Heard County is a county located in the West Central region of the U.S. state of Georgia. At the 2020 census, the population was 11,412, down from 11,834 in 2010. The county seat is Franklin. The county was created on December 22, 1830.
Heard County is included in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell MSA.
History
Heard County was created by Act of the Legislature on December 22, 1830. It was named for Stephen Heard, elected President of the Council on February 18, 1781, thus, in the absence of Governor Howley, becoming Governor de facto. Heard moved to Wilkes County from Hanover County, Virginia, and fought in the American Revolutionary War where he distinguished himself at Kettle Creek. The first sheriff, Jonathan Mewsick, was commissioned in 1832.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.7%) is water.
The vast majority of Heard County is located in the Middle Chattahoochee River-Lake Harding sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin), with just a very small northwestern corner of the county, west of Ephesus, located in the Upper Tallapoosa River sub-basin of the ACT River Basin (Coosa-Tallapoosa River Basin).
Major highways
- 20px U.S. Route 27
- 20px State Route 1
- 20px State Route 34
- 25px State Route 100
- 25px State Route 219
Adjacent counties
- Carroll County (north)
- Coweta County (east)
- Troup County (south)
- Randolph County, Alabama (west/Central Time border)
Communities
Cities
- Ephesus
- Franklin (county seat)
Towns
- Centralhatchee
Census-designated places
- Glenn
Unincorporated communities
- Corinth (part)
- Texas
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Heard County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition<br><small></small>
!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>
!Pop 1980
!Pop 1990
!Pop 2000
!Pop 2010
!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020
!% 1980
!% 1990
!% 2000
!% 2010
!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020
|-
|White alone (NH)
|5,352
|7,378
|9,580
|10,190
|style='background: #ffffe6; |9,589
|82.09%
|85.51%
|87.00%
|86.11%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |84.03%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|1,084
|1,150
|1,181
|1,152
|style='background: #ffffe6; |930
|16.63%
|13.33%
|10.72%
|9.73%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |8.15%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|17
|12
|34
|32
|style='background: #ffffe6; |33
|0.26%
|0.14%
|0.31%
|0.27%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.29%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|9
|20
|11
|56
|style='background: #ffffe6; |53
|0.14%
|0.23%
|0.10%
|0.47%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.46%
|-
|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|x
|x
|7
|2
|style='background: #ffffe6; |4
|x
|x
|0.06%
|0.02%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.04%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|1
|0
|18
|4
|style='background: #ffffe6; |29
|0.02%
|0.00%
|0.16%
|0.03%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.25%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|x
|x
|65
|175
|style='background: #ffffe6; |521
|x
|x
|0.59%
|1.48%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |4.57%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|57
|68
|116
|223
|style='background: #ffffe6; |253
|0.87%
|0.79%
|1.05%
|1.88%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.22%
|-
|Total
|6,520
|8,628
|11,012
|11,834
|style='background: #ffffe6; |11,412
|100.00%
|100.00%
|100.00%
|100.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 11,412, 4,278 households, and 3,254 families residing in the county. The median age was 41.0 years, with 23.8% of residents under the age of 18 and 16.0% aged 65 years or older.
For every 100 females there were 97.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.1 males age 18 and over. None of the residents lived in urban areas while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 4,278 households in the county, of which 33.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 24.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Heard County is part of District 72.
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Education
The Heard County School District has five schools, including the Heard County High School.
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Heard County, Georgia
- List of counties in Georgia
References
External links
- Heard County historical marker
- Heard County Jail historical marker