Lee County, Georgia

Lee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 33,163. The county was established in 1825 and its county seat is Leesburg. Lee County is included in the Albany, Georgia metropolitan area.

History

The land for Lee, Muscogee, Troup, Coweta, and Carroll counties was ceded by the Creek people in the 1825 Treaty of Indian Springs. The counties' boundaries were created by the Georgia General Assembly on June 9, but they were not named until December 14, 1826. The county was named in honor of Henry Lee III, popularly known as "Light-Horse Harry," the father of Confederate general Robert E. Lee. On January 29, 1916, five African American men were lynched; they were taken from the Worth county jail and hanged, their bodies riddled with bullets. The Leesburg Stockade occurred in Lee County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.6%) is water. Most of the western three-quarters of Lee County is located in the Kinchafoonee-Muckalee sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The eastern quarter of the county is located in the Middle Flint River sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin, while a very small corner in the south of Lee County is located in the Lower Flint River sub-basin of the same larger ACF River Basin. An even smaller southwestern corner is located in the Ichawaynochaway Creek sub-basin of the ACF River Basin.

Major highways

20px U.S. Route 19
20px 20px U.S. Route 19 Bypass
20px U.S. Route 82
20px State Route 3
20px State Route 3 Bypass
20px State Route 32
20px State Route 91
23px State Route 118
23px State Route 133
23px State Route 195
23px State Route 377
23px State Route 520

Adjacent counties

Sumter County (north)
Crisp County (northeast)
Worth County (east)
Dougherty County (south)
Terrell County (west)

Communities

Leesburg (county seat)
Smithville

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Lee County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!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)

|8,804

|12,949

|20,203

|21,453

|style='background: #ffffe6; |22,758

|75.35%

|79.69%

|81.61%

|75.81%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |68.62%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|2,749

|3,112

|3,823

|5,239

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7,331

|23.53%

|19.15%

|15.44%

|18.51%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |22.11%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|22

|30

|60

|66

|style='background: #ffffe6; |57

|0.19%

|0.18%

|0.24%

|0.23%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.17%

|Asian alone (NH)

|24

|44

|208

|609

|style='background: #ffffe6; |850

|0.21%

|0.27%

|0.84%

|2.15%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.56%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|19

|style='background: #ffffe6; |9

|0.01%

|0.07%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.03%

|Other race alone (NH)

|11

|25

|style='background: #ffffe6; |98

|0.05%

|0.02%

|0.04%

|0.09%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.30%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|149

|327

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,107

|0.60%

|1.16%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.34%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|79

|112

|300

|560

|style='background: #ffffe6; |953

|0.68%

|0.69%

|1.21%

|1.98%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.87%

|Total

|11,684

|16,250

|24,757

|28,298

|style='background: #ffffe6; |33,163

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 33,163 people, 11,971 households, and 7,872 families residing in the county. The median age was 38.5 years; 25.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 98.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.1 males age 18 and over. 37.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 62.4% lived in rural areas.

Of the 11,971 households, 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Education

thumb|[[Lee County School District (Georgia)|Lee County School District headquarters]]

Public schools are operated by the Lee County School District. Lee County High School is the sole high school of the district.

Politics

Historically, Lee County was part of the solidly Democratic Solid South where control of the dominant black population dictated unified white voting for Democratic candidates due to the Republican association with Reconstruction and black political power. However, with a combination of the Great Migration and white in-migration, the black share of the county's population has declined and it is now powerfully Republican, having voted Republican in every presidential election since 1964, with the exception of 1968 and 1976 when it backed Southern “favorite sons” George Wallace and Jimmy Carter.

As of the 2020s, Lee County is a Republican stronghold, voting 71% for Donald Trump in 2024. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Lee County is part of Georgia's 2nd congressional district, currently represented by Sanford Bishop. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Lee County is part of District 13. For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Lee County is part of District 151.

References

External links

Official Website