
|White alone (NH)
|7,557
|3,555
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,467
|35.24%
|19.25%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |12.38%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|7,883
|6,808
|style='background: #ffffe6; |9,268
|36.76%
|36.86%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |46.50%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|56
|23
|style='background: #ffffe6; |47
|0.26%
|0.12%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.24%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|1,268
|1,448
|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,375
|5.91%
|7.84%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |6.90%
|-
|Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|3
|7
|style='background: #ffffe6; |9
|0.01%
|0.04%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.05%
|-
|Some other race alone (NH)
|26
|34
|style='background: #ffffe6; |102
|0.12%
|0.18%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.51%
|-
|Mixed race or multi-racial (NH)
|332
|250
|style='background: #ffffe6; |467
|1.55%
|1.35%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.34%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|4,322
|6,343
|style='background: #ffffe6; |6,197
|20.15%
|34.35%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |31.09%
|-
|Total
|21,447
|18,468
|style='background: #ffffe6; |19,932
|100.00%
|100.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Forest Park had a population of 19,932. The median age was 33.5 years. 27.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 10.3% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 98.0 males age 18 and over.
There were 6,773 households and 4,038 families in Forest Park, of which 39.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 28.7% were married-couple households, 23.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 38.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census